Incuses

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A type of die or mold used to shape metal by impressing a design into it
2. A tool or implement that creates raised designs on surfaces by using pressure
3. An object that serves to create relief patterns, commonly found in the context of metalworking or coinage

Etymology: "Incuses" is the plural of "incuse", a noun for a tool that stamps a design into metal. The singular comes from Latin "incūsus", the past participle of "incūdō", meaning "to hammer upon" or "to strike against". That verb is built from "in-", meaning "into" or "upon", and "cūdō", meaning "to beat" or "to forge", so the name describes exactly what the tool does: it strikes into a surface. The same Latin verb gives English "incus", the anvil bone of the middle ear, which is shaped like the anvil on which a smith beats metal. The two words share a hammering image, though "incuse" entered English through the technical language of coinage and die-making rather than through anatomy.