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Word for Wednesday: Ghoul

Our Word for Wednesday theme for October is Halloween. The word Halloween likely dates to the seventeenth century but was popularised in the Burns poem ‘Halloween’ which was written in 1785. It is a Scottish abbreviation of ‘Allhallow-even’ which means ‘Eve of the All Saints’.  ‘Hallow’ means ‘holy person’ or ‘saint’.  Over October, we’ve looked at the words witch, banshee, and zombie. Our final word for the month is ghoul. A figure of Arabic folklore, the ghoul is a demonic being or evil spirit that robs graves and feasts on human flesh. In some stories, ghouls...

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Word for Wednesday: Zombie

Our Word for Wednesday theme for October is Halloween. The word Halloween likely dates to the seventeenth century but was popularised in the Burns poem ‘Halloween’ which was written in 1785. It is a Scottish abbreviation of ‘Allhallow-even’ which means ‘Eve of the All Saints’.  ‘Hallow’ means ‘holy person’ or ‘saint’.  So far, we’ve looked at the words witch and banshee. Today’s word of the week is zombie. A zombie, a figure of Haitian folklore, is a dead body that has been reanimated by supernatural spirits or forces. Today, the zombie exists in popula...

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Word for Wednesday: Banshee

Our Word for Wednesday theme for October is Halloween. The word Halloween likely dates to the seventeenth century but was popularised in the Burns poem ‘Halloween’ which was written in 1785. It is a Scottish abbreviation of ‘Allhallow-even’ which means ‘Eve of the All Saints’.  ‘Hallow’ means ‘holy person’ or ‘saint’.  Last week, we looked at the word witch and today’s word is banshee. A banshee is a female spirit from Irish folklore whose wailing, screeching, or keening foretells impending death. The word banshee has been used in English since 1711 and is a phonetic s...

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Word for Wednesday: Witch

Our Word for Wednesday theme for October is Halloween. The word Halloween likely dates to the seventeenth century but was popularised in the Burns poem ‘Halloween’ which was written in 1785. It is a Scottish abbreviation of ‘Allhallow-even’ which means ‘Eve of the All Saints’.  ‘Hallow’ means ‘holy person’ or ‘saint’.  Our first word for the month is witch. A witch is a (usually female) being who practises sorcery or magic known as witchcraft. In medieval and early modern Europe, witches were thought to have supernatural powers from communing with the devil and other evil be...

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Word for Wednesday: Trick-or-treat

Our Word for Wednesday theme for October is Halloween. The word Halloween likely dates to the seventeenth century but was popularised in the Burns poem ‘Halloween’ which was written in 1785. It is a Scottish abbreviation of ‘Allhallow-even’ which means ‘Eve of the All Saints’.  ‘Hallow’ means ‘holy person’ or ‘saint’.  Over the last few weeks, we’ve looked at the words pumpkin, monster, and skeleton. For our final Halloween-themed post of the month, we’ve chosen trick-or-treat.  Trick-or-treating is a Halloween tradition in which costumed children visit ne...

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Word for Wednesday: Skeleton

Our Word for Wednesday theme for October is Halloween. The word Halloween likely dates to the seventeenth century but was popularised in the Burns poem ‘Halloween’ which was written in 1785. It is a Scottish abbreviation of ‘Allhallow-even’ which means ‘Eve of the All Saints’.  ‘Hallow’ means ‘holy person’ or ‘saint’.  So far we’ve looked at the words pumpkin and monster. Today’s word is skeleton.  A skeleton is the hard structure of bones and cartilages that provides a frame for the body. Animated skeletons have been used to personify death since the Middle Ag...

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Word for Wednesday: Monster

Our Word for Wednesday theme for October is Halloween. The word Halloween likely dates to the seventeenth century but was popularised in the Burns poem ‘Halloween’ which was written in 1785. It is a Scottish abbreviation of ‘Allhallow-even’ which means ‘Eve of the All Saints’.  ‘Hallow’ means ‘holy person’ or ‘saint’.  Last week, we looked at the word pumpkin. Today’s word is monster.  A monster is a frightening imaginary creature that is usually depicted with various animal and human parts. The word is also used to describe a cruel or evil person.  Monster c...

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Word for Wednesday: Pumpkin

Our Word for Wednesday theme for October is Halloween. The word Halloween likely dates to the seventeenth century but was popularised in the Burns poem ‘Halloween’ which was written in 1785. It is a Scottish abbreviation of ‘Allhallow-even’ which means ‘Eve of the All Saints’.  ‘Hallow’ means ‘holy person’ or ‘saint’.  Our first Halloween-themed word of the month is pumpkin. A pumpkin is a round orange Autumn squash that has become associated with Halloween due to the time of year it matures. Pumpkins are used in both sweet and savoury dishes. Since 2003, when Starbucks first introduced the drink,...

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