In 1511, leaders in Mecca believed coffee stimulated radical thinking and outlawed the drink. In 1524, the leaders overturned that order, and people could drink coffee again.
MATTOCK
mattock
(noun) a kind of pick that is used for digging; has a flat blade set at right angles to the handle
Source: WordNet® 3.1
Etymology
Noun
mattock (plural mattocks)
An agricultural tool whose blades are at right angles to the body, similar to a pickaxe.
Verb
mattock (third-person singular simple present mattocks, present participle mattocking, simple past and past participle mattocked)
To cut or dig with a mattock.
Source: Wiktionary
Mat"tock, n. Etym: [AS. mattuc; cf. W. matog.]
Definition: An implement for digging and grubbing. The head has two long steel blades, one like an adz and the other like a narrow ax or the point of a pickax. 'T is you must dig with mattock and with spade. Shak.
Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition
Recent Word Finds
Word of the Day
10 May 2025
BEATIFY
(verb) declare (a dead person) to be blessed; the first step of achieving sainthood; “On Sunday, the martyr will be beatified by the Vatican”
Coffee Trivia
