Rarely Used E Words

Rarely Used E Words Easement • noun 1 Law a right to cross or otherwise use another’s land for a specified purpose. 2 literary comfort or peace. Eddy • noun (pl. eddies) a circular movement of water causing a small whirlpool. • verb (eddies, eddied) (of water, air, smoke, etc.) move in a circular way. — ORIGIN

probably related to an Old English prefix meaning again, back.

Effete • adjective 1 affected, over-refined, and ineffectual. 2 having lost vitality; worn out. — DERIVATIVES — ORIGIN

effetely adverb effeteness noun.

Latin effetus ‘worn out by bearing young’; related to FETUS.

Effloresce • verb 1 (of a substance) lose moisture and turn to a fine powder on exposure to air. 2 (of salts) come to the surface of brickwork or other material and crystallize. 3 reach an optimum stage of development. — DERIVATIVES — ORIGIN

efflorescence noun efflorescent adjective.

Latin efflorescere, from florescere ‘begin to bloom’.

Effluent • noun liquid waste or sewage discharged into a river or the sea. Effrontery • noun insolence or impertinence. — ORIGIN

French effronterie, from Latin effrons ‘shameless, barefaced’, from frons ‘forehead’.

Egress • noun formal 1 the action of going out of or leaving a place. 2 a way out. — DERIVATIVES — ORIGIN

egression noun.

from Latin egressus, from egredi ‘go out’.

Egret • noun a heron with mainly white plumage, having long plumes in the breeding season. — ORIGIN

Old French aigrette, from the Germanic base of HERON.

Eiderdown • noun chiefly Brit. a quilt filled with down (originally from the eider) or some other soft material. Eke • verb (eke out) 1 use or consume frugally. 2 make (a living) with difficulty. — ORIGIN

Old English, increase.

• adverb archaic term for ALSO. — ORIGIN

Old English.

Electrocardiography • noun the measurement and recording of activity in the heart using electrodes placed on the skin. — DERIVATIVES

electrocardiogram noun electrocardiograph noun electrocardiographic

adjective.

Electroencephalography • noun the measurement and recording of electrical activity in the brain. — DERIVATIVES

electroencephalogram noun electroencephalograph noun.

Ellipsis • noun (pl. ellipses /ilipseez/) 1 the omission of words from speech or writing. 2 a set of dots indicating such an omission. — ORIGIN

Greek elleipsis, from elleipein ‘leave out’.

Emery • noun a greyish-black form of corundum, used in powdered form as an abrasive. — ORIGIN

Old French esmeri, from Greek smuris ‘polishing powder’.

Emetic • adjective (of a substance) causing vomiting. • noun an emetic substance. — ORIGIN

Greek emetikos, from emein ‘to vomit’.

Emissary • noun (pl. emissaries) a person sent as a diplomatic representative on a special mission. — ORIGIN

Latin emissarius ‘scout, spy’, from emittere ‘emit’.

Emollient • adjective 1 having the quality of softening or soothing the skin. 2 attempting to avoid confrontation or anger; calming. • noun an emollient substance. — DERIVATIVES — ORIGIN

emollience noun.

from Latin emollire ‘make soft’.

Emolument • noun formal a salary, fee, or benefit from employment or office. Latin emolumentum (originally probably meaning ‘payment for grinding corn’), from molere ‘grind’. — ORIGIN

Endue • verb (endues, endued, enduing) literary (usu. be endued with) endow with a quality or ability. — ORIGIN Old French enduire, partly from Latin inducere ‘lead in’, reinforced by the sense of Latin induere ‘put on clothes’.

Enervate • verb cause to feel drained of energy.

— DERIVATIVES — ORIGIN

enervation noun.

Latin enervare ‘weaken (by extraction of the sinews)’, from nervus ‘sinew’.

Enjoin • verb 1 instruct or urge to do. 2 (enjoin from) Law prohibit (someone) from performing (an action) by an injunction. — ORIGIN

Old French enjoindre, from Latin injungere ‘join, attach, impose’.

Enrapture • verb give intense pleasure to. — DERIVATIVES

enrapt adjective.

Ensconce • verb establish in a comfortable, safe, or secret place. originally in the senses fortify and shelter with a fortification: from archaic sconce, denoting a small fort or earthwork, from High German schanze ‘brushwood’. — ORIGIN

Ensign • noun 1 a flag, especially a military or naval one indicating nationality. 2 the lowest rank of commissioned officer in the US and some other navies, above chief warrant officer and below lieutenant. 3 historical a standard-bearer. — ORIGIN

Old French enseigne, from Latin insignia (see INSIGNIA).

Entente • noun a friendly understanding or informal alliance between states or factions. — ORIGIN

from French entente cordiale ‘friendly understanding’.

Entomology • noun the branch of zoology concerned with the study of insects. — DERIVATIVES — ORIGIN

entomological adjective entomologist noun.

from Greek entomon ‘insect’, from entomos ‘cut up, segmented’.

Epaulette • noun an ornamental shoulder piece on a military uniform. — ORIGIN

French, ‘little shoulder’.

Epicure • noun a person who takes particular pleasure in fine food and drink. — ORIGIN

from Epicurus (see EPICUREAN).

Epidermis • noun 1 the surface layer of an animal’s skin, overlying the dermis. 2 the outer layer of tissue in a plant. — DERIVATIVES — ORIGIN

epidermal adjective.

Greek, from derma ‘skin’.

Epigram • noun 1 a concise and witty saying or remark. 2 a short witty poem. — DERIVATIVES

epigrammatic adjective.

— ORIGIN

Greek epigramma, from gramma ‘writing’.

Epigraph • noun 1 an inscription on a building, statue, or coin. 2 a short quotation or saying introducing a book or chapter. — ORIGIN

from Greek epigraphein ‘write on’.

Episcopal • adjective 1 of a bishop or bishops. 2 (of a Church) governed by or having bishops. — DERIVATIVES — ORIGIN

episcopally adverb.

from Latin episcopus ‘bishop’, from Greek episkopos ‘overseer’.

Epistemology • noun the branch of philosophy that deals with knowledge, especially with regard to its methods, validity, and scope. — DERIVATIVES — ORIGIN

epistemic adjective epistemological adjective epistemologist noun.

from Greek episteme ‘knowledge’.

Epistle • noun 1 formal or humorous a letter. 2 (Epistle) a book of the New Testament in the form of a letter from an Apostle. — ORIGIN

Greek epistole, from epistellein ‘send news’.

Epithet • noun a word or phrase expressing a quality or attribute of the person or thing mentioned. — ORIGIN

Greek epitheton, from epitithenai ‘add’.

Equable • adjective 1 calm and even-tempered. 2 not varying or fluctuating greatly. — DERIVATIVES — ORIGIN

equability noun equably adverb.

Latin aequabilis, from aequare ‘make equal’.

Equerry • noun (pl. equerries) 1 an officer of the British royal household who attends members of the royal family. 2 historical an officer of the household of a prince or noble who had charge over the stables. — ORIGIN

Old French esquierie ‘company of squires, prince’s stables’.

Erg • noun Physics a unit of work or energy, equal to the work done by a force of one dyne when its point of application moves one centimetre in the direction of action of the force. — ORIGIN

from Greek ergon ‘work’.

Ergo • adverb therefore. — ORIGIN

Latin.

Ermine • noun (pl. same or ermines) 1 a stoat. 2 the white winter fur of the stoat, used for trimming the ceremonial robes of judges or peers. — ORIGIN

Old French hermine, probably from Latin mus Armenius ‘Armenian mouse’.

Errant • adjective 1 chiefly formal or humorous straying from the accepted course or standards. 2 archaic or literary travelling in search of adventure. — DERIVATIVES — ORIGIN

errantry noun.

sense 1 from Latin errare ‘err’; sense 2 from Old French, ‘travelling’, from Latin iterare.

Ersatz • adjective 1 (of a product) made or used as an inferior substitute for something else. 2 not real or genuine: ersatz emotion. — ORIGIN

German, ‘replacement’.

Erudite • adjective having or showing knowledge or learning. — DERIVATIVES — ORIGIN

eruditely adverb erudition noun.

Latin eruditus, from erudire ‘instruct, train’.

Erythrocyte • noun a red blood cell, containing the pigment haemoglobin and transporting oxygen to the tissues. Escheat • noun chiefly historical the reversion of property to the state, or (in feudal law) to a lord, on the owner’s dying without legal heirs. — ORIGIN

Old French eschete, from Latin excidere ‘fall away’.

Escutcheon • noun 1 a shield or emblem bearing a coat of arms. 2 a flat piece of metal framing a keyhole, door handle, or light switch. — PHRASES — ORIGIN

a blot on one’s escutcheon a stain on one’s reputation or character.

Old French escuchon, from Latin scutum ‘shield’.

Espy • verb (espies, espied) literary catch sight of. — ORIGIN

Old French espier.

