Thursday, March 31, 2011

Matrimony

Matrimony \MAT-ri-mohn-ee\
1. The right or sacrament of marriage; the act of marrying
2. The state or condition of being married; the relation between married persons

This word is decidedly French, coming from Ango-Norman matermoine which derives from 14th century Middle French matremoine (both have more than one spelling variation). The Old French version of the word conveyed a sense of "property inherited from one's mother". The word in Classical Latin is matrimonium ("state of being married") from the combination of matri + monium ("mother" from mater + "money").

There's also a word patrimony that dates to the mid-14th with the meaning "property of the Church" and "spiritual legacy of Christ." It comes from Old French patrimonie which derives from Latin patrimonium ("a paternal estate, inheritance"). The Latin word is a combination of pater + monium ("fater" from patris + "action, state, condition"). The sense of "property inherited from a father or ancestor" dates to the late 14th century. The figurative sense of "immaterial things handed down from the past" dates to the 1580's.

Wednesday, March 30, 2011

Lucre

Lucre \LOO-kuhr\ , noun;
1. Monetary gain; profit; riches; money -- often with a negative connotation 

This word dates to the late 14th century and comes from Latin lucrum ("gain, profit"), which is derived from the Proto-Indo-European base *lu-/*leu-. 

Today's word and the first definition were both taken from Dictionary.com's 'Word of the Day' for Wednesday, March 30
Etymologies come from the Oxford English Dictionary and/or Etymonline.com

Tuesday, March 29, 2011

Bedaub

Bedaub \bih-DOB\ , transitive verb;
1. To smudge over; to besmear or soil with anything thick and dirty
2. To overdecorate; to ornament showily or excessively

Bedaub dates to the mid-16th century and is a combination of the prefix be- and daub.

Daub, as a verb, dates to the late 14th century from Old French dauber ("to whitewash, plaster"). Dauber, as a surname, is recorded from the mid-13th century and is presumably from the same Old French word. Old French dauber may be derived from Latin dealbare, a compound of de- + albare ("thoroughly" + "to whiten"). Albare comes from albus ("white"), which derives from the Proto-Indo-European base *albho- ("white"). Albus and *albho- are also the forebears of alb

Today's word and the first definition were both taken from Dictionary.com's 'Word of the Day' for Tuesday, March 29
Etymologies come from the Oxford English Dictionary and/or Etymonline.com

Monday, March 28, 2011

Afflatus

Afflatus \uh-FLAY-tuhs\ , noun;
1. A divine imparting of knowledge; inspiration

This word dates to the 1660's from Latin afflatus ("a breathing upon, blast") from the past participle of afflare ("to blow upon"), which is a combination of ad- + flare ("toward" + "to blow"). Latin flare is actually related to English blow: Their common ancestor is Proto-Indo-European *bhle- ("to swell, blow up").

Today's word and the first definition were both taken from Dictionary.com's 'Word of the Day' for Monday, March 28
Etymologies come from the Oxford English Dictionary and/or Etymonline.com

Sunday, March 27, 2011

Marmoset

Marmoset \MAR-muh-set\ or \MAR-muh-zet\ , noun,
From FactZoo.com
Marmoset dates to the early 14th century as "any small monkey" from Middle French marmo(u)set ("grotesque image, gargoyle"). Where the French word came from has been disputed, but it may come from a variation of marmot ("small child"), which derives from the word for "to murmur, to mumble," which is marm(o)user. Marm(o)user is perhaps yet another onomatopoeic word, this one from the sounds made while mumbling.

Originally this word meant "any small monkey," but it has evolved to refer to a specific family, Callitricidae, which live in Central and South America. More specifically, it usually refers to the genus Callithrix, which are about the size of a squirrel, have bushy tails and silky coats, and long tufts of hair on their ears or manes of hair. They are generally gentle and playful, and they used to be popular as pets.

Interestingly, although this word seems to have arisen in French, it has a post-Classical Latin counterpart that has had a colorful history of definitions since the 13th century: "cynocephalus*", "favorite of a ruler" (late 14th century), "little boy" (late 15th century), "kind of monkey" (16th century), and "young child" (mid-17th century).


