Ajax (![[info]](http://p-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small} ajax) wrote,@ 2008-05-08 11:05:00 |
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| Current music: | Elton John -- Harmony |
| Entry tags: | etymology, wotw |
Word Of The Week #108
Definition: pol·troon (pŏl-trōōn')
n.
A base, wretched coward; a craven.Etymology: [French: poltron, from Old Italian poltrone, coward, idler, perhaps augmentative of poltro, unbroken colt (from Vulgar Latin *pulliter, from Latin pullus, young animal; see pau-¹ in Indo-European roots) or from poltro, bed, lazy.]
Obscurity: 60% (I've seen this word a few times, but am uncertain of the definition.)
Usefulness: 25% (More common synonyms are generally preferred in casual conversation, but it scans well.)
Examples:
(def. 1) "Stand fast, poltroon, your liege lord commands it!"
An interesting etymology behind this one. Down a rather long and winding road, it's related to poultry through the term pullet (a chicken less than one year old), which in turn comes from the generic Latin term (pullus) for any young animal.
Along with cad, blackguard, and dastard, this is also one of my favorite old-timey insult words, which are always handy to have on tap when "punk-ass" just won't get the job done. :)
--- Ajax.
