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.
oakum
(noun) loose hemp or jute fiber obtained by unravelling old ropes; when impregnated with tar it was used to caulk seams and pack joints in wooden ships
Source: WordNet® 3.1
oakum (countable and uncountable, plural oakums)
A material, consisting of tarred fibres, used to caulk or pack joints in plumbing, masonry, and wooden shipbuilding.
The coarse portion separated from flax or hemp in hackling.
• (flax or hemp fibers separated in hackling): tow, hards
• Okuma
Source: Wiktionary
Oak"um, n. Etym: [AS. acumba; pref. er-, Goth. us-, orig. meaning, out) + cemban to comb, camb comb. See Comb.]
1. The material obtained by untwisting and picking into loose fiber old hemp ropes; -- used for calking the seams of ships, stopping leaks, etc.
2. The coarse portion separated from flax or hemp in nackling. Knight. White oakum, that made from untarred rope.
Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition
3 April 2025
(noun) an assemblage of parts that is regarded as a single entity; “how big is that part compared to the whole?”; “the team is a unit”
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.