* Cynocephalus is "dog-head" in Latin. Cynocephaly is the condition of having the head of a dog or jackal. It is a common element in several forms and contexts, including iconography of Egyptian gods, Medieval saints, and even Chinese legends.

Saturday, March 26, 2011

Verisimilitude

Verisimilitude \ver-uh-suh-MIL-uh-tood\ or \ver-uh-suh-MIL-uh-tyood\ , noun;
1. The appearance of truth; the quality of seeming to be true
2. Something that has the appearance of being true or real

This word dates to the 1600's from French verisimilitude, which is derived from Latin verisimilitudo ("likeness to truth"). The Latin word is from veri + similis (neuter of verus "true" + "like, similar"). Verus is the forebear of very and similis is the forebear of similar.
 
Today's word and the first definition were both taken from Dictionary.com's 'Word of the Day' for Saturday, March 26
Etymologies come from the Oxford English Dictionary and/or Etymonline.com

Friday, March 25, 2011

Bumptious

Bumptious \BUMP-shuh\ , adjective;
1. Crudely, presumptuously, or loudly self-assertive

This word is first attested in 1803 and is probably a humorous coinage based on the pattern of fractious, boisterous etc.

Today's word and the first definition were both taken from Dictionary.com's 'Word of the Day' for Friday, March 25
Etymologies come from the Oxford English Dictionary and/or Etymonline.com

Thursday, March 24, 2011

Kismet

Kismet \KIZ-met\ or \KIZ-mit\ , noun;
1. Destiny; fate

This word is sort of interesting (to me, anyway) because it's one of the rare English words that doesn't come from the Proto-Indo-European family tree.

It dates to 1834 and comes from Turkish qismet, which is derived from Arabic qismah (or qismat), which means "portion, lot, fate" from the root of qasama ("he divided").

Turkish is a Turkic language, which is a branch of the proposed Altaic language family. Because it's 'proposed', it means that not everyone agrees that the languages involved are related. If proponents are to be believed, the Altaic family includes Turkic, Mongolic, Tungusic, and possibly Japonic languages, plus the Korean language isolate.

Arabic, on the other hand, is part of the Afro-asiatic language family, which is huge. It branches into Berber, Chadic, Cushitic, Egyptian, Omotic, and Semitic. Arabic, along with Hebrew and others, are part of the Semitic branch.

Today's word and the first definition were both taken from Dictionary.com's 'Word of the Day' for Thursday, March 24
Etymologies come from the Oxford English Dictionary and/or Etymonline.com

Wednesday, March 23, 2011

Eschew

Eschew \es-CHOO\ , transitive verb;
1. To shun; to avoid (as something wrong or distasteful)

This word dates to the mid-14th century and comes from Old French eschiver ("shun, eschew, avoid, dispense with." Eschiver is from Frankish *skiuhan ("dread, avoid, shun"), which derives from Proto-Germanic *skeukhwaz. That word is also the forebear of shy via late Old English sceoh ("shy").

Perhaps unsurprisingly eschew is related to skew, which dates to the late 15th century from eschiver via Old North French eskiuer ("shy away from, avoid").

Today's word and the first definition were both taken from Dictionary.com's 'Word of the Day' for Wednesday, March 23
Etymologies come from the Oxford English Dictionary and/or Etymonline.com

Tuesday, March 22, 2011

Fugacious

Fugacious \fyoo-GAY-shuhs\ , adjective;
1. Lasting but a short time; fleeting

This word entered the language around 1630 with the meaning "fleeing, likely to flee." It comes from Latin fugaci-, which is the stem of fugax. Fugax means "apt to flee, timid," but figuratively it's more like "transitory, fleeting" and comes from fugere + -ous ("to flee" + "having, full of, having to do with, doing, inclined to"). Fugere is also the forebear of fugitive and derives from the Proto-Indo-European base *bheug ("to flee").

