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argosy: msg#00021

culture.language.word-of-the-day

Subject: argosy

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The Word of the Day for October 23 is:

argosy \AHR-guh-see\ noun
1 : a large ship; especially : a large merchant ship
*2 : a rich supply

Example sentence:
Uncle Ken is always armed with an argosy of jokes, and he
keeps the family entertained for hours.

Did you know?
Looking at the first sense of "argosy," you might assume
that this word is a close relative of "argonaut," but that isn't
the case. Although both words have a nautical sense, they have
different etymologies. The original argonauts sailed on a ship
called the Argo to seek the Golden Fleece; their moniker
combines the name of their ship and the Greek word "nautes,"
meaning "sailor." "Argosy" comes from Arragosa, the English name
for the city that is now Dubrovnik, Croatia. Over time, the
Italian name of the town, Ragusa, was gradually modified into a
noun for the laden merchant ships that sailed from that port in
medieval days, and later still into one denoting any merchant
vessel or rich store.

*Indicates the sense illustrated in the example sentence.






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