[Loch-Ruadh] (no subject)

[Jane Sitton]

Ah, today's is a good one.  Madelina

Your daily vocabulary lesson: purfle * \PER-ful\ * (verb) : to ornament the
border or edges of
Example sentence: "The [guitar] top is Sitka spruce purfled in abalone."
(Marti Davis, Knoxville News-Sentinel, May 15, 2002)
Did you know?  Today we use "purfle" mostly in reference to setting a
decorative inlaid border around the body of a guitar or violin, a process
known as "purfling."  In the past, "purfle" got the most use in connection
with adornment of garments.  "The Bishop of Ely . . . wore a robe of scarlet
. . . purfled with minever," reported an English clergyman in 1840, for
example.  We embellished our language with "purfle," first as "purfilen" in
the 1300s, when we took it with its meaning from Middle French "porfiler."
Related to "purfle" is "filigree," which is used as a noun for ornamental
work made of fine wire, and also as a verb meaning "to adorn with filigree."
"Purfle" and "filigree" share the Latin source "filum," which means
"thread."