51吃瓜 of the Day
More about legerdemain
There are about 50 spellings in Middle English for (modern) legerdemain. The English word most likely comes from a Middle French phrase leger de main 鈥渓ight of hand,鈥� which is unfortunately unrecorded. Middle French has two similar idioms meaning 鈥渢o be dexterous鈥�: estre ligier de sa main, literally 鈥渢o be light of his hand鈥� and avoir la main legiere, literally 鈥渢o have the light hand.鈥� In English, legerdemain first meant 鈥渟kill in conjuring, sleight of hand鈥� and acquired the sense 鈥渢rickery, artful deception鈥� in the 16th century. Legerdemain entered English in the 15th century.
how is legerdemain used?
… it was precisely that sort of legerdemain鈥攖apping a dicey loan with the magic wand of financialization鈥攚hich built the mortgage-securitization industry to begin with.
The city today stretches out along the flatlands by the Fyris River, then ripples up a glacial ridge, culminating in a massive sixteenth-century castle painted the color of a poached salmon鈥攁 bit of legerdemain by pigment that leavens the bulky fortress considerably.
polychromatic
adjective
having or exhibiting a variety of colors.
More about polychromatic
English polychromatic is a borrowing from French polychromatique, which comes from Greek 辫辞濒测肠丑谤峁搈补迟辞蝉 鈥渕any-colored, variegated鈥� and the suffix -ique, from the Greek suffix -ikos or the Latin suffix -icus. Polychromatic is used mostly, but not exclusively, in the physical sciences, e.g., hematology, physics, and formerly in chemistry. Polychromatic entered English in the 19th century.
how is polychromatic used?
… the degreening of leaves is a widely appreciated natural phenomenon, especially in autumn, when the foliage of deciduous trees turns into polychromatic beauty.
Throughout, Suzy Lee鈥檚 polychromatic illustrations astonish. Each page bursts with color.
More about coup de foudre
In French coup de foudre, literally 鈥渁 clap of thunder,鈥� means 鈥渓ove at first sight.鈥� Modern French coup is a development of Old French coup, colp 鈥渁 blow, strike,鈥� from Late Latin colpus, from Latin colaphus, from Greek 办贸濒补辫丑辞蝉 鈥渁 slap.鈥� French foudre 鈥渓ightning鈥� comes from Latin fulgura, the plural of the neuter noun fulgur 鈥渓颈驳丑迟苍颈苍驳.鈥� Coup de foudre entered English in the 18th century.
how is coup de foudre used?
Do you believe in love at first sight? The coup de foudre, the heart falling into the stomach, the moment when Cupid’s arrow breaches the iron armor of even the hardest of hearts?
I mean, the coup de foudre is wonderful–seeing someone for the first time across a room and just feeling this huge surge of necessity, the knowledge that you want to be with them. But it’s not the only way. Increasingly I’m coming around to the view that the other kind is better.