Some 16th-century Italian clergymen tried to ban coffee because they believed it to be “satanic.” However, Pope Clement VII loved coffee so much that he lifted the ban and had coffee baptized in 1600.
ASYLA
Noun
asyla
plural of asylum
Source: Wiktionary
ASYLUM
A*sy"lum, n.; pl. E. Asylums, L. Asyla. Etym: [L. asylum, Gr.
1. A sanctuary or place of refuge and protection, where criminals and debtors found shelter, and from which they could not be forcibly taken without sacrilege. So sacred was the church to some, that it had the right of an asylum or sanctuary. Ayliffe.
Note: The name was anciently given to temples, altars, statues of the gods, and the like. In later times Christian churches were regarded as asylums in the same sense.
2. Any place of retreat and security. Earth has no other asylum for them than its own cold bosom. Southey.
3. An institution for the protection or relief of some class of destitute, unfortunate, or afflicted persons; as, an asylum for the aged, for the blind, or for the insane; a lunatic asylum; an orphan asylum.
Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition
Recent Word Finds
Word of the Day
14 March 2025
PARASITISM
(noun) the relation between two different kinds of organisms in which one receives benefits from the other by causing damage to it (usually not fatal damage)
Coffee Trivia
