A.Word.A.Day --buskin

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buskin

PRONUNCIATION:

(BUS-kin)

MEANING:

noun:
1. A thick-soled laced boot, reaching to the knee or calf, worn by actors of ancient Greek tragedies. Also known as cothurnus.
2. A tragic drama.

ETYMOLOGY:

Perhaps from Middle French brousequin.

NOTES:

A thick-soled boot was a distinctive feature of a tragic actor in ancient Greece. It elevated him and raised his stature. Because those big shoes were often worn by tragedians, we came to refer to a tragedy itself as a buskin. A counterpart of buskin is sock (a comedy) after soccus, a lightweight low shoe worn by comic actors.

USAGE:

"'My vein,' wrote Corneille, 'often combines the lofty buskin with the comic sock, and ... pleases the audience by striking contrasting notes.'"
Linda Winer; Corneille With Kushner's Help; Newsday (New York); Jan 20, 1994.

See more usage examples of buskin in Vocabulary.com's dictionary.

A THOUGHT FOR TODAY:

Is man one of God's blunders or is God one of man's? -Friedrich Nietzsche, philosopher (1844-1900)

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