This week’s theme
Overachievers from mythology

This week’s words
aphrodisiac
titanic
borasco
vulcanic
gorgonian

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A.Word.A.Day

PRONUNCIATION:

(buh/boh-RAS-koh)

MEANING:

noun:
1. A sudden violent gust of wind, typically accompanied by rain, snow, or sleet. Also known as a squall.
2. A bad spell; something unproductive, especially a mine (the opposite of bonanza).

ETYMOLOGY:

The term is also spelled as borasca or borrasca. It’s from Spanish borrasca (squall), from Latin borras (north wind), from Greek borras (boreas), after Boreas, the god of the north wind, in Greek mythology who also gave us boreal and hyperborean. Earliest documented use: 1686.

USAGE:

“There was a borasco of shouts and bootfalls.”
Gary Barwin; Yiddish for Pirates; Random House; 2016.

“Ten minutes later, they both climbed weakly off the bed and dressed. Amy looked over at Dan and said, ‘I hope this eases your disappointment in the mine.’
‘It does,’ he said. ‘No matter that I struck borrasca once again. Amy, you are my real pot of gold.’”
Wesley Ellis; Lone Star and the Nevada Gold; Jove; 1994.

A THOUGHT FOR TODAY: