Word of the Day
lebkuchen
noun
a hard, chewy or brittle Christmas cookie, usually flavored with honey and spices and containing nuts and citron.
More about lebkuchen
Lebkuchen, “a hard Christmas cookie,” is a borrowing from German and is equivalent to Kuchen, “cake,” plus an element of unclear origin. Kuchen is related to English cake and the Word of the Day krumkake. The Leb- part may be related to Latin lībum, “flatbread, sacrificial cake,” which in turn could be the root of lībāre, “to pour an offering,” as in libation. Alternatively, the Leb- element may share an origin with German Laib and English loaf (and, by extension, lady and lord). Lebkuchen was first recorded in English in the late 1840s.
EXAMPLE OF LEBKUCHEN USED IN A SENTENCE
I searched bakery after bakery but could not find one that sold lebkuchen, whose uniquely nutty and spicy aroma I greatly missed.
esculent
adjective
suitable for use as food; edible.
More about esculent
Esculent “suitable for use as food” comes from Latin ēsculentus “edible, full of food,” which is equivalent to ēsca “food” plus -ulentus, an adjective-forming suffix roughly meaning “full of.” The element -ulent also appears in fraudulent (literally “full of deceit”) and opulent (“full of wealth”). Latin ēsca is derived from the verb edere “to eat,” which has two stems: ed-, as in edible (literally “eatable”), and es-, as in comestible (“eat up-able”). Esculent was first recorded in English circa 1620.
EXAMPLE OF ESCULENT USED IN A SENTENCE
They planned to bring a succulent salad made from a range of esculent greens they had foraged.
More about brume
Brume, “mist or fog,” is a borrowing from French and comes via Provençal bruma from Latin brūma, “winter, winter solstice.” Brūma is ultimately a contraction of brevissima (diēs), “shortest (day),” which is the superlative of brevis, “short.” Brevis is the source of abbreviate and brevity as well as (by way of French) abridge and brief. In Latin, the superlative forms are often marked with -issimus; compare Italian bravissimo and generalissimo. Brume was first recorded in English in the first decade of the 19th century.
EXAMPLE OF BRUME USED IN A SENTENCE
With excellent timing, a brume arose from the sea on the solstice and spread inland, all as if to signal that winter had come.