"That's a great deal to make one word mean," Alice said in a thoughtful tone. "When I make a word do a lot of work like that," said Humpty Dumpty, "I always pay it extra."

Sunday, 11 January 2009

Nosegay



Nosegay is a lovely word. It means a small bunch of fragrant flowers, usually as a gift. It is also known as a bouquet, posey (or posy) or tussie-mussie which are also attractive words.
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2 comments:

  1. Marcel11 January 2009 at 21:04

    Pomander, not pomadore. Pomadore is italian for tomato. Or maybe I've made that up too.

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  2. Scriptor Senex12 January 2009 at 05:22

    Now that is interesting Marcel.

    Had I been asked I would have said a pomander, from the French pomme d'ambre (apple of amber) is a ball (originally a piece of fruit like an apple or orange) studded with perfumes such as ambergris, musk, civet, or cloves. These were originally designed to be carried as a protection against infection and noxious street smells. However, feeding it into Google images shows 'pomanders' as being also a ball of flowers for the 'bridal party' whatever that is. Bridal parties are presumably smelly affairs - too much trying of perfumes perhaps?

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