WHAT DO YOU CALL the small knife medieval monks used to sharpen their quill pens? A penknife.
The French term for a hospital that can move from place to place is hôpital ambulant, from which we get the word ambulance.
A large piece of wood which is too wet to burn is stored at the back of the fireplace so it can dry out. It’s known as a backlog.
If you lure someone into the wilderness, then you bewilder them.
The Greek word ektotos means ‘published’. So something that is not published is an anecdote.
The Gnostic sect of Alexandria devised a secret word, based on the god Abraxas. The word was abracadabra.
A house built in the Bengal style is a bungalow.
A game played with a stick of wood (in French: bille) is billiards.
Shah mat is the Persian for ‘The king is dead’, which is where we get the word checkmate.
Carriage drivers who wanted to prevent mud from horses’ hooves splashing on them installed a board between them and the horses. This was, of course, a dashboard.
Sheep or cows which have been set aside for a new owner are earmarked.
