51吃瓜 of the Day
serotinal
adjective
pertaining to or occurring in late summer.
More about serotinal
Serotinal 鈥減ertaining to or occurring in late summer鈥� describes the midpoint that neither estival 鈥減ertaining or appropriate to summer鈥� nor autumnal 鈥渂elonging to or suggestive of autumn鈥� can completely cover. The term derives from the Latin adverb 蝉脓谤艒 鈥渓ate,鈥� from the adjective 蝉脓谤耻蝉 鈥渓ate, slow, tardy.鈥� 厂脓谤艒 and the feminine form of 蝉脓谤耻蝉, 蝉脓谤补, later became the sources of the word for 鈥渆vening鈥� in many Romance languages, such as French soir, Italian sera, and Portuguese 蝉别谤茫辞. Serotinal was first recorded in English in the late 1890s.
how is serotinal used?
Here in North America, the serotinal season is that marvelous time, in early September, when the monarch butterflies start to migrate, the lakes are still warm enough for swimming, and the resorts are empty. As Helen Hunt Jackson writes in her poem 鈥淪eptember,鈥� 鈥淏y all these lovely tokens / September days are here, / With summer鈥檚 best of weather / And autumn鈥檚 best of cheer.鈥�
Released this past summer, Beyond Eyes is an utterly gorgeous game that captures the very earliest stages of fall in a way few games even attempt, blending serotinal greens with the slow incursion of rusty reds. It鈥檚 still a rather summery-looking game, but depending on where you live in the world it may be a pretty darn accurate representation of your own experiences with fall.
serotinal
iridescent
adjective
displaying a play of lustrous colors like those of the rainbow.
More about iridescent
Iridescent 鈥渄isplaying a play of lustrous colors like those of the rainbow鈥� is a combination of the Ancient Greek word 卯谤颈蝉 (stem irid-) 鈥渞ainbow鈥� and the Latin inceptive infix -sc- 鈥渢he process of becoming.鈥� In Greek mythology, Iris was the goddess of rainbows and sometimes functioned as the messenger of the gods, serving as a link between the heavens and the mortal realm, similar to the rainbow bridge Bifrost in Norse mythology. 脦谤颈蝉 is often considered to derive from the Proto-Indo-European root wei- 鈥渢o turn, twist,鈥� which is also found in wire (from Old English) and Latin 惫墨迟颈蝉 鈥渧ine,鈥� but other linguists have proposed a pre-Greek origin. Iridescent was first recorded in English in the 1790s.
how is iridescent used?
A halo of multicolored mist floats over an ominous storm. At first glance it looks like an angelic mural or even extraterrestrial activity. But this breathtaking photo is neither manipulated nor paranormal. It鈥檚 an iridescent cloud, a phenomenon occurring right in our own atmosphere.
The sun had just gone down outside a soundstage 40 miles north of Los Angeles when a shimmering celestial being appeared. With blond tendrils, iridescent lips, and an hourglass figure, she radiated power, wisdom, and kindness鈥擮prah Winfrey, in a dress covered with lights.
iridescent
freebooter
noun
a person who goes about in search of plunder; pirate; buccaneer.
More about freebooter
Freebooter may appear to be an English-language compound, but in fact, it鈥檚 Anglicized from the Dutch term vrijbuiter, a combination of vrij 鈥渇ree鈥� and buit 鈥渂ooty鈥濃�攁 compound word about treasure that is well suited for a pirate-related term. Buit and its English cognate booty derive from a Germanic source meaning 鈥渆xchange鈥� or 鈥渟haring of the spoils.鈥� Freebooter has one other relative in English, and an unexpected one: filibuster, in the historical sense of 鈥渦nauthorized military adventurer.鈥� While freebooter is a direct borrowing from Dutch, plus a spelling change, filibuster is a borrowing of Spanish filibustero, one of several words meaning 鈥減irate,鈥� via French from the same Dutch term, vrijbuiter. Freebooter entered English in the late 1500s.
how is freebooter used?
Buccaneers were adventurers who settled in Hispaniola, the island today divided between Haiti and the Dominican Republic. They lived off the meat of wild cattle, which they preserved using an Indigenous smoking method called bouccan. In the mid-17th century they started to engage in piracy, just like the freebooters, a term deriving from the Dutch word vrijbuiter, 鈥渁 person who freely takes booty.鈥�
freebooter