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Word for Wednesday: Mustard

Our Word for Wednesday theme for August is condiments. A condiment is added to food to enhance its flavour. The word has been used in English since the mid-fifteenth century and comes from the Latin ‘condire’ meaning ‘to pickle’. As Saturday August 5th marks National Mustard Day – a celebration of all things mustard that started in Wisconsin in 1991 – we couldn’t resist choosing the spicy condiment for our first word of the week. Mustard is a pungent yellow or brown paste made from ground mustard seeds. It has a strong hot taste and is often eaten with meat. Though mustard was likely eaten by ancient civilisations, the word firs...

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Word for Wednesday: Brown

In February, we are continuing with the Word for Wednesday theme of colours.  The word colour entered English via Old French and comes from the Latin ‘color’, from the Old Latin ‘colos’ meaning ‘a covering’, from the PIE root ‘kel-’ meaning ‘to conceal’. The word has been used in reference to skin colour since the early-thirteenth century and in reference to pigments and dye since the fourteenth century.  The spelling colour became the common English spelling from the fourteenth century, but a classical correction made color an alternative from the fifteenth...

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Word for Wednesday: Pink

In February, we are continuing with the Word for Wednesday theme of colours.  The word colour entered English via Old French and comes from the Latin ‘color’, from the Old Latin ‘colos’ meaning ‘a covering’, from the PIE root ‘kel-’ meaning ‘to conceal’. The word has been used in reference to skin colour since the early-thirteenth century and in reference to pigments and dye since the fourteenth century.  The spelling colour became the common English spelling from the fourteenth century, but a classical correction made color an alternative from the fifteenth...

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Word for Wednesday: Purple

In February, we are continuing with the Word for Wednesday theme of colours.  The word colour entered English via Old French and comes from the Latin ‘color’, from the Old Latin ‘colos’ meaning ‘a covering’, from the PIE root ‘kel-’ meaning ‘to conceal’. The word has been used in reference to skin colour since the early-thirteenth century and in reference to pigments and dye since the fourteenth century.  The spelling colour became the common English spelling from the fourteenth century, but a classical correction made color an alternative from the fifteenth...

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Word for Wednesday: Blue

In February, we are continuing with the Word for Wednesday theme of colours.  The word colour entered English via Old French and comes from the Latin ‘color’, from the Old Latin ‘colos’ meaning ‘a covering’, from the PIE root ‘kel-’ meaning ‘to conceal’. The word has been used in reference to skin colour since the early-thirteenth century and in reference to pigments and dye since the fourteenth century.  The spelling colour became the common English spelling from the fourteenth century, but a classical correction made color an alternative from the fifteenth...

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Word for Wednesday: Green

Our Word for Wednesday theme for January is colours.  The word colour entered English via Old French and comes from the Latin ‘color’, from the Old Latin ‘colos’ meaning ‘a covering’, from the PIE root ‘kel-’ meaning ‘to conceal’. The word has been used in reference to skin colour since the early-thirteenth century and in reference to pigments and dye since the fourteenth century.  The spelling colour became the common English spelling from the fourteenth century, but a classical correction made color an alternative from the fifteenth century. Color&nbs...

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Word for Wednesday: Yellow

Our Word for Wednesday theme for January is colours.  The word colour entered English via Old French and comes from the Latin ‘color’, from the Old Latin ‘colos’ meaning ‘a covering’, from the PIE root ‘kel-’ meaning ‘to conceal’. The word has been used in reference to skin colour since the early-thirteenth century and in reference to pigments and dye since the fourteenth century.  The spelling colour became the common English spelling from the fourteenth century, but a classical correction made color an alternative from the fifteenth century. Color&nbs...

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