Words of Britain

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The meaning of "Xmas"

Where does the word "Xmas" come from? It seems to be a useful abbrieviation for "Christmas", and it is sometimes said that those lazily using it are "removing the Christ from Christmas". But what is the truth of the matter?

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Mews - top flight housing with a Medieval origin

Many of our words have shifted meaning over the years. For instance, it is well-known that mews houses were originally accommodation for horses and coachmen. But, in fact, the word has a slightly different original meaning.

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Feisty

The word feisty these days suggests an aggressive, determined, and admirably fierce smaller creature or person – someone or something with a great deal of spirit for their size. The connection may be not too apparent, but the word originally meant “full of farts”!

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Being Sinister - it's just not right!

The common current meaning of the word sinister is “ominous” or “presaging evil”. In traditional heraldry, however, from whence it comes, it means “on the left-hand side” eg. of a coat of arms, and was sometimes associated with an illegitimate descendant. The word "sinister" comes from the Latin for “left-handed”. Whereas "dexter" is the right-handed equivalent.

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Quixotic

Quixotic means someone or something that is romantic and unrealistic, or possessed by almost impossible hopes.

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Words for geographical features

The place names of Britain give a glimpse of our distant past. Many words are common in place names within a distinct area of the country, and are the last remaining fragments of former dialects.

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