Word of the day: lath

The word of the day is lath:

1. a thin, narrow strip of wood, used with other strips to form latticework, a backing for plaster or stucco, a support for slates and other roofing materials, etc.
2. a group or quantity of such strips.
3. work consisting of such strips.
4. wire mesh or the like used in place of wooden laths as a backing for plasterwork.
5. a thin, narrow, flat piece of wood used for any purpose.

O.E. *laððe, variant of lætt "lath," apparently from P.Gmc. *laþþo (cf. O.N. latta, M.Du., Ger. latte "lath," M.H.G. lade "plank," which is source of Ger. Laden "counter," hence, "shop").

(http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/lath)

"When Tony Kushner's 'Angels in America: Millennium Approaches' opened on Broadway, in 1993, in a production directed by George C. Wolfe, the play ended with a winged angel crashing into a dying man's bedroom from above, shattering lath and plaster."

 - Rebecca Mead, "Theatre laid bare: Ivo van Hove's raw productions bring out the elemental drama of classic works", 26 October 2015 The New Yorker (http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2015/10/26/theatre-laid-bare)