Word of the Day ... sere ... \SEER\ DEFINITION ... adjective : being dried and withered EXAMPLES The sere winter garden gave no hint of the profusion of flowers that would bloom in the spring. Where some people might see only a sere landscape and crumbling stacks of bricks, he sees a civilization that became increasingly hierarchical and income-stratified, held together by ritual that came unglued when a series of droughts left too many people with not enough food. — From an article by Jackie Jadrnak in the Albuquerque Journal News, September 15, 2013 DID YOU KNOW? Sere has not wandered very far from its origins—it derives from the Old English word sēar (meaning dry), which traces back to the same ancient root that gave Old High German, Greek, and Lithuanian words for drying out and withering. The adjective sere once had the additional meaning of threadbare, but that use is now archaic. The noun sere also exists, though it isnt common; its meanings are a dry period or condition or withered vegetation. There are also three unrelated nouns spelled sere. They refer to a claw or talon; a series of ecological communities; and a Hebrew vowel point. Read more at merriam-webster/word-of-the-day/#XKEFAYsj5i1tztGJ.99
Posted on: Wed, 30 Oct 2013 09:06:56 +0000
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