Word of the Day

: March 5, 2009

purfle

verb PUR-ful

What It Means

: to ornament the border or edges of

purfle in Context

The luthier used abalone shell to purfle the instrument.

Did You Know?

Today we use "purfle" mostly in reference to setting a decorative inlaid border around the body of a guitar or violin, a process known as "purfling." In the past, "purfle" got the most use in connection with adornment of garments. "The Bishop of Ely . . . wore a robe of scarlet . . . purfled with minever," reported an English clergyman in 1840, for example. We embellished our language with "purfle," first as "purfilen" in the 1300s, when we took it with its meaning from Middle French "porfiler."