Watch Your Language: Archaic and less commonly used words

Getting your

This column is dedicated to archaic and less commonly used words. That is to say, words that are either so old that they have largely passed out of common use or words that form part of a specialized vocabulary.

All words capture or reflect something about a culture’s history and society and it is often fascinating to find out more about those that are not in frequent use. Depending on how broadly someone reads, how far back they choose their reading material, or if they are proficient in the jargon of a specific field or area, it is possible that some of our readers are familiar with the ten words presented here.

This week’s column is part quiz and part explanation of 10 of these more uncommon words. I am going to present a few at a time with some possible definitions or sample sentences. See if you can determine the correct meaning.

The first three words are verb forms. They are durst, drave,and rapine. Here are three definitions. See if you can match them correctly: (1) to pillage or to plunder, (2) from the verb to dare, (3) to cause a person or animal to move quickly in a particular direction.

Durst is ...