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.
LOOPHOLE
loophole
(noun) a small hole in a fortified wall; for observation or discharging weapons
loophole
(noun) an ambiguity (especially one in the text of a law or contract) that makes it possible to evade a difficulty or obligation
Source: WordNet® 3.1
Etymology
Noun
loophole (plural loopholes)
(historical) A slit in a castle wall; today, any similar window for shooting a ranged weapon or letting in light.
A method of escape, especially an ambiguity or exception in a rule or law that can be exploited in order to avoid its effect.
Verb
loophole (third-person singular simple present loopholes, present participle loopholing, simple past and past participle loopholed)
(military, transitive) To prepare a building for defense by preparing slits or holes through which to fire on attackers
(transitive) To exploit (a law, etc.) by means of loopholes.
Source: Wiktionary
Loop"hole`, n.
1. (Mil.)
Definition: A small opening, as in the walls of fortification, or in the bulkhead of a ship, through which small arms or other weapons may be discharged at an enemy.
2. A hole or aperture that gives a passage, or the means of escape or evasion.
Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition
Recent Word Finds
Word of the Day
25 January 2025
DERMATOGLYPHICS
(noun) the study of the whorls and loops and arches in the fingertips and on the palms of the hand and the soles of the feet; “some criminologists specialize in dermatoglyphics”
Coffee Trivia
