Our Word for Wednesday theme this month is fireworks. A firework is a device with an explosive that burns with coloured flames. The word dates to the 1570s fro Over November we’ve looked at the words sparkler, fountain, and Catherine wheel. Our final fireworks-themed word for the month is rocket. A rocket is a firework that propels high into the sky when lit and produces sparks and whistles. The word has been used since the 1610s and comes from the Italian ‘rocchetto’ which means 'bobbin' (in reference to how a rocket spins), from ‘rocca’ meaning ‘distaff’. The word took on its space-related meaning in ...
This month’s Word for Wednesday theme is fireworks. A firework is a device with an explosive that burns with coloured flames. The word dates to the 1570s from the Old English ‘fyr’ and ‘work’. So far we’ve looked at sparklers and fountains. Our third firework for November is the Catherine wheel. A Catherine wheel is a spinning firework that emits colourful sparks. It is usually affixed to something solid like a wall before being lit. The Catherine wheel is named after St Catherine of Alexandria who was sentenced to death on a spiked wheel which broke at her touch. She was instead executed by beheading. The wo...
November’s Word for Wednesday theme is fireworks. A firework is a device with an explosive that burns with coloured flames. The word dates to the 1570s from the Old English ‘fyr’ and ‘work’. Last week we looked at the word sparkler and today’s word is fountain. A fountain is a firework which is propped in the ground and, once lit, erupts a shower of sparks in the shape of a water fountain. Fountains often produce whistling sounds and bangs. The word fountain, in reference to a spring of water, dates to the early-fifteenth century and comes from Old French ‘fontaine’, from the Medieval Latin ‘fontana...
With Diwali and Bonfire Night falling back-to-back this week, we can expect plenty of glitter and sparkle lighting up our skies. To celebrate, we’ve chosen fireworks as our Word for Wednesday theme for November. A firework is a device with an explosive that burns with coloured flames. The word dates to the 1570s from the Old English ‘fyr’ and ‘work’. Our first fireworks-themed word of the month is sparkler. A sparkler is a handheld firework that burns slowly and produce sparks. The word sparkler has been used in reference to this type of firework since 1905, and more generally in reference to anything that sparkles since 1713. The word sparkle day...
Can you believe December starts tomorrow? We're going to be sharing Advent Anagrams next month, so if you enjoy a good puzzle, make sure you stay tuned! In the meantime, here's a round-up of this month's posts! I've spent November exploring the influences of Latin on the English language. I finally know what 'ad hoc' means, and have developed a (perhaps unhealthy) habit of telling every new person I meet where 'Thursday' got its name from. You can find the links to my posts below. Latin expressions in English - Part One Latin expressions in English - Part Two Where the months get their names from Where the days of the week get their names fr...
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