Tag: 1500 – 1599

Word of the Day: VICTITATION

ETYMOLOGY
from Latin victitare (to subsist (on something)); from victus (food, sustenance)

EXAMPLE
“… And soe most commonlye the occasione of death commeth throughe the inordinate state of life, in eatinge, and drinckinge vvithout observinge anye rule of
victitation, hauntinge also of vvoemen, and not suffering themselves to be handled, of the handes of the Chyrurgian, as the cause requireth, it be ether in tenting of the vvounde, by inscisione, by cauterisatian, & by keepinge himselfe quiet vvhich all aunciente Chyrurgians so highly and exactlye commande, …”

From: The Frenche Chirurgerye, or All the Manualle Operations of Chirurgerye, with Divers, & Sundrye Figures, and Amongst the Rest, Certayne Nuefownde Instrumentes, Verye Necessarye to All the Operationes of Chirurgerye
By Jacques Guillemeau
Translated by A.M., 1598

Word of the Day: NAVIGANT

ETYMOLOGY
adj.: from Latin navigant-, navigans, present participle of navigare (to navigate)
n.: partly from French navigant, (navigator, seafarer) use as noun of present participle of naviguer (to navigate), and partly from Latin navigant-, navigans (seafarer) use as noun of present participle of navigare (to navigate)

EXAMPLE (for n.)
“… And now to declare something of the commodity and vtilitie of this Nauigation and discouerie: it is very cleere and certaine, that the Seas that commonly men say, without great danger, difficulty and perill, yea rather it is impossible to passe, that those same Seas be nauigable and without anie such danger, but that shippes may passe and haue in them perpetuall clerenesse of the day without any darkenesse of the night: which thing is a great commoditie for the nauigants, to see at all times round about them, as well the safegards as dangers, and how great difference it is betweene the commoditie and perils of other which leese the most part of euery foure and twentie houres the said light, and goe in darkenesse groping their way, I thinke there is none so ignorant but perceiueth this more plainely, then it can be expressed. …”

From: The Principal Nauigations, Voyages, Traffiques and Discoueries of the English Nation, made by sea or ouer-land, to the remote and farthest distant quarters of the earth, at any time within the compasse of these 1600. yeres
By Richard Hakluyt
A declaration of the Indies and lands discouered, and subdued vnto the Emperour, and the king of Portingal: And also of other partes of the Indies and rich countries to be discouered, which the worshipfull M. Robert Thorne merchant of London (who dwelt long in the citie of Siuil in Spaine exhorted king Henrie the eight to take in hand. a1527

Word of the Day: DROSSEL

ETYMOLOGY
of obscure origin

EXAMPLE
“… But lawfull weare it some be such, should all alike be coy’
Now dwels ech Drossell in her Glas: when I was yong, I wot,
On Holly-dayes (for sildome els such ydell times we got)
A Tubb or Paile of water cleere stood vs in steede of Glas:
And yeat (which still I beare in mind) for it I schooled was,
Euen by an holy Fryer, that espyde me tooting so,
Who, softly stealing at my backe, cryde suddenly. Ho, Ho. …”

From: Albions England: A Continued Historie of the same Kingdome, from the originals of the first inhabitants thereof
By William Warner, 1597

Word of the Day: INGLUVIOUS

ETYMOLOGY
from Latin ingluviosus (gluttonous), from ingluvies (gluttony) 

EXAMPLE
“…Wee must haue a good eye and a diligent respect to our health, and we must vse moderate exercises of the bodye. We must not be to ingluvious, in taking our foode and repaste , wee muste not pamper and gourmandise our selues withe excesse of meate and drinke, but so much and such competencie thereof muste be taken, as sufficeth to refreshe the vitall powers and naturall strengthe, and not to empaire, hebetate, and vtterly to extinguish them. …”

From: The Worthye Booke of Old Age othervvyse entituled the elder Cato contayning a learned defence and praise of age, and aged men
By Marcus Tullius Cicero
Translated by Thomas Newton, 1569

Word of the Day: FIRE-FLAUGHT

ETYMOLOGY
from fire (n.) + flaught (a flash; a flash of lightning)

