Word of the Day
mehndi
noun
the art or practice of painting elaborate patterns on the skin with henna.
More about mehndi
Mehndi, “the art of painting patterns with henna,” is a borrowing from Hindi. Hindi and numerous other languages of the Indian subcontinent (including Bengali, Marathi, and Punjabi) come from Sanskrit. In this way, the earliest known source of mehndi is Sanskrit mendhī (also mendhikā), “the henna plant,” which is of uncertain origin. Today, although most languages that descended from Sanskrit are spoken in India and its adjacent countries, Romani is among a handful spoken elsewhere in Eurasia. Mehndi was first recorded in English in the late 1990s.
EXAMPLE OF MEHNDI USED IN A SENTENCE
Her sister practiced the beautiful, intricate patterns of mehndi on us.
decalcomania
noun
the art or process of transferring pictures or designs from specially prepared paper to wood, metal, glass, etc.
More about decalcomania
Decalcomania, “the art of transferring pictures from paper to another medium,” is adapted from French décalcomanie, equivalent to décalquer, “to transfer a tracing of,” plus English -mania. The verb décalquer is based on Italian calcare, “to stomp, trample,” ultimately from Latin calx, “heel.” From this same source comes calque, also known as a loan translation. One common example of a calque is brainwashing (from Mandarin Chinese xǐ nǎo “to wash the brain”). For other words descended from Latin calx, check out the Words of the Day cantrip and inculcate. Decalcomania was first recorded in English in the early 1860s.
EXAMPLE OF DECALCOMANIA USED IN A SENTENCE
With the right materials, decalcomania can make images leap off the page and onto a variety of other surfaces.
netsuke
noun
a small figure of ivory, wood, metal, or ceramic, originally used as a buttonlike fixture on a man's sash, from which small personal belongings were hung.
More about netsuke
Netsuke “a small figure used on a man’s sash” is a loanword from Japanese that is equivalent to ne, “root,” combined with tsukeru, “to attach.” In English, the Hepburn system is widely used for transliterating Japanese into the Roman alphabet, and one feature of this system is that it romanizes Japanese vowels using their counterparts in Romance languages such as Italian and Spanish. The one Japanese vowel that differs substantially from its closest Romance equivalent is u; Japanese u is pronounced as “oo” in boot but with the lips unrounded—similar to English “oo,” as in book. In certain syllables, the u is voiceless, which sounds in English as if there is no vowel at all. This is why Japanese netsuke is typically pronounced in English variously as “net-skey,” “net-suh-key,” “net-soo-key,” or “net-soo-key.” Netsuke was first recorded in English in the early 1880s.
EXAMPLE OF NETSUKE USED IN A SENTENCE
He had left behind his favorite sash with a two-horned dragon netsuke on it, making everyone worry about his swift departure.