ilk

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The Word of the Day for July 24 is:

ilk   \ILK\   noun 
      : sort, kind 

Example sentence: 
      Mr. Reynolds ran a tight, efficient business with hard-working employees, 
and so he had no patience for slackers like Charlie and his ilk.

Did you know? 
     The Old English pronoun "ilca," the predecessor of "ilk," was synonymous 
with "same." "Ilk" persisted in that use in Scots, where it was used in the 
phrase "of that ilk," meaning "of the same place, territorial designation, or 
name." It was used chiefly in reference to the names of land-owning families 
and their eponymous estates, as in "the Guthries of that ilk," which meant "the 
Guthries of Guthrie." But a misunderstanding arose concerning the Scots phrase 
-- it was apparently interpreted as meaning "of that kind or sort," a usage 
that soon found its way into modern English. "Ilk" has been established in 
English with its current meaning and part of speech since the late 18th century.




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