EXAMPLE (for n. 1.)
“… Bot lo, onon, a wonder thing to tell!
Ane huge bleys of flambys braid doun fell
Furth of the clowdis, at the left hand straucht,
In maner of a lychtnyng or fyre flaucht,
And dyd alicht rycht in the sammyn sted
Apon the crown of fair Lavinias hed; …”

From: The Æneid of Virgil
Translated by Gavin Douglas, a1522

Word of the Day: NOBS

ETYMOLOGY
of unknown origin

EXAMPLE (for n. 1.)
“… And I haue found it trew
Drinke now whyle it is new
And ye may it broke
It shall make you loke
yonger than ye be
yeres two or thre
For ye may proue it by me
Behold she sayd and se
How bright I am of ble
Ich am not cast away
That can my husband say
Whan we kys and play
In lust and in lykyng
He calleth me his whytyng
His mullyng and his nytyng
His nobbes and his conny
His swetyng and his honny
With bas my prety bonny
Thou art worth good and monny
This make I my falyre fonny
Tyll that he dreme and dronny
For after all our sport
Than wyll he rout and suort
Than swetely togither wely
As two pygges in a sty. …”

From: Here after foloweth certayne bokes
By John Skelton, 1545
The tunnyng of Elynour Rummynge

Word of the Day: BACKFRIEND

ETYMOLOGY
from back (n.) or (adv.) + friend;
possibly originally a friend who ‘kept back,’ and did not come forward to assist, and so was no real friend

EXAMPLE (for n. 1.)
“… And as for my lorde chamberleyn, he is nott yit comen to town. When he comythe, than schall I woote whatt to doo. Syr John off Parre is yowre freende and myn, and I gaffe hym a fayre armyng sworde wyth-in thys iij dayes. I harde somwhatt by hym off a bakk freende off yowrys; ye schall knowe moore here-afftre. …”

From: Paston Letters and Papers of the Fifteenth Century
By Paston family, 1472
Published for the Early English Text Society – Edited by Norman Davis, Richard Beadle, and Colin Richmond. 2004

Word of the Day: FLIBBERTIGIBBET

also in forms FLEBERGEBET, FLEBERGEBIT, FLEBERGIBET, FLIBBER DE’ JIBB, FLIBBERGIB(BE), FLIBBER-GIBBET, FLIBBERTY-GIBBET, FLIBERDEGIBEK, FLIBERDIGIBBET, FLIBERDIGIBET, FLIPPERTY-GIBBET, FLYBBERGYBE

ETYMOLOGY
apparently an onomatopœic representation of unmeaning chatter or garrulous speech

EXAMPLE (for n. 1.)
“… Better vnborne then vntaught, I haue herde saie,
But ye be better fed than taught far awaie.
Not veraie fat fed, saied this flebergebet,
But nede hath no lawe, nede maketh her hither iet.
She comth nece Ales (quoth she) for that is her name
More for nede, then for kyndnes, payne of shame. …”

From: A dialogue conteinyng the nomber in effect of all the prouerbes in the englishe tongue compacte in a matter concernyng two maner of mariages
By John Heywood, 1546

PRONUNCIATION
FLIB-uh-tee-jib-uht

Word of the Day: UNHEEDY

ETYMOLOGY
from un- + heedy (heedful, careful, cautious)

EXAMPLE
“… Vpon vvhom he is sayd so much to haue doted, that in regard of her excellencie, he scorned & wrote against the beauty of Helena. For which his praesumptuous and vnheedie hardinesse, he is sayde by vengeaunce of the Gods, thereat being offended, to haue lost both his eyes. …”

From: The Shepheardes Calender conteyning tvvelue æglogues proportionable to the twelue monethes
By Edmund Spenser, 1579

Word of the Day: BAUBLING

ETYMOLOGY
from bauble (n.) + -ing

EXAMPLE (for adj. 1.)
“…euen so by the smalest booke that can be written, by ye most babling ballet that can be made, and by the least word that can be spoken, his strange and wonderful workes in man, with his most liberall and incomparable guiftes vnto thē do as perfectly set forth and shew themselues as by the greatest volume yt euer was written, by the wayghtyest or wysest concept that euer was made, or by the most eloquente or learned oration that euer was vttered. …”

From: A Short Inuentory of Certayne Idle Inuentions
By C. Thimelthorpe, 1581