THE FIRST WORD

desuetude

PRONUNCIATION:

(DES-wi-tood, -tyood) 

MEANING:

noun: A state of disuse.

ETYMOLOGY:

From Latin de- (away from) + suescere (to become accustomed). Earliest documented use: 1623.

USAGE:

"Far from being a high-tech wonder, the Earth Station had a sad, neglected air about it, a feeling of desuetude and abandonment."
Douglas Preston; Impact; Forge Books; 2010.