Kexes

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. Stalks or dry stems of certain plants, particularly used in making pipe stems or as a component in some local crafts
2. Long, hollow stems or twigs often associated with certain types of grasses or flowering plants, valued for their lightweight quality
3. Hollow, dried plant materials typically found in wetlands, serving both decorative and functional purposes in traditional crafts

Etymology: "Kexes" is the plural of "kex," a word for the hollow, dried stalks of wetland plants that are gathered for both decoration and practical use in traditional crafts. The noun is a sound-alike cousin of the Welsh "cecys," meaning "hollow stalks," which suggests the English term may descend from the same Celtic root. That Welsh link points to a more surprising relation. The Welsh "cegid," meaning "hemlock," appears to come from the same source as Latin "cicuta," the name of the deadly poison hemlock. Hollow stalks and a poisonous umbellifer may seem unrelated, but the shared ancestry suggests that early speakers grouped these plants by their hollow, pipe-like stems, which hemlock also has.