[buhs-kin] 
| 1. | a thick-soled, laced boot or half boot. |
| 2. | Also called cothurnus. the high, thick-soled shoe worn by ancient Greek and Roman tragedians. |
| 3. | buskins, stockings decorated with gold thread worn by a bishop at a Pontifical Mass. |
| 4. | tragic drama; tragedy. Compare sock 1 (def. 3). |
| 5. | the art of acting, esp. tragic acting. |
| 6. | a woman's low-cut shoe with elastic gores at the sides of the instep, popular in the early 20th century. |
| bus·kin (bŭs'kĭn) n.
[Perhaps alteration (influenced by buckskin) of obsolete French broisequin, small leather boot.] |
buskin
a thick-soled boot worn by actors in ancient Greek tragedies. Because of the association, the term has come to mean tragedy. It is contrasted with sock, which refers to the foot covering worn by actors in comedies. The word is probably a modification of the Middle French brouzequin, "a kind of foot covering."
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