In the 18th century, the Swedish government made coffee and its paraphernalia (including cups and dishes) illegal for its supposed ties to rebellious sentiment.
treacles
plural of treacle
• Alcester, clearest, scelerat
Source: Wiktionary
Trea"cle (tre"k'l), n. Etym: [OE. triacle a sovereign remedy, theriac, OF. triacle, F. thériaque (cf. Pr. triacla, tiriaca, Sp. & It. triaca, teriaca), L. theriaca an antidote against the bite of poisonous animals, Gr. qhri`on a beast, a wild beast, dim. of qh`r a beast. Cf. Theriac.]
1. (Old Med.)
Definition: A remedy against poison. See Theriac, 1. We kill the viper, and make treacle of him. Jer. Taylor.
2. A sovereign remedy; a cure. [Obs.] Christ which is to every harm treacle. Chaucer .
3. Molasses; sometimes, specifically, the molasses which drains from the sugar-refining molds, and which is also called sugarhouse molasses.
Note: In the United States molasses is the common name; in England, treacle.
4. A saccharine fluid, consisting of the inspissated juices or decoctions of certain vegetables, as the sap of the birch, sycamore, and the like. Treacle mustard (Bot.), a name given to several species of the cruciferous genus Erysimum, especially the E. cheiranthoides, which was formerly used as an ingredient in Venice treacle, or theriac.
– Treacle water, a compound cordial prepared in different ways from a variety of ingredients, as hartshorn, roots of various plants, flowers, juices of plants, wines, etc., distilled or digested with Venice treacle. It was formerly regarded as a medicine of great virtue. Nares. Venice treacle. (Old Med.) Same as Theriac, 1.
Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition
4 April 2025
(verb) kill by cutting the head off with a guillotine; “The French guillotined many Vietnamese while they occupied the country”
In the 18th century, the Swedish government made coffee and its paraphernalia (including cups and dishes) illegal for its supposed ties to rebellious sentiment.