Spot the frippet: mop.

Have I mentioned the drought we've been having in England this year? It was made official in the Spring and since then it's rained just about every single day...except for the days when it's poured.


Yes, I think I have mentioned it from time to time, haven't I.


The good news is that the drought is now officially over. We can use our hosepipes again if we should wish to. Which we won't, because it's STILL RAINING. Rivers are bursting their banks, flood defences are submerged, towns are under water. It won't be hard to find a mop:



 in use round here, I can tell you.


If you happen to live in a place where it hasn't rained for ever, then you might be able to spot another, hairy sort of mop, like this:



And if everyone around you is dry and impeccably groomed, then to mop (often in the expression to mop and mow) is to make a sad face:



Or, finally, a mop can be a hiring fair, especially for servants, who used to attend holding a mop to show they were looking for a job.

Hm. Perhaps, with unemployment as it is, we could do with a bit more of that sort of thing nowadays.

Spot the frippet: mop. The word meaning cleaning tool comes from the Latin mappa, which means napkin, and the word meaning sad face comes from the Dutch moppen to pout. It may also have something to do with the other Dutch word mop, which means pug dog.