1,000 Giddy Arcana Dept.: shards/sherds

In an archaeological dig, you find many more pieces of things than you do whole, entire things. It makes sense, because glass and pottery is often found broken in the ground. Martin Gallivan, associate professor of anthropology at William and Mary, notes that pieces of glass are called “shards,” while pieces of pottery are called “sherds.”

“Although you’d have to be a real archaeology nerd to tell the difference in terminology,” he said.