rowel

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for August 25, 2013 is: rowel • \ROWL\  • verb 1 : to goad with or as if with a pointed disk at the end of a spur 2 : vex, trouble Examples: With one of the best fastballs in the league combined with a wicked changeup, Lester roweled the opposing line-up for his second career no-hitter. "He folded the book shut, touched his hat, moved to the wagon, and roweled the horses around." - From Colum McCann's 2013 novel TransAtlantic Did you know? If you've seen Western movies, you've seen rowels. The noun "rowel" names the circular, point-covered disk on the end of a spur that is used to urge powerful steeds to maximum speeds. But cowboys didn't invent rowels; knights in shining armor were sporting them even before the 12th century. English speakers of yore picked up the noun "rowel" from the Anglo-French "roele," meaning "small wheel." By the end of the 1500s, "rowel" was also being used as a verb for any process of prodding or goading that was as irritating as being poked in the side with a rowel. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.