In the 16th century, Turkish women could divorce their husbands if the man failed to keep his family’s pot filled with coffee.
TAPER
candle, taper, wax light
(noun) stick of wax with a wick in the middle
wick, taper
(noun) a loosely woven cord (in a candle or oil lamp) that draws fuel by capillary action up into the flame
taper
(noun) the property possessed by a shape that narrows toward a point (as a wedge or cone)
taper
(noun) a convex shape that narrows toward a point
taper
(verb) diminish gradually; “Interested tapered off”
sharpen, taper, point
(verb) give a point to; “The candles are tapered”
Source: WordNet® 3.1
Etymology 1
Noun
taper (plural tapers)
A slender wax candle; a small lighted wax candle
(by extension) a small light.
A tapering form; gradual diminution of thickness and/or cross section in an elongated object
A thin stick used for lighting candles, either a wax-coated wick or a slow-burning wooden rod.
Verb
taper (third-person singular simple present tapers, present participle tapering, simple past and past participle tapered)
(transitive) To make thinner or narrower at one end.
(intransitive) To diminish gradually.
Synonyms
• narrow
Adjective
taper
Tapered; narrowing to a point.
Etymology 2
Noun
taper (plural tapers)
(weaving) One who operates a tape machine.
Someone who works with tape or tapes.
Anagrams
• Peart, Petra, apert, apter, parte, pater, peart, petar, petra, prate, preta, reapt, repat, retap, trape, treap
Source: Wiktionary
Ta"per, n. Etym: [AS. tapur, tapor, taper; cf. Ir. tapar, W. tampr.]
1. A small wax candle; a small lighted wax candle; hence, a small light. Get me a taper in my study, Lucius. Shak.
2. A tapering form; gradual diminution of thickness in an elongated object; as, the taper of a spire.
Ta"per, a. Etym: [Supposed to be from taper, n., in allusion to its form.]
Definition: Regularly narrowed toward the point; becoming small toward one end; conical; pyramidical; as, taper fingers.
Ta"per, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Tapered; p. pr. & vb. n. Tapering.]
Definition: To become gradually smaller toward one end; as, a sugar loaf tapers toward one end.
Ta"per, v. t.
Definition: To make or cause to taper.
Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition
Recent Word Finds
Word of the Day
14 April 2025
FOCUS
(noun) maximum clarity or distinctness of an image rendered by an optical system; “in focus”; “out of focus”
Coffee Trivia