Esquire • noun 1 (Esquire) Brit. a polite title appended to a man’s name when no other title is used. 2 historical a young nobleman who acted as an attendant to a knight. — ORIGIN

Old French esquier, from Latin scutarius ‘shield-bearer’.

Ethnography • noun the scientific description of peoples and cultures. — DERIVATIVES

ethnographer noun ethnographic adjective.

Ethnology • noun the study of the characteristics of different peoples and the differences and relationships between them. — DERIVATIVES

ethnologic adjective ethnological adjective ethnologist noun.

Etymology • noun (pl. etymologies) an account of the origins and the developments in meaning of a word. — DERIVATIVES — ORIGIN

etymological adjective etymologically adverb etymologist noun.

Greek etumologia, from etumos ‘true’.

Eugenic • plural noun the science of using controlled breeding to increase the occurrence of desirable heritable characteristics in a population. — DERIVATIVES — ORIGIN

eugenic adjective eugenicist noun & adjective.

from Greek eu ‘well’ + genes ‘born’.

Eunuch • noun a man who has been castrated. Greek eunoukhos ‘bedroom guard’ (eunuchs were formerly employed to guard the women’s living areas at an oriental court). — ORIGIN

Euphony • noun (pl. euphonies) 1 the quality of being pleasing to the ear. 2 the tendency to make phonetic change for ease of pronunciation. — DERIVATIVES

euphonic adjective.

Eutrophic • adjective Ecology (of a body of water) rich in nutrients and so supporting a dense plant population. — DERIVATIVES — ORIGIN

eutrophication noun.

from Greek eu ‘well’ + trephein ‘nourish’.

Excrescence • noun 1 an abnormal outgrowth on a body or plant. 2 an unattractive addition or feature. — ORIGIN

Latin excrescentia, from excrescere ‘grow out’.

Exculpate • verb formal show or declare to be not guilty of wrongdoing. — DERIVATIVES — ORIGIN

exculpation noun exculpatory adjective.

Latin exculpare ‘free from blame’.

Execrable • adjective extremely bad or unpleasant. — DERIVATIVES — ORIGIN

execrably adverb.

Latin execrabilis, from exsecrari ‘curse’.

Exigent • adjective formal pressing; demanding. Exoteric • adjective 1 suitable for or communicated to the general public. 2 not belonging, limited, or pertaining to the inner or select circle, as of disciples or intimates. 3 popular; simple; commonplace. 4 pertaining to the outside; exterior; external. — ORIGIN 1645–55; < LL exōtericus external < Gk exōterikós, equiv. to ex

ter(os) inclined outward (exō-

EXO-

+ -teros comp. suffix) + -ikos -IC

Expatiate • verb (usu. expatiate on) speak or write at length or in detail. — DERIVATIVES — ORIGIN

expatiation noun.

Latin exspatiari ‘move beyond one’s usual bounds’.

Expectorate • verb cough or spit out (phlegm) from the throat or lungs. — DERIVATIVES — ORIGIN

expectoration noun.

Latin expectorare ‘expel from the chest’.

Expiate • verb atone for (guilt or sin). — DERIVATIVES — ORIGIN

expiable adjective expiation noun expiator noun expiatory /ekspi t ri/ adjective.

Latin expiare ‘appease by sacrifice’, from pius ‘pious’.

Expostulate • verb express strong disapproval or disagreement. — DERIVATIVES — ORIGIN

expostulation noun expostulatory /iksposstyool tri/ adjective.

Latin expostulare ‘demand’.

Expunge • verb obliterate or remove completely. — DERIVATIVES — ORIGIN

expungement noun expunger noun.

Latin expungere ‘mark for deletion by means of points’, from pungere ‘to prick’.

Expurgate • verb remove matter regarded as obscene or unsuitable from (a text or account). — DERIVATIVES — ORIGIN

expurgation noun expurgator noun expurgatory /eksperg tri/ adjective.

Latin expurgare ‘cleanse thoroughly’.

Extempore • adjective & adverb spoken or done without preparation. — ORIGIN

from Latin ex tempore ‘on the spur of the moment’ (literally ‘out of the time’).

Extirpate • verb search out and destroy completely.

— DERIVATIVES — ORIGIN

extirpation noun extirpator noun.

Latin exstirpare, from stirps ‘a stem’.

Eyesore • noun a thing that is very ugly. Eyrie • noun a large nest of an eagle or other bird of prey, typically built high in a tree or on a cliff. probably from Old French aire, from Latin area ‘level piece of ground’, later ‘nest of a bird of prey’. — ORIGIN