hard work & bad words used in getting my Oxford dictionary from under a pile of stuff in an awkward spot, & not forgetting sore fingers, now I have to put it back. Nah, tomorrow will do, maybe.

I knew the 'gos' in gossip was good/god & it comes from goddsib = person related to one in god ie. godparent

strait laced would certainly refer to corset lacing but the Oxford has no reference to the term

in the late 1th century furniture was sparse, but ...

Some of them sound like My Word!