currente calamo

English

Etymology

From New Latin currente calamō (“with the pen running on”).

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /kəˈɹɛnteɪ ˈkæləməʊ/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /kəˈɹɛnteɪ ˈkæləmoʊ/

Adverb

currente calamo (not comparable)

1. Without deliberation or hesitation: extempore, off-the-cuff.
   • 1857, Anthony Trollope, Barchester Towers:

     His letter […] was written, currente calamo, with very little trouble.

   • 1911, Max Beerbohm, Zuleika Dobson:

     And these things he had achieved currente calamo, “wielding his pen,” as Scott said of Byron, “with the easy negligence of a nobleman.”

References

• “currente calamo, adv.”, in OED Online ⁠, Oxford: Oxford University Press, launched 2000.