New Game: What's the Word?

[DarkRavie]

What's the Word: DECAPOD

pronunciation: [DEK-ə-pod]

 

Part of speech: noun

Origin: French, 19th century

 

Meaning:

1. A crustacean of the order Decapoda, such as a shrimp, crab, or lobster.

 

Examples:

"Instead of fish, I chose the crab and lobster platter and dined on decapods."

"Decapods often prefer warm and shallow water to colder deep water."

About Decapod

Decapod is a loanword from the French "décapode," formed by combining the ancient Greek terms "δέκας" ("dékas," meaning "10") and "ποδός" ("podós," meaning "foot or limb").

 

Did you Know?

The classification "decapod" includes 8,000 species of crustaceans, ranging from crabs and lobsters to shrimp, prawns, and crawfish. The smallest decapod is a half-inch shrimp, while the largest is the 12-foot spider crab. Though their name suggests decapods have 10 legs, some have as many as 38. Decapods live in both salt water and fresh water, as well as on land. While they tend to prefer warmer, shallower water, decapods are found throughout the ocean, including at the great depths of the abyssal zone, or around 10,000 to 20,000 feet down.

 

[DarkRavie]

What's the Word: RIVIERE

pronunciation: [riv-ee-AIR]

 

Part of speech: noun

Origin: French, 19th century

 

Meaning:

1. A necklace of gems that increase in size toward a large central stone, typically consisting of more than one string.

 

Examples:

"While a rivière is a striking piece of jewelry, it can make a subtle fashion statement."

"The standard rivière is made with matching gems of the same cut and color, though the stones get larger toward the center of the necklace."

About Rivière

“Rivière” is taken from the French for “river.”

 

Did you Know?

The necklace style known as the “rivière” links gemstones together on a string or chain with a continuity that brings to mind the flow of a river — the root of the style’s name. The style emerged in 18th-century France, during the time of Queen Marie Antoinette, who was associated with a rivière called “le collier de la Reine” (“the Queen’s necklace”). This rivière was the subject of the infamous “Affair of the Diamond Necklace,” in which Marie Antoinette was accused of refusing to pay the crown jeweler for making the ornate rivière in 1845. It later emerged that Marie Antoinette had rejected the piece, but a notorious thief named Jeanne de Valois-Saint-Rémy forged the queen’s signature, hoping to steal the set of jewels.