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Tap any rung for its meaning.
The K is a stepping stone — borrowed at rung 1 to keep cakes a real word, then given back at rung 3. There may be several par routes — the census above shows which ones climbers actually took.
A natural hollow space in rock or earth.
From Old French 'cave' and Latin 'cava', meaning a hollow or cavity. The Latin root 'cavus', meaning hollow, also gives us 'cavity' and 'excavate'. The word entered English after the Norman Conquest, replacing older native terms.
Full entry on Wiktionary ↗Past tense of fade: to lose color or brightness gradually.
Fade comes from Old French 'fader', related to 'fade' meaning dull or weak. It entered English in the medieval period. A cousin word is 'vapid', sharing the sense of lacking vitality.
Full entry on Wiktionary ↗Definitions give each word’s most common meaning — the full entries live at Wiktionary.