Cachet

Definition: a seal of approval

Pronunciation: ca-SHET

Origin:

Dating back to the 1630’s, the Old Latin coactare meant constrain traveled to Old French in the form of cacher meaning to press or crowd; later on the word turned into cachet and was borrowed by the Scotts to represent what it now means.

Why this word?

In this approval-seeking world, cachet is a very good word to have, although mostly as a metaphor. When human kind didn’t yet have internet (harder and harder to believe), physical documentation was everything a man could have. The original cachets represented one’s health, education, dynasty and more. Without a proper cachet- one’s words weren’t much more than words.

And on a different note (let me know if it happened to you as well), when I was looking for a word and found cachet, baring the “seal of approval” definition, I immediately wondered which part of the planet the word came from, as seals are really only found in problematic locations.. And isn’t it all too complicated, to carry a seal each time something needs to be approved…?

How to use the word cachet in a sentence?

A cachet is a seal, a stamp of approval.

“Are you sure it’s okay to use your mother’s make up?”

“Sure, don’t worry; I have her cachet for this one!”

“It took dad a very long time to agree for us to get a dog, but now that we have his cachet for it- I don’t want to wait another second!”