palimpsest Hear it!

palimpsest definition

pal·imp·sest (pal′imp sest′)

noun

a parchment, tablet, etc. that has been written upon or inscribed two or three times, the previous text or texts having been imperfectly erased and remaining, therefore, still partly visible

Etymology: L palimpsestus < Gr palimpsēstos, lit., rubbed again < palin, again (see palindrome) + psēn, to rub smooth < IE base *bhes-, to rub off, pulverize > L sabulum, sand

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