Today's word and the first definition were both taken from Dictionary.com's 'Word of the Day' for Tuesday, March 22
Etymologies come from the Oxford English Dictionary and/or Etymonline.com

Monday, March 21, 2011

Prescience

Prescience \PREE-shuns\ or \PREE-shee-uns\ or \PRESH-uns\ or \PRESH-ee-uns\ or \PREE-see-uns\ or
PRES-ee-uns\ , noun;
1. Knowledge of events before they take place; foresight

This word dates to the late 14th century and comes from Late Latin praescientia ("fore-knowledge"), which derives from *praescientem, the present participle of *praescire ("to know in advance") which is a combination of Latin prae + scire ("before" + "to know").

Prae is the forebear of our prefix pre- and scire is the forebear of science. Scire probably originally meant "to separate one thing from another, to distinguish" because it's related to scindere ("to cut, divide"). Both come from the Proto-Indo-European base *skei-

The adjective prescient made its appearance in the 1620's via French prescient, which comes from the same lineage as prescience above.

Today's word and the first definition were both taken from Dictionary.com's 'Word of the Day' for Monday, March 21
Etymologies come from the Oxford English Dictionary and/or Etymonline.com

Sunday, March 20, 2011

Largess(e)

Largess(e) \lar-ZHES\ or \lar-JES\ or \LAR-jes\ , noun;
1. Generous giving (as of gifts or money), often accompanied by condescension
2. Gifts, money, or other valuables so given
3. Generosity; liberality

This word dates to the early 13th century and is now considered archaic and literary. It comes from French largesse, which derives from Latin Latin *largita (from largus, "extensive, big", the forebear of large).

Seeing this word on a Sunday brings to mind a certain kind of gift or charity: alms
Alms \ahmz\ , noun;
1. Money, food, or other donation given to the poor or needy; anything given as charity

Alms comes from Old English ælmesse ("alms, almsgiving"), which is derived from Proto-Germanic *alemosna, which was an early borrowing of Vulgar Latin *alemosyna. *Alemosyna comes from Church Latin eleemosyna, a word which dates to the 3rd century and comes from Greek eleemosyne ("pity, mercy" or "charity, alms" in Ecclesiastical Greek). Eleemosyne is derived from eleemon ("compassionate"), which is derived from eleos ("pity, mercy"). Before that the origins are unknown, but they it may have been somewhat onomatopoeic from the sounds made when crying for alms. The spelling change from el- to al- may have been influenced by Latin alimonia ("nourishment").

Today's word and the first definition were both taken from Dictionary.com's 'Word of the Day' for Sunday, March 20
Etymologies come from the Oxford English Dictionary and/or Etymonline.com

Saturday, March 19, 2011

Interregnum

Interregnum \in-tuhr-REG-nuhm\ , noun;
plural: interregnums \-nuhmz\ or interregna \-nuh\
1. The interval between any two reigns; any period when a state is left without a ruler
2. A period of freedom from authority or during which government functions are suspended
2. Any breach of continuity in an order; a lapse or interval in a continuity

This word dates to the 1570's and comes from Latin inter + regnum, which is literally "between-reign."

Today's word and the first definition were both taken from Dictionary.com's 'Word of the Day' for Saturday, March 19
Etymologies come from the Oxford English Dictionary and/or Etymonline.com

Friday, March 18, 2011

Truckle

Truckle \TRUHK-uhl\ , intransitive verb;
1. To yield or bend obsequiously to the will of another; to act in a subservient manner
noun;
1. A small wheel or roller; a caster

The verb version of this word dates to the 1610's and used to mean "sleep in a truckle bed." The current meaning, implying tameness, may be in allusion to the type of bed that servants and inferiors used. It may also be simply because that kind of bed was lower than a typical one.

The noun version dates to the late 14th century from Anglo-French trocle, which derives from Latin trochlea ("a small wheel, sheaf of a pulley"). Trochlea is a borrowing from Greek trokhileia ("a pulley"), which comes from trokhos ("wheel") from trekhein ("to run"). The Proto-Indo-European root of all this *dhregh- ("to run"). The truckle bed mentioned above dates to the mid-15th century. Trekhein and trokhos are most likely also the forebears of truck.

