Word Origins

 

*LOOPHOLE

In the late Middle Ages a loop was a narrow window, in a castle or other fortification, through which an archer could direct his arrows, but so narrow as to hinder the accuracy of an opposing bowman. The masonry of the window widened inwardly to permit a wider range for the defending archer. Possibly to avoid confusion between loop, “window,” or “a fold,” the former became identified as loophole. The term today is commonly discovered by an attorney or a politician.

*Inspired by Charles Funk (1881–1957)