Parquetries

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A style of flooring made from various wood pieces arranged in geometric patterns
2. a collection of intricate wooden designs used to decorate surfaces
3. the craft or art of creating decorative patterns in woodwork, especially on floors

Etymology: The word "parquetry" is a plain formation from "parquet", with the suffix "-ry" added to it. "Parquet" itself came into French from the Old French "parc", meaning an enclosure, and the diminutive "-et" was attached to it, so a parquet was originally a little compartment or enclosed space. The sense shifted from that small enclosure to a floor laid out in such compartments, which is why the word now refers to a floor of interlocking wooden blocks arranged in patterns. English took "parquet" from French, and the "-ry" ending, borrowed through Old French from Latin "-ia", was used to turn the noun into a term for the work or material itself. "Parquetry" therefore names the pattern-laid wood flooring as a whole, and "parquetries" is simply its plural, referring to several such floors or patterned designs.