Wednesday, May 28, 2014

Today's words

toxophilite \tahk-SAH-fuh-lyte\ - a person fond of or expert at archery
As much as I love learning new words, I find the relationship to the word "toxic" even more fascinating and unexpected.
fletcher \FLECH-er\ - a person who makes arrows
I didn't know this word in the Test Your Vocabulary section of today's WOTD, though I did guess it correctly by having a slight familiarity with the other two alternatives, below. All three of these, of course, have become common English surnames, along with Cooper, Smith, Sawyer, etc. Two more words at the end of this entry are related to this one.
chandler \CHAN(D)-ler\ - 1. a maker or seller of tallow or wax candles and usually soap  2.
a retail dealer in provisions and supplies or equipment of a specified kind
I was fairly certain about the meaning of this one, which obviously shares etymological roots with "chandelier."
wainwright \WAYN-'ryte\ - a maker and repairer of wagons
I was less familiar with this one, but had a vague sense of it. 
flèche \FLAYSH, FLESH\ - spire; especially :  a slender spire above the intersection of the nave and transepts of a church
Think of the shape, and this etymology makes sense.
fléchette \flay-SHET, fle-SHET\ - a small dart-shaped projectile that is clustered in an explosive warhead, dropped as a missile from an airplane, or fired from a handheld gun
This one was familiar as I had encountered it in a novel some years ago. But I don't think that's the only reason it also seems a bit obvious to me, at least following the one before it in the dictionary. As I expected, Babelfish translates this word in French to "dart" in English.

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