Word of the day: locum

I saw it in spam, and then I saw it in a crossword. It must be following me. It’s “chiefly British,” says Merriam-Webster, a shortening of locum tenens.

From the Oxford English Dictionary entry for locum :

A person, esp. a cleric or doctor, who stands in temporarily for another of the same profession; a deputy, substitute; (now) spec. a medical practitioner employed to fill in temporarily for another who is absent; = locum tenens n.

A position as a locum or temporary substitute medical practitioner; = locum tenency n.

Locum tenens derives from post-classical Latin, “person who holds the place of another, substitute, deputy (frequently from 13th cent. in British and continental sources).” First citation: 1640.

The spam message invited me to serve as a locum. Patients, take warning!