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To leave somebody "in the lurch" means to abandon somebody in a difficult situation. What was the original meaning of the word "lurch"?

Dice game. "Lurch" was a popular game where the loser acquired a "lurch", something like the "Black Peter" in a children's card game, or a "skunk" in cribbage.

What does the Middle English word "gorgayse" mean?

Elegant. From Latin and French for "throat", it used to refer to a decorative metal disc worn around the neck and breast, later to a female headdress that covered the throat as well as the head. Its derivative "gorgeous" has survived into our time.

What was called a "fleam"?

Instrument for bloodletting. It comes from Greek "phleb", vein, the same root as the word "phlebotomy".

Which part of the body is affected if one suffers from "megrim"?

Head. "Megrim" from Old French "foul mood" came into common use in English around 1400. It lives on as "migraine".

The modern word "bonfire" comes from "bone-fire". Why would people burn bones?

To ward off evil spirits. Bonfires used to be associated mostly with midsummer pagan rituals.

Many people have experienced a "blasted headache", but what did the word "blastan" originally mean?

Spoiling the fruits of the earth. According to Bailey's Dictionary, it meant "the sudden unexplainable damage to animals or crops caused by wind or frosts that immediately followed rain." (From "Forgotten English" by Jeffrey Kacirk)

What is lant?

Stale human urine. It used to be an additive in baking and beer making, eg "single-lanted" or "double-lanted" ale. Lant was also used for medicinal and industrial purposes. Even today human or animal urine is used in some drugs.

What was the original meaning of "lewd"?

Illiterate. The Old English term "laewede" referred to lay people as opposed to clergy. Since generally only clergy were able to read and write, "lewd" meant "illiterate" as applied to the lower classes (even though the non-clergy upper classes were mostly illiterate themselves).

Wassail Eve was the last day of the Christmas season, (also known as Twelfth Night). What modern word comes from "wassail"?

Vessel. Wassail is the name of the beverage drunk on Wassail Eve, usually sweetened and spiced ale or wine. The term comes from Old Norse "waes hail - be thou healthy". Sometimes toasted and spiced bread was floated in it to enhance the flavour, hence our modern "toast". (If you know German, here's a joke for you: This Englishman is travelling in Germany. He goes to a pub for lunch but it's so crowded he has to share a table with a native. When the drinks arrive, he lifts his glass and says: "Your health!" The native looks puzzled for a moment, then lifts his glass and replies: "Your dunkles!")(For non-German speakers: the non-English speaking native understood "health" as "helles" - light beer; he therefore responded with "your dark beer" - sorry!)

"Grout", as in "mortar used for finishing tile", is derived from a food.

t. A derivative from Anglo-Saxon "grut", grout is a coarse porridge.