accolade

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The Word of the Day for November 11 is:

accolade   \AK-uh-layd\   noun
     1 a : a ceremonial embrace b : a ceremony or salute 
conferring knighthood
     2 a : a mark of acknowledgment : award  *b : an expression 
of praise
     3 : a brace or a line used in music to join two or more 
staffs carrying simultaneous parts

Example sentence:
     "A celebration that normally thanks those who risked their 
lives now includes accolades to those putting their lives on the 
line at the moment." (_Chicago Daily Herald_, November 10, 2001)

Did you know?
     "Accolade" was borrowed into English in the 17th century 
from French. The French noun in turn derives from the 
verb "accoler," which means "to embrace," and ultimately from 
the Latin term "collum," meaning "neck." ("Collum" is also an 
ancestor of the English word "collar.") When it was first 
borrowed from French, "accolade" referred to a ceremonial 
embrace that once marked the conferring of knighthood. The term 
was later extended to any ceremony conferring knighthood (such 
as the more familiar tapping on the shoulders with the flat 
blade of a sword), and eventually extended to honors or awards 
in general.

*Indicates the sense illustrated in the example sentence.