Today's word and the first definition were both taken from Dictionary.com's 'Word of the Day' for Friday, March 18
Etymologies come from the Oxford English Dictionary and/or Etymonline.com

Thursday, March 17, 2011

Quaff

Quaff \KWOFF\ or \KWAFF\ , verb;
1. To drink a beverage, especially an intoxicating one, copiously and with hearty enjoyment
transitive verb;
1. To drink (a beverage) copiously and heartily
noun;
1. An act or instance of quaffing
2. A beverage quaffed

This word dates to the the 1510's and is possibly onomatopoeic, or it could be from Low German quassen ("to overindulge (in food and drink)") with the -ss- misread as -ff-. The noun form comes from the 1570's. That possible misreading makes more sense when you remember that in older forms of Germanic languages, 's' looked like 'ſ'.


Today's the day for quaffing, so grab a brew, sing a song, and don't puke on anyone in the subway....


Sláinte!

Today's word and the first definition were both taken from Dictionary.com's 'Word of the Day' for Thursday, March 17
Etymologies come from the Oxford English Dictionary and/or Etymonline.com

Wednesday, March 16, 2011

Apposite

Apposite \AP-uh-zit\ , adjective;
1. Being of striking appropriateness and relevance; very applicable; apt

This word dates to the 1620's and comes from Latin appositus, which is literally "contiguous, neighboring" but figuratively "fit, proper, suitable." It is the past participle of apponere ("apply to, put near"), which is a compound of ad- + ponere ("near" + "to place"). Ponere is also the forebear of position.

Today's word and the first definition were both taken from Dictionary.com's 'Word of the Day' for Wednesday, March 16
Etymologies come from the Oxford English Dictionary and/or Etymonline.com

Tuesday, March 15, 2011

Blandishment

Blandishment \BLAN-dish-muhnt\ , noun;
1. Speech or action that flatters and tends to coax, entice, or persuade; allurement - often used in the plural

Blandishment dates to the 1590's and is based on blandish which dates to the 1300's. Blandish comes from Old French blandiss-, the present participle of blandir ("to flatter, caress"). The Old French word derives from Latin blandiri ("flatter") from blandus ("mild, smooth"). Blandus is also the forebear of bland.

The suffix -ment is originally French from Latin -mentum, and when added to a verb it can represent the result or product of the action. So if blandish means "flatter" then blandishment is the product of flattery, and the definition makes sense.

Cool, huh?

Today's word and the first definition were both taken from Dictionary.com's 'Word of the Day' for Tuesday, March 15
Etymologies come from the Oxford English Dictionary and/or Etymonline.com

Monday, March 14, 2011

Pusillanimous

Pusillanimous \pyoo-suh-LAN-uh-muhs\ , adjective;
1. Lacking in courage and resolution; contemptibly fearful; cowardly

This word dates to the late 14th century and comes from Late Latin pusillanimis ("having little courage"), which is from Latin pusillis + animus ("very weak, little" + "spirit, courage"). Pusillis is the diminutive of pullus, or "young animal".
This adjective form was influenced by the noun form pusillanimity, which also dates to the late 14th century but comes via French pusillanimité. Before that the origins are the same.

Today's word and the first definition were both taken from Dictionary.com's 'Word of the Day' for Monday, March 14
Etymologies come from the Oxford English Dictionary and/or Etymonline.com

Sunday, March 13, 2011

Aver

Aver \uh-VUR\ , transitive verb;
1. To affirm with confidence; to declare in a positive manner, as in confidence of asserting the truth
2. Law: To assert, claim, or declare as fact

This word dates to the late 14th century and comes from Old French averer ("verify"), which is derived from Vulgar Latin *adverare ("make true, prove to be true"). The Latin word on which *adverare is based is verus, plus the prefix ad-, meaning "to". Verus means "true" and comes from Proto-Indo-European *weros-.
Verus is also the forebear of very along the following chain:
verus > verax > *veracus > verai > verrai > verray
Latin > Latin > Vulgar Latin > Old French > Anglo-French > Old/Middle English.

