hypervisor
n.— «In virtual machine parlance, the hypervisor is the layer of software that sits just “above” the hardware and handles the virtualization process (making one machine look like more than one machine and allowing each of those “virtual’ machines to run different operating systems).» —“Etymology of ‘hypervisor’ surfaces” by David Berlind ZDNet.com Aug. 10, 2005. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
Further reading
In this bonus A Way with Words minicast, Martha and Grant look into the myriad stories behind the word cocktail. Does the drink name come from feathers? Horses? Something up a horse’s rump? It’s a weird wandering down etymology...
Centuries ago, monks who took a vow of silence developed their own hand signs, with hundreds of gestures, that are still in use today. Plus, how do speakers of different languages distinguish similar shades and tints of colors such as red, yellow...