This week’s theme
Toponyms

This week’s words
antimacassar
podunk
charlatan
spaniel
Jerusalem syndrome

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A.Word.A.Day

PRONUNCIATION:

(SPAN-yuhl)

MEANING:

noun:
1. A submissive or fawning person.
2. Any of several breeds of small to medium-sized dogs with long drooping ears and a silky coat.

ETYMOLOGY:

From Old French espaignol/espaigneul (Spanish dog), from Hispaniolus (Spanish), from Hispania (Spain). Earliest documented use: 1386.

USAGE:

“Helena: I am your spaniel. And, Demetrius,
The more you beat me, I will fawn on you.”
William Shakespeare; A Midsummer Night’s Dream; 1590s.

See more usage examples of spaniel in Vocabulary.com’s dictionary.

A THOUGHT FOR TODAY: