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Monday 30 September 2019

Spot the Frippet: something arenaceous.

Arenas can be arenaceous - but they aren't very often, even though the words are closely connected.

Arenaceous means made of sandstone.

It can be a cliff:

File:Sandstone Crossbedding (9588212798).jpg
photo by portengaround

or a work of art:

File:Stone carving in sandstone, Qutb complex.jpg
Qtub: photo by ampersandyslexia  https://www.flickr.com/photos/88916555@N00

or a building:

File:Sandstone School.JPG
this is Sandstone School in Sandstone, Minnesota, USA. I assume this is made of sandstone.

Arenaceous can also describe a plant which grows most happily in sandy soil, so this this might be the easiest spot for you if you have sand dunes, a desert, or an old building site near you - or, indeed, if you know someone who has a cactus as a houseplant:

File:Cactus houseplant.JPG

And what's all that got to do with arenas?

This:

Spot the Frippet: something arenaceous. This word comes from the Latin word harēnāceus, sandy, from harēna, sand. The first arenas had sand sprinkled on the floor before combats.



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