A Quiet Corner ~ Cayuga-On-The-Grand ~ "Where the coffee pot's always on" ~ 29 Talbot Road West (Hwy 3) At stoplight, corner of Cayuga Street ~ HOURS: 10:30 - 5:00 Wed.Thu.Fri. ; Sat. 10:30 ~3. "Stay a While. Read a Book." Please click on "Labels" to read all posts on any particular topic of interest. We like to think of our blog as a quick visit to the bookshop. Come again! 905.577.5635 email: neatlittlebookshop@gmail.com
Wednesday, May 21, 2014
Word Watching ~
The Origin of the word loophole:
"In the late Middle Ages, a loop was a narrow window, in a castle or other fortification, through which an archer could direct his missiles, but so narrow as to be a baffling target for an opposing bowman. The masonry of the window widened inwardly to permit a wider range for the defending archer. Possibly to avoid confusion between loop, and "window," and loop, "a fold," the first became identified as loophole."
~ 2107 CURIOUS WORD ORIGINS, SAYINGS & EXPRESSIONS, Charles Earle. Galahad Books, 1993.
The Origin of the word loophole:
"In the late Middle Ages, a loop was a narrow window, in a castle or other fortification, through which an archer could direct his missiles, but so narrow as to be a baffling target for an opposing bowman. The masonry of the window widened inwardly to permit a wider range for the defending archer. Possibly to avoid confusion between loop, and "window," and loop, "a fold," the first became identified as loophole."
~ 2107 CURIOUS WORD ORIGINS, SAYINGS & EXPRESSIONS, Charles Earle. Galahad Books, 1993.