Happy Wednesday — it’s time for some new words! You know how this works – share a few words from your current book that you had to look up, then head over to Bermuda Onion’s Weblog to learn some new ones.
This is the final batch of words from Something Red
1. Watchet – a light blue color
“Over hose of green went an overshirt of watchet-colored wool; to Hob’s delight, there was a leather belt dyed a rich blue, with a gilt buckle.”
2. Caitiff – wretched, cowardly
“Nay, brother, I flee this field of battle; I confess myself a caitiff knight; you must fight yourself free of these ferocious women.”
3. Smaragds – emeralds
“On her wrist, all bone and dry loose white skin, was a silver bracelet studded with smaragds, glints of green in the light from the fireplace.”
4. Mortrews – Leftover foods, especially meats ground in a mortar and re-served
“In addition, there was a nearly untouched dish of salt-cod mortrews; the fish pounded, mixed with stock and eggs and crumbled bread, and the resulting dumpling poached.
5. Camlet – A rich cloth of Asian origin, supposed originally to have been made of camel’s hair and silk and later made of goat’s hair and silk or other combinations.
“…the tall esquire turned and went into the passageway to the kitchen, returning at once with a camlet cloak that they had brought down with them from their quarters.”
6. Cramoisy – Crimson
7. Perse – Dark grayish blue or purple
“He asked at one point, as he stood there with overgowns of different colors, cramoisy in one hand and perse in the other.”
8. Spalpeen – a rascal or layabout
“This drink, this singing, is that which Herself had from the Great Queen; whatever that smiling spalpeen may have used, it was not this drink, nor this singing.”