Lictor
Let’s delve into a fasces-nating subject
Today’s New York Times Spelling Bee letters:
C, L, O, R, T, V, and center I (all words must include I).
Merriam-Webster says…
Silly little dictionary! Don’t you know that lictor can’t possibly be a word if the New York Times says it ain’t?
For further fascinating facts, check out the Spelling Bee Master.
What’s your favorite dord* from today’s puzzle?
My Two Cents
Although lictors may have originated with the Etruscans, they are mostly associated with the Roman Empire. Now, this is not to say the two civilizations are not related. The Etruscans spread out along what today is the northwestern coast of Italy; think of the laces of the boot shape.
It’s just that lictor brings to mind Romans, perhaps because the word itself is thought to come from the Latin ligare, meaning “to bind”.
