Cataracts in the forest, rhubarbs on the baseball field — what’s going on here? These phrases might sound like the makings of a nursery rhyme, but they’re in the context of little-used definitions of common words. In some cases, these obscure definitions are older than the words’ everyday uses and influenced the evolution of their modern definitions. Learn more about how a cut can “smart,” why a stroll may be “constitutional” and other lesser-known definitions.
Rhubarb
Noun: A heated dispute.
Better known as a vibrantly red garden vegetable, “rhubarb” also describes an intense argument or controversy. This peculiar definition was popularized by sports broadcaster Red Barber in 1943 to describe a heated scuffle between baseball players. Even earlier, sports reporter Garry Schumacher used “rhubarb” in this context when he compared an on-field baseball squabble to an entangled mess of stringy cooked rhubarb. Schumacher furthered the comparison while reminiscing about his childhood, when neighborhood children used rhubarb sandwiches as ammunition during food fights. To Schumacher, “rhubarb” was a shoo-in for sportscasting slang.
Cataract
Noun: A large waterfall.
A cataract is a medical condition impacting the eyes that results in blurred vision, but it’s also a waterfall or a large downpour of water. You might say, for example, “The log traversed the cataracts of the Niagara River,” or, “The storm brought cataracts of rain.” This lesser-used second usage stems from the Latin cataracta, meaning “waterfall.” Cataracta has a secondary definition in Latin as well: portcullis, the word for a heavy iron gate found in medieval fortresses. The modern term for an ocular cataract might have evolved from this “gate” definition, in reference to an obstruction.
Constitutional
Noun: A walk, typically one taken regularly to maintain or restore good health.
This political buzzword relates to set principles that govern a state, but its little-known definition of a “wellness walk” (of sorts) has been around for a century longer, since the 1680s. In the 17th and 18th centuries, the adjective “constitutional” pertained to a person’s physical and mental wellness. This evolved into the noun “constitutional” to describe a walk that had health benefits, as in, “The sunny autumn day was perfect for a constitutional.”
Smart
Verb: (Of a wound or part of the body) Feel or cause a sharp stinging pain.
Noun: Sharp stinging pain.
“She tried to distract herself from the smarting of the bee sting.” This less frequently used definition of “smart” is actually the oldest, used in Old English (as smeart) since at least the 12th century to describe stinging. The Old English variation smeortan meant “to be painful.” “Smart” wasn’t used to describe intelligence until the 17th century, perhaps from the notion of using cutting or witty words (words that sting).
Husband
Verb: Use (resources) economically; conserve.
If someone husbands their resources, it means that they are frugal, conservative, or thrifty. In this context, the sentence, “My husband husbanded his strength during the marathon,” means the speaker’s spouse conserved his energy during the race. “Husband” has been used as a synonym for “conserve” since the 15th century. The definition of a male spouse is slightly older, from the Old English husbonda.
Mean
Adjective: (Especially of a place) Poor in quality and appearance; shabby.
“Mean” takes on many uses in English, from “malicious” or “unkind,” to a mathematical average, to a word to convey intention (“You know what I mean?”). Perhaps the least-used definition of “mean” describes something as “inferior” or “poor,” as in, “The meal was mean, but it curbed my hunger.” In this sense, “mean” has been around since the 14th century, when it was first used to describe people of lower rank or social class and evolved into describing objects and things as “run down” or “lowly.”
Tattoo
Noun: An evening drum or bugle signal recalling soldiers to their quarters.
The oldest definition of “tattoo” is also the least common. Now synonymous with decorative ink markings on the skin, “tattoo” evolved from the 17th-century Dutch phrase tap-too, which meant, “Close the tap (of the cask),” from tap (“the faucet of a cask”) and toe (“shut”). The expression stemmed from the practice of police turning off the taps at taverns at closing time. The phrase later described the signal (drumming or trumpeting) used to call soldiers or sailors to quarters at the end of the night, as in, “The evening tattoo was heard throughout the barracks.”
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