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.
SCRUFF
nape, scruff, nucha
(noun) the back side of the neck
Source: WordNet® 3.1
Etymology 1
Noun
scruff (countable and uncountable, plural scruffs)
Someone with an untidy appearance.
Stubble, facial hair (on males).
(obsolete) Crust.
(obsolete) Scurf.
Etymology 2
Noun
scruff (plural scruffs)
The loose skin at the back of the neck of some animals.
(rare) The back of the neck, nape; also scruff of the neck.
Usage notes
Strictly refers to the loose skin at the back of the neck – found on many mammals, though not humans – rather than the back of the neck itself. While this distinction is not always observed, scruff is used almost exclusively in the phrase “to grab [someone/something] by the scruff [of the neck]”.
Synonyms
• nape
• nucha, nuchal (medical)
• withers (of a horse)
Verb
scruff (third-person singular simple present scruffs, present participle scruffing, simple past and past participle scruffed)
To lift or carry by the scruff.
Source: Wiktionary
Scruff, n. Etym: [See Scurf.]
Definition: Scurf. [Obs.]
Scruff, n. Etym: [Cf. Scuff.]
Definition: The nape of the neck; the loose outside skin, as of the back of the neck.
Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition
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