Wordsmith.org: the magic of words

Wordsmith Talk

About Us | What's New | Search | Site Map | Contact Us  

Previous Thread
Next Thread
Print Thread
#103139 05/12/03 05:04 AM
Joined: Apr 2000
Posts: 3,065
B
Bingley Offline OP
Carpal Tunnel
OP Offline
Carpal Tunnel
B
Joined: Apr 2000
Posts: 3,065
a. adj. - macabre, eerie. (derived by contraction from samhain)
submitted by sjm

b. sanitation, general health environment: "The low level of sain in most third-world countries creates a burden for their hospitals."
submitted by wofahulidoc

c. to bless, especially by making the sign of the cross over someone.
the correct answer, chosen by tsuwm and Coffeebean

d. Acronym. SAIN was used between novices in celibate communities and was written across the sealed flap of an envelope, usually together with a cross, and stood for Signum Anti Impius Necessitas. The novices, with their poor command of Latin, used this as a translation of ‘sealed against wicked desires’ and it represented their fight against carnality.
submitted by dxb

e. A form of precipitation which is mostly rain but has some snow or sleet content. An expression from northern England.
submitted by Capfka, chosen by Capfka

f. the line of debris left on a beach at the high tide mark.
submitted by Whitman O'Neill, chosen by etaoin, sjm, dxb

g. [baseball] term used to describe a once successful major league pitcher who later succeeds as a pitching coach--after Johnny Sain, "Spahn and Sain and pray for rain."
submitted by tsuwm

h. From the Scots Gaelic sabbhain; "to your health".
submitted by Jackie

i. Name of a plant found in W. England and Wales whose leaves were often used in poultices; (dialect) a poultice.
submitted by bingley, chosen by Jackie, faldage, AnnaStrophic, wordwind

j. A substance derived from shellfish used in making incense.
submitted by Coffeebean, chosen by consuelo, maahey

k. A device for seeding clouds for the purpose of producing rain.
submitted by faldage

l. The diameter of a globular body; the diameter of a solid spheroid, especially of a cannonball
submitted by Wordwind, chosen by wofahulidoc, Whitman O'Neill

Bingley


Bingley
Joined: Sep 2001
Posts: 6,296
W
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Carpal Tunnel
W
Joined: Sep 2001
Posts: 6,296
Well, Bingley, congratulations on suckering four of us! I thought yours could possibly be the correct definition because of sain and the French connection.


Joined: Jun 2001
Posts: 2,636
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Jun 2001
Posts: 2,636
I told my mother about this word last weekend so after I left she looked it up. It's in the Scrabble dictionary[look-of-great-surprise-e]


Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 6,511
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 6,511
I think dixbie should receive an hono(u)rable mention for his daffynition.


Joined: Apr 2000
Posts: 3,065
B
Bingley Offline OP
Carpal Tunnel
OP Offline
Carpal Tunnel
B
Joined: Apr 2000
Posts: 3,065
My dictionary did mark it as Not US. I found the word in one of Ellis Peters's novels, and noted the passage, but have now lost my note, so I can't find the passage again. It comes via OE from Latin signum (which more recently gave us sign). Perhaps websafe or tsuwm could post the OED entry for us. The fact that Ellis Peters's detective, Brother Cadfael, is a herbalist inspired my poultice definition.

Bingley


Bingley
Joined: Mar 2001
Posts: 4,189
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Mar 2001
Posts: 4,189
So, in light of the blessing definition, is sain related to saint?


Joined: Sep 2001
Posts: 6,296
W
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Carpal Tunnel
W
Joined: Sep 2001
Posts: 6,296
Saint--etymology, Whit':

"Etymology: Middle English, from Old French, from Late Latin sanctus, from Latin, sacred, from past participle of sancire to make sacred" (MW Online)



Moderated by  Jackie 

Link Copied to Clipboard
Forum Statistics
Forums16
Topics13,912
Posts229,283
Members9,179
Most Online3,341
Dec 9th, 2011
Newest Members
TRIALNERRA, befuddledmind, KILL_YOUR_SUV, Heather_Turey, Standy
9,179 Registered Users
Who's Online Now
0 members (), 302 guests, and 2 robots.
Key: Admin, Global Mod, Mod
Top Posters(30 Days)
Top Posters
wwh 13,858
Faldage 13,803
Jackie 11,613
tsuwm 10,542
wofahulicodoc 10,510
LukeJavan8 9,916
AnnaStrophic 6,511
Wordwind 6,296
of troy 5,400
Disclaimer: Wordsmith.org is not responsible for views expressed on this site. Use of this forum is at your own risk and liability - you agree to hold Wordsmith.org and its associates harmless as a condition of using it.

Home | Today's Word | Yesterday's Word | Subscribe | FAQ | Archives | Search | Feedback
Wordsmith Talk | Wordsmith Chat

© 1994-2024 Wordsmith

Powered by UBB.threads™ PHP Forum Software 7.7.5