c. 1600, "guarded" (in manner), "averse to showing familiarity," past-participle adjective from reserve (v.). The meaning "set or kept apart for another or future purpose" is by 1610s; specifically of seats, tables, etc., "set aside for a future use," especially by a particular person, from 1858.
type of cookie (made by Nabisco), 1912; the source of the name has been forgotten. As a derogatory word for "black person felt to have a 'white' mentality," 1968, African-American vernacular, from the snack cookies, which consist of dark chocolate wafers and white sugar cream filling (hence "brown outside, white inside"). Compare radish-communist (1920), one who proclaims enthusiasm for the Party but privately opposes it, on the notion of red outside, white inside.
1850, keramic, "of or belonging to pottery," from Greek keramikos, from keramos "potter's earth; tile; earthen vessel, jar, wine-jar, pottery," which perhaps from a pre-Hellenic word.
Watkins suggests a connection with Latin cremare "to burn," but Klein's sources are firmly against this. Beekes writes "No certain etymology," finds connection with kerasai "to mix" to be "formally unproblematic, but semantically not very convincing," and regards the proposed connection to verbs for "to burn, glow" "better from the semantic side." He concludes, "this technical term for tile-making may well be Pre-Greek (or Anatolian)."
The spelling has been influenced by French céramique (1806). Related: ceramist "person devoted to ceramic art" (1855). Ceramics "art of making things from clay molded and baked" is attested from 1857.
savory medley dish of Iberian origin, 1640s, from Spanish olla, Portuguese olha, both from Vulgar Latin *olla "pot, jar." With the common mistake of -o for -a in English words from Spanish. The sense was transferred from the pot to what went into it. Extended sense of "any mixture or medley, a collection of various pieces" is from 1640s in English.
late 14c., excepten, "to receive," from Old French excepter (12c.), from Latin exceptus, past participle of excipere "to take out, withdraw; make an exception, reserve," from ex "out" (see ex-) + capere "to take," from PIE root *kap- "to grasp." Meaning "to leave out" is from 1510s. Related: Excepted; excepting. Adjectival function led to use as a preposition, conjunction (late 14c.).
"reserve member of a jury," 1670s, from tales "writ ordering bystanders to serve" in place of jurors not in attendance (late 15c.), via Anglo-French (mid-13c.), from Latin tales (in tales de circumstantibus "such persons from those standing about," a clause featured in such a writ), noun use of plural of talis "such, of such kind" (see that).
1670s, "offensive to a refined sense of propriety, beyond the bounds of proper reserve," from in- (1) "not, opposite of" + delicate. Related: Indelicately.
Immorality and indelicacy are different things. Rabelais is indelicate to the last degree, but he is not really immoral. Congreve is far less indelicate, but far more immoral. [James Hadley, "Essays Philological and Critical," 1873]
"openness of mind, impartiality, frankness, freedom from reserve or disguise," c. 1600, from Latin candor "purity, openness," originally "whiteness, brightness, radiance," from candere "to shine, to be white" (from PIE root *kand- "to shine"). It was borrowed earlier in English (c. 1500) in the Latin literal sense of "extreme whiteness."
"fruit preserved with sugar," c. 1600, from preserve (v.). Earlier it meant "a preservative" (1550s). Sense of "protected place for animals or plants" (a sense more properly belonging to conserve) is from 1807. The verb preserve in the sense of "maintain and reserve for special use in hunting or fishing" is from 1610s.
