RAREFIED: 1: of, relating to, or interesting to a select group; esoteric 2: very high
"Rarefied" was formed from the verb "rarefy," which derives from a combination of the Latin rarus ("thin" or "rare") with facere ("to make" and has meant "to make thin" since the 14th century. In its original uses back in the 1600s, the adjective "rarefied" was on the lean side, too; it meant "made less dense" (as in "the fog lifted and we could breathe more easily in the rarefied air"). By the 16th century, "rarefy" had gained the sense "to refine or purify." Over time, "rarefied" followed suit, by the 1940s, it was being used to mean "only for the select."
1 comment:
I'm playing a game on my blog where I use the word of the day from a calendar I bought in an entry, and readers of my blog have to guess what the word is.
Unfortunately (for me!), one of the contestants in the game found your site (and was gracious enough to admit it!) so now I'll have to be creative and think of how to deal with it.
It's kind of neat how two different people are incorporating the word of the day into their blogs, isn't it?
Just thought I'd share that :)
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