Crossword – Tuesday 14 May 2019
Welcome to this week’s crossword, as usual from The I newspaper.
Today our featured word is ‘throne’, the answer to 15 Down – ‘Monarch’s seat’. ‘Throne’ is the name of the official chair on which the King or Queen sits.
Alternative meanings
The noun ‘throne’ also has a very different meaning. It can mean the seat of a king or queen, however it is commonly used as a slang word for ‘toilet’.
So, we could ask:
“Where’s Dad”?
and the answer might be:
“Oh, he’s on the throne with the newspaper”.
meaning he’s sitting on the toilet reading the newspaper.
History and etymology
The word was in use around 1200, and came from the Old French word ‘trone’ and Modern French ‘trône’, which means ‘the seat of God or a Saint’. Then at some time in 1300 it became known as ‘the seat occupied by the sovereign’. ‘Throne’ comes from the Latin ‘thronus’ and the Greek ‘thrónus’ which means ‘elevated seat’.
The word was first used colloquially as an alternative to ‘toilet’ in 1922.
Synonyms
toilet (noun)
seat of state (noun)
Grammar terms
verb |
throne / enthrone |
noun |
throne |
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