This week’s theme
Words related to writing

This week’s words
chosisme
pilcrow
paremiography
dithyramb
obelus

---

A.Word.A.Day

PRONUNCIATION:

(PIL-kroh)

MEANING:

noun: A symbol (¶) used to indicate paragraph breaks.

ETYMOLOGY:

Apparently an alteration of the word paragraph, with r changing into l and remodeled along the more familiar words pill and crow. Earliest documented use: 1440.

NOTES:

In the beginning, a piece of writing was one big amorphous chunk of text: no punctuation, no upper/lowercase, no spaces. Writing real estate was expensive, whether tablets, skins, or papyrus. With time punctuation marks entered the language. A pilcrow signified a change in topic, even though the text still flowed without any visual breaks.

Eventually, actual paragraph breaks were employed and the pilcrow sat at the beginning of the paragraph, often embellished in red color. When printing came along, the hand embellishment of the pilcrow disappeared though the space marked for it remained at the beginning of the paragraph as an indent.

The pilcrow took a well-earned retirement, though you can still find it if you know where to look in your word processor.

USAGE:

“I suggest adding a pilcrow for persons who read while driving.”
Vladimir Nabokov; Ada or Ardor: A Family Chronicle; McGraw-Hill; 1969.

A THOUGHT FOR TODAY: