Did he say “crotchet”?

Add comment July 3rd, 2009

In my previous offering, I quoted a sentence containing the phrase “a baseless crotchet.” Now there’s a word you don’t see very often.

In this instance, “crotchet” means “a peculiar whim or stubborn notion.”

You’re more likely to encounter its adjective, “crotchety,” for “cantankerous; eccentric.”

The former definition of “crotchet,” now archaic, was “a small hook” or “a hooklike part or device.”

So, in case you were wondering, yes, it’s related to “crochet,” which is French for “small hook.” And that means in that type of needlework, a “crochet hook” is literally a “hook hook.”

Also in this family is the lawn game “croquet,” in which mallets are used to hit balls through hoops.

I assure you that I didn’t expect this to end up here: There were no mallets aforethought.

(I’m almost ashamed of that one — almost.)