palimpsest

See also Palimpsest

English

WOTD – 17 October 2007    

A section of the Codex Ephraemi from the National Library in Paris, containing Matt. 20:16-23. An example of a palimpsest.

Wikipedia

Etymology

From Latin palimpsēstus, from Ancient Greek παλίμψηστος (palímpsestos, “scraped again”).

Pronunciation

• (RP, US) IPA: /ˈpælɪmpsɛst/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

Noun

palimpsest (plural palimpsests)

1. A manuscript or document that has been erased or scraped clean, for reuse of the paper, parchment, vellum, or other medium on which it was written. Many historical texts have been recovered using ultraviolet light and other technologies to read the erased writing.
2. (archaic) Monumental brasses that have been reused by engraving of the blank back side.
3. (astronomy) Circular features believed to be lunar craters that have been obliterated by later volcanic activity.
4. (geology) Geological features thought to be related to features or effects below the surface.
5. (computing) Memory that has been erased and re-written.
6. Something bearing the traces of an earlier, erased form.
   • 2005, Patrick Radden Keefe, Chatter:

     Miraculously, the Stasi's record of Garton Ash's years in Berlin remained intact, and in his extraordinary book The File he recalls going back to Berlin, sifting through the material, and piecing together those years for himself. The result is a palimpsest of memories, observations recorded by informants and agents, and the recollections in his own diaries at that time.

Quotations

• For usage examples of this term, see the citations page.

Synonyms

• codex rescriptus

Derived terms

• palimpsestic

Translations

A manuscript scraped clean for reuse

• Czech: palimpsest (cs) m
• French: palimpseste (fr) m
• German: Palimpsest (de) m
• Hungarian: palimpszeszt (hu)
• Icelandic: uppskafningur (is) m, skafið handrit (is) n
• Italian: palinsesto (it) m
• Latin: palimpsēstus (la) m
• Norwegian: palimpsest (no) m

• Polish: palimpsest (pl) m
• Portuguese: palimpsesto (pt) m
• Romanian: palimpsest (ro) n
• Russian: палимпсест (ru) (palimpsést) m
• Serbo-Croatian: palimpsest (sh) m
• Slovene: palimpsest (sl) m
• Spanish: palimpsesto (es) m
• Swedish: palimpsest (sv) c

astronomy: Circular features believed to be lunar craters obliterated by volcanic activity

• Icelandic: skafgígur (is) m

Verb

palimpsest (third-person singular simple present palimpsests, present participle palimpsesting, simple past and past participle palimpsested)

1. To scrape clean, as in parchment, for reuse.
2. On paper: to reuse, often by erasure or change of pen direction or color. Especially fueled by Earth Day.

   Typically refers to a multi-layered work, e.g.: new ads covering old on a roadside sign.

Anagrams

• past simple
• simple past, simple-past

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Czech

Noun

palimpsest m

1. A palimpsest

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Polish

Wikipedia ^pl

Noun

palimpsest m

1. A palimpsest

Declension

    declension of palimpsest

	singular	plural
nominative	palimpsest	palimpsesty
genitive	palimpsestu	palimpsestów
dative	palimpsestowi	palimpsestom
accusative	palimpsest	palimpsesty
instrumental	palimpsestem	palimpsestami
locative	palimpseście	palimpsestach
vocative	palimpseście	palimpsesty

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Romanian

Etymology

From French palimpseste, from Latin palimpsēstus, from Ancient Greek παλίμψηστος (palímpsestos, “scraped again”).

Pronunciation

• IPA: [pa.limpˈsest]

Noun

palimpsest n (plural palimpseste)

1. A palimpsest

Declension

declension of palimpsest

	singular		plural
gender n	indefinite articulation	definite articulation	indefinite articulation	definite articulation
nominative/accusative	un palimpsest	palimpsestul	niște palimpseste	palimpsestele
genitive/dative	unui palimpsest	palimpsestului	unor palimpseste	palimpsestelor

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Serbo-Croatian

Pronunciation

• IPA: /palǐmpsest/
• Hyphenation: pa‧lim‧psest

Noun

palìmpsest m (Cyrillic spelling палѝмпсест)

1. palimpsest

Declension

    declension of palimpsest

	singular	plural
nominative	palimpsest	palimpsesti
genitive	palimpsesta	palimpsesta
dative	palimpsestu	palimpsestima
accusative	palimpsest	palimpseste
vocative	palimpseste	palimpsesti
locative	palimpsestu	palimpsestima
instrumental	palimpsestom	palimpsestima

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Slovene

Pronunciation

• IPA: [pɑlimpsest]

Noun

palimpsest m inan. (plural palimpsesti)

1. palimpsest