From Flint to Skunk
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Tap any rung for its meaning.
Two stepping stones: the G (rung 1, for fling) and the T (rung 4, for stink) — each borrowed to keep a rung a real word, then given back before the end. There may be several par routes — the census above shows which ones climbers actually took.
A hard grey stone that makes sparks when struck against metal.
From Old English 'flint', shared with other Germanic languages such as Danish 'flint'. Flint was one of the earliest materials used by humans to make tools and to start fires, making it one of history's most important stones.
Full entry on Wiktionary ↗Small black-and-white animal that sprays a foul smell.
From an Algonquian language, probably Abenaki or Massachusett, meaning the animal that squirts. English speakers adopted the word after contact with Indigenous peoples of northeastern North America. It has no close relatives in European languages.
Full entry on Wiktionary ↗Definitions give each word’s most common meaning — the full entries live at Wiktionary.