Wednesday, June 3, 2009

Your 19th-Century Grammar Assignment for Today: Use "Rusticate" Correctly in a Sentence

Dusty Diary came upon this word today in her perusal of the July 11, 1874 Ypsilanti Commercial.

This word is too good to allow it to rust away into obscurity, agreed? You can tell from the context it means "to lean and loaf at my ease observing a spear of summer grass in a rustic setting," an inference borne out by this authoritative definition.

Your assignment is to write one sentence employing this word. Describe how you rusticate. Example: "Dusty Diary loves to rusticate in her back patio among the raised-bed gardens and red clover, preferably with a glass of wine."

How about you, dear reader? Join Dusty Diary in her campaign to revive and popularize this 19th-century word!

5 comments :

Anonymous said...

I rusticate in my hammock, with a book and a cozy blanket.

Dusty D said...

Ooh, good one! Mm, hammock. I hope to have a hammock someday when our maple tree is a bit bigger. Nice rusticatin'!

Unknown said...

Drawing Ypsilanti buildings that feature rusticated masonry is a b*%ch.

Dusty D said...

That's a good one too Patrick R., using "rusticated" in its sense of masonry left with a rough surface. There's a good pic on Wikipedia:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rustication_(architecture)

You can also see many examples of rusticated stone in Highland Cemetery. Sometimes part is nicely carved with the name and decorative designs, and part is left deliberately rusticated--very striking effect.

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