fossil word

English

Etymology

Probably from the fact that a fossil was once a living organism, but is still of historical and scientific interest.

Noun

Examples
ado, as in without further ado or much ado about nothing fro, as in to and fro yore, as in of yore

fossil word (plural fossil words)

1. (linguistics) A word that is broadly obsolete but remains in current use because it is contained within an idiom that is still in use.

See also

• cranberry word

Further reading

• fossil word on Wikipedia.Wikipedia