Nearby Words
noun
1.
any of the characters of certain ancient alphabets, as of a script used for writing the Germanic languages, especially of Scandinavia and Britain, from c200 to c1200, or a script used for inscriptions in a Turkic language of the 6th to 8th centuries from the area near the Orkhon River in Mongolia.
2.
something written or inscribed in such characters.
3.
an aphorism, poem, or saying with mystical meaning or for use in casting a spell.
Origin:
1675–85; < Old Norse rūn a secret, writing, runic character; cognate with Old English rūn (Middle English rune, obsolete English roun). See round2
1675–85; < Old Norse rūn a secret, writing, runic character; cognate with Old English rūn (Middle English rune, obsolete English roun). See round2
Related forms
rune·like, adjective
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Runes
is always a great word to know.
So is doohickey. Does it mean:
| a screen or mat covered with a dark material for shielding a camera lens from excess light or glare. |
| a gadget; dingus; thingumbob. |
Dictionary.com Unabridged
noun Literary.
a poem, song, or verse.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
Cite This Source
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Link To runes
Etymonline
Word Origin & History
rune
O.E. run, rune "secret, mystery, dark mysterious statement," also "a runic letter," from P.Gmc. *runo (cf. O.N. run "a secret, magic sign, runic character," O.H.G. runa "a secret conversation, whisper," Goth. runa), from PIE *ru-no-, source of technical terms of magic in Gmc. and Celtic. The word entered
EXPANDM.E. as roun and by normal evolution would have become Mod.Eng. *rown, but it died out c.1450 when the use of runes did. The modern usage is from 1685, introduced by Ger. philologists from a Scand. source (cf. Dan. rune, from O.N. run). The runic alphabet is believed to have developed by 2c. C.E. from contact with Gk. writing, the alphabet modified to be more easily cut into wood or stone. Cf. also Runnymede. For some notes on the Germanic runes, see this page.
COLLAPSE
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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FOLDOC
Computing Dictionary
runes definition
1. Anything that requires heavy wizardry or black art to parse: core dumps, JCL commands, APL or code in a language you haven't a clue how to read. Not quite as bad as line noise, but close.
Compare casting the runes, Great Runes.
2. Special display characters (for example, the high-half graphics on an IBM PC).
[Jargon File]
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