In the 18th century, the Swedish government made coffee and its paraphernalia (including cups and dishes) illegal for its supposed ties to rebellious sentiment.
whiffletree, whippletree, swingletree
(noun) a crossbar that is attached to the traces of a draft horse and to the vehicle or implement that the horse is pulling
Source: WordNet® 3.1
whippletree (plural whippletrees)
a wooden crossbar for a plough or carriage, pivoted in the middle, from which traces are fastened to a draught animal.
• splinter bar
• swinglebar
• swingletree
• whiffletree (US)
Source: Wiktionary
Whip"ple*tree`, n. Etym: [See Whip, and cf. Whiffletree.]
1. The pivoted or swinging bar to which the traces, or tugs, of a harness are fastened, and by which a carriage, a plow, or other implement or vehicle, is drawn; a whiffletree; a swingletree; a singletree. See Singletree. [People] cut their own whippletree in the woodlot. Emerson.
2. (Bot.)
Definition: The cornel tree. Chaucer.
Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition
18 June 2025
(noun) large South American evergreen tree trifoliate leaves and drupes with nutlike seeds used as food and a source of cooking oil
In the 18th century, the Swedish government made coffee and its paraphernalia (including cups and dishes) illegal for its supposed ties to rebellious sentiment.