Just when you thought you knew the only words for "without shoes," here comes another. Discalceate, an adjective, means "barefoot" or "unshod." It is used to refer mainly to members of certain religious orders, so you would be pushing the envelope if you said you were walking discalceately on the beach. The root, sans prefix, is a Latin verb meaning "fit with shoes," which ultimately derives from calx, "heel."

This verb, whose closest synonym is supplant, means "take the place of." Supersede is usually used abstractly, of things such as power, authority, effectiveness, or acceptance. It represents a minor spelling demon, because of interference from proceed. The roots are Latin super, "on top of," and sedere, "sit."

Today's verb has the same pronunciation as the more common word indict and is related to it etymologically, but their meanings are different. Indite means to compose and write, or to put down in writing. It's a 14th century word and some dictionaries go so far as to call it archaic, but you can use it to good effect formally, perhaps to report that you are inditing an epic poem.

This noun's origins will be transparent to you if you are a reciter, singer, or appreciator of the Latin Mass; in particular, the part called the credo. That's the Latin for "I believe," and it gives us creed, a set of fundamental beliefs or a summary of them. Credence, credibility, and incredible are all close relatives.

It seems odd that the hier- in hieroglyphic is the same as the hier- in hierarchy, but etymology sometimes makes strange bedfellows. In both cases, the Greek root means "sacred" or "priestly." The glyph part is from a root that means "carving," thus giving us a very accurate rendering of hieroglyphic: "pertaining to sacred carving."