Word of the Day
moiré
adjective
in silks or fabrics, presenting a watery or wavelike appearance.
More about moiré
Moiré, “presenting a watery or wavelike appearance,” is a borrowing from French and means “given a finish resembling moire.” Moire is likely an adaptation of English mohair, which makes moiré a reborrowing, or a word that is borrowed back into its language of origin, similar to anime and the Word of the Day yé-yé. The term mohair comes via Italian from Arabic mukhayyar, “choice, chosen,” from the verb khayyara, “to choose.” This means that mohair is not related to hair, although folk etymology may suggest it is. For more examples of folk etymology, take a look at the Words of the Day cathartic, eggcorn, and ferrule. Moiré was first recorded in English in the 1650s.
EXAMPLE OF MOIRÉ USED IN A SENTENCE
He saw moiré patterns everywhere, even in insect screens rustling in the breeze.
mehndi
noun
the art or practice of painting elaborate patterns on the skin with henna.
More about mehndi
Mehndi, “the art of painting patterns with henna,” is a borrowing from Hindi. Hindi and numerous other languages of the Indian subcontinent (including Bengali, Marathi, and Punjabi) come from Sanskrit. In this way, the earliest known source of mehndi is Sanskrit mendhī (also mendhikā), “the henna plant,” which is of uncertain origin. Today, although most languages that descended from Sanskrit are spoken in India and its adjacent countries, Romani is among a handful spoken elsewhere in Eurasia. Mehndi was first recorded in English in the late 1990s.
EXAMPLE OF MEHNDI USED IN A SENTENCE
Her sister practiced the beautiful, intricate patterns of mehndi on us.
decalcomania
noun
the art or process of transferring pictures or designs from specially prepared paper to wood, metal, glass, etc.
More about decalcomania
Decalcomania, “the art of transferring pictures from paper to another medium,” is adapted from French décalcomanie, equivalent to décalquer, “to transfer a tracing of,” plus English -mania. The verb décalquer is based on Italian calcare, “to stomp, trample,” ultimately from Latin calx, “heel.” From this same source comes calque, also known as a loan translation. One common example of a calque is brainwashing (from Mandarin Chinese xǐ nǎo “to wash the brain”). For other words descended from Latin calx, check out the Words of the Day cantrip and inculcate. Decalcomania was first recorded in English in the early 1860s.
EXAMPLE OF DECALCOMANIA USED IN A SENTENCE
With the right materials, decalcomania can make images leap off the page and onto a variety of other surfaces.