Saturday & Sunday Word: Drupe & Odalisque
drupe [druːp]:
origin: (1745-55) Latin; drūpa, druppa= overripe olive
noun
Pronounced just like "droop", and something you've enjoyed many times probably without knowing it. Also known as "stone fruit", they are frequently categorized as fleshy fruit with a single pit in the middle and a thin (though taut) layer of skin. However, they can also be nuts or what you think of as berries (such as the coffee berry).
Technically, a coconut is also a drupe, its seed is at the tip of the endocarp (or what you think of as the husk).
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o·da·lisque [ˈəʊdəlɪsk]:
origin: (1675-85) French, from Turkish odalIk= concubine, oda= room or chamber
noun
Speaking of fleshy fruit, an odalisque is a servant/slave girl to concubines in a harem, in actually though she ranks lower than they, and could only rise to the status of concubine if selected for sexual favors (if groomed due to beauty or possessing a talent such as singing). If she bore a son, she could even rise to the status of wife.
In popular vernacular it became synonymous with a mistress or a person inclined to be one. The term spreading through British authors and the "oriental" movement of fashion & home decorating, when fantasy art images were created featuring glorified chamber maids.
origin: (1745-55) Latin; drūpa, druppa= overripe olive
noun
Pronounced just like "droop", and something you've enjoyed many times probably without knowing it. Also known as "stone fruit", they are frequently categorized as fleshy fruit with a single pit in the middle and a thin (though taut) layer of skin. However, they can also be nuts or what you think of as berries (such as the coffee berry).
Technically, a coconut is also a drupe, its seed is at the tip of the endocarp (or what you think of as the husk).
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o·da·lisque [ˈəʊdəlɪsk]:
origin: (1675-85) French, from Turkish odalIk= concubine, oda= room or chamber
noun
Speaking of fleshy fruit, an odalisque is a servant/slave girl to concubines in a harem, in actually though she ranks lower than they, and could only rise to the status of concubine if selected for sexual favors (if groomed due to beauty or possessing a talent such as singing). If she bore a son, she could even rise to the status of wife.
In popular vernacular it became synonymous with a mistress or a person inclined to be one. The term spreading through British authors and the "oriental" movement of fashion & home decorating, when fantasy art images were created featuring glorified chamber maids.