costard

[ kos-terd, kaw-sterd ]

noun

1. a large English variety of apple.
2. Archaic. the head.

costard

/ ˈkʌstəd /

noun

1. an English variety of apple tree
2. the large ribbed apple of this tree
3. archaic.
   a slang word for head

Word History and Origins

Origin of costard¹

1250–1300; Middle English, perhaps < Anglo-French, equivalent to coste rib ( coast ) + -ard -ard, alluding to the ridges or ribs of the variety

Word History and Origins

Origin of costard¹

C14: from Anglo-Norman, from Old French coste rib

Example Sentences

François Costard, a geomorphologist at the University of Paris-Sud, is at the forefront of work investigating surface features on Mars for historic evidence of oceans.

From Nature

In 2017, a team led by François Costard, a planetary geomorphologist at the French National Center for Scientific Research, used computer modeling to reproduce the mega-tsunamis most likely to have created those thumbprint terrains.

From New York Times

For the new paper, Dr. Costard and his colleagues examined these candidate craters and ultimately zeroed in on Lomonosov, which was likely forged by a 9-by-12 mile meteor in just the right place at just the right time.

From New York Times

Study author Francois Costard, a scientist at the French National Centre for Scientific Research, theorizes that an asteroid created an enormous crater, but it also sent a thousand-foot wall of water sweeping around the planet, creating strange landforms on Mars.

From Salon

The theory derives from a visual inspection of Mars’ strange surface features conducted by Costard and his team.

From Salon