gleed

I do love these strange archaic words; this one's Middle English. A gleed is an ember, a piece of burning or glowing coal. I haven't much to say about it, as its definition is so simple and words this rare don't have much connotation to throw around or discuss. But I really wanted to include it, both because it fits into this week's theme and because it's just a cool word that almost sounds made up. Like "fust," though, it seems just right for its meaning; it's similar to "gleam," but the "d" sound at the end provides a bit of solidity for the referent. The word just sounds like something with a sparkle or a shine, something almost supernatural, with some strange life of its own. Fire is something like this, despite being so commonplace we often fail to appreciate its oddity and beauty.