Word of the Day
sartorial
adjective
of or relating to clothing or style or manner of dress.
More about sartorial
The adjective sartorial, 鈥渞elating to tailors or tailoring,鈥� is a derivative of the Late Latin noun sartor (inflectional stem 蝉补谤迟艒谤-) 鈥渁 tailor,鈥� a derivative of the verb 蝉补谤肠墨谤别 鈥渢o patch, mend.鈥� One of the many duties of Roman censors was to let out contracts for the repair and maintenance of public buildings, roads, bridges, etc., the technical phrase for these operations being sarta tecta (neuter plural) 鈥渞epairs,鈥� literally 鈥渕ended roofs, patched roofs, weatherproof buildings.鈥� But as Rome鈥檚 power grew, so did opportunities for corruption in the competition for lucrative contracts. Sartorial entered English in the first half of the 19th century.
how is sartorial used?
At least at first, sweatpants followed a common sartorial route. … Items of clothing tend to become divorced from their origins as they become wardrobe staples, and the pipeline from sports to everyday life has been a fruitful one for our closets.
The Duke鈥檚 style was in direct contrast to the stodgy, hidebound and somewhat half-hearted sartorial style of his father-in-law, King George VI. Phillip, as an energetic sportsman (sailing, cricket, polo), exhibited a flair for wearing clothes comfortably and without controversy.
sartorial
plenipotent
adjective
invested with or possessing full power.
More about plenipotent
The adjective plenipotent,鈥渋nvested with or possessing full power,鈥� comes from Late Latin 辫濒脓苍颈辫辞迟别苍迟– (stem of 辫濒脓苍颈辫辞迟脓苍蝉), which is composed of 辫濒脓苍颈-, the combining form of 辫濒脓苍耻蝉 鈥渇ull鈥� and potent-, the combining form of 辫辞迟脓苍蝉, the present participle of posse 鈥渢o be able, have power.鈥� Plenipotent is not as common in English as its close relative, the adjective and noun plenipotentiary (as a noun, plenipotentiary usually refers to a diplomat with full power to conduct business or negotiations.) Plenipotent entered English in 1639; plenipotentiary in 1646.
how is plenipotent used?
In his youth he drudged 12 hours a day, at a salary of 4 shillings a week ($1.00). Last week he welcomed to the sumptuous mayoral board a company of diners plenipotent and distinguished.
Nature, impassive and聽plenipotent, waits to reward or punish us.
plenipotent
hapax legomenon
noun
a word or phrase that appears only once in a manuscript, document, or particular area of literature.
More about hapax legomenon
The phrase hapax legomenon, 鈥渁 word or phrase appearing only once in literature,鈥� comes from Greek 丑谩辫补虫 legomenon, composed of the adverb 丑谩辫补虫 鈥渙nce, one time鈥� and the neuter singular present passive participle 濒别驳贸尘别苍辞苍 鈥�(being) said,鈥� from the verb 濒茅驳别颈苍 鈥渢o say.鈥� (Hapax is also used by itself in English as a noun; the plural of hapax legomenon is hapax legomena.) One famous hapax鈥攁s far as these things go鈥攊s the adjective 别辫颈辞煤蝉颈辞苍 in the phrase 谩谤迟辞苍鈥� 别辫颈辞煤蝉颈辞苍 in the clause 鈥�(Give us this day our) daily bread,鈥� in the Lord鈥檚 Prayer in the gospels of St. Matthew and St. Luke. The Greek noun 谩谤迟辞蝉 means 鈥渨heat bread, bread (in general)鈥� and presents no problem. 贰辫颈辞煤蝉颈辞苍 may mean 鈥�(enough) for today, today’s, next day鈥檚, necessary, sufficient.鈥� 贰辫颈辞煤蝉颈辞苍 is variously translated in Latin: one of them, 辩耻辞迟墨诲颈腻苍耻尘 鈥渄aily,鈥� is an inadequate, even wrong translation of 别辫颈辞煤蝉颈辞苍, but it was used in Tyndale鈥檚 translation of the Bible (1534) and the King James Bible (1611), and it is used today in most modern English translations. Hapax legomenon entered English in the late 17th century.
how is hapax legomenon used?
I have no such grand designs in this essay, nor could I possibly discuss all of the hapax legomena in just The Lord of the Rings, not even in the most cursory fashion because there are more than five thousand of them.
The adjective 蠁慰位魏蠈蟼 is an absolute hapax legomenon in the Greek language: it occurs only here and in some ancient scholia, lexica, and commentaries on this very passage.
hapax legomenon