Potpourri

Intermediate 🎓 Education / Academia

Definition

A mixture of dried flowers, herbs, and spices kept in a container to perfume a room; also used metaphorically to describe any miscellaneous collection or medley of items, ideas, or musical pieces.

Example Usage

The museum's autumn exhibition was a potpourri of art from different centuries and cultures.

Origin

From French 'pot pourri' (literally 'rotten pot'), itself borrowed from Spanish 'olla podrida,' referring to a stew with mixed ingredients.

Fun Fact

Victorian-era households were obsessed with potpourri as a status symbol, with recipes for mixtures becoming closely guarded family secrets.

Source: Definition backfill (hailey)

Related Terms

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