*For a refresher on Vulgar Latin: bonanza
*For a refresher on Proto-Indo-European: eke

Today's word and the first definition were both taken from Dictionary.com's 'Word of the Day' for Sunday, March 13
Etymologies come from the Oxford English Dictionary and/or Etymonline.com

Saturday, March 12, 2011

Prolix

Prolix \PRO-liks\ or \pro-LIKS\ , adjective;
1. Extending to a great length; unnecessarily long; wordy
2. Tending to speak or write at excessive length

This word dates to the early 15th century from Old French prolixe, which derives from Latin prolixus. The second part of prolixus comes from the base of liquere, which means "to flow," and the prefix pro- means "forth."
Liquere is the forebear of liquid via Latin liquidus and Old French liquide. Liquid in English dates to the late 14th century.

Today's word and the first definition were both taken from Dictionary.com's 'Word of the Day' for Saturday, March 12
Etymologies come from the Oxford English Dictionary and/or Etymonline.com

Friday, March 11, 2011

Epicene

Epicene \EP-uh-seen\ , adjective;
1. Having the characteristics of both sexes
2. Effeminate; unmasculine
3. Sexless; neuter
4. Linguistics: Having but one form of the noun for both the male and the female
noun;
1. A person or thing that is epicene
2. Linguistics: An epicene word

This word, formerly epycen, dates to the mid-15th century as a grammatical term for nouns that denote either gender. It comes from Latin epicoenus ("common"), which is derived from Greek epikoinos ("common to many, promiscuous"). The Greek word is a combination of epi + koinos ("on" + "common"). The rest of the definitions date to about 1600 except for "effeminate," which is first attested in the 1630's.

Today's word and the first definition were both taken from Dictionary.com's 'Word of the Day' for Friday, March 11
Etymologies come from the Oxford English Dictionary and/or Etymonline.com

Thursday, March 10, 2011

Ersatz

Ersatz \AIR-sahts\ or \UR-sats\ , adjective;
1. Being a substitute or imitation, usually an inferior one

This word is first attested in 1875 and comes from German Ersatz ("units of the army reserve"). Its literal translation is "compensation, replacement, substitute" and derives from ersetzen ("to replace"). Ersetzen comes from Old High German irsezzen, an unaccented variation of ur- + setzen ("to set"). There is a noun version of this word that dates to around 1892.

Today's word and the first definition were both taken from Dictionary.com's 'Word of the Day' for Thursday, March 10
Etymologies come from the Oxford English Dictionary and/or Etymonline.com

Wednesday, March 9, 2011

Fanfaronade

Fanfaronade \fan-fair-uh-NAYD\ or \fan-fair-uh-NOD\ , noun;
1. Swaggering; empty boasting; blustering manner or behavior; ostentatious display
2. Fanfare

This word dates to the mid-1600's and comes from French fanfaronnade, which derives from fanfaron ("a bully, a hector, a swaggerer, and empty boaster")*. There is a similar word in Spanish: fanfarronada.

A similar word, fanfare, comes from the same roots as fanfaronade**:
Fanfare dates to the 1600's and comes from French fanfare, which derives from fanfarer ("blow a fanfare").

Both words are probably borrowed from Arabic farfar, which means "chatter" and is a near-onomatopoeic imitation of what chatter sounds like.

*From TheFreeDictionary.com
**From www.cnrtl.fr
Today's word and the first definition were both taken from Dictionary.com's 'Word of the Day' for Wednesday, March 9
Etymologies come from the Oxford English Dictionary and/or Etymonline.com

Tuesday, March 8, 2011

Puckish

Puckish \PUHK-ish\ , adjective;]
1. Whimsical; mischievious; impish

This word is first attested in 1874 and is a combination of puck + -ish (duh).

Not so 'duh':
There are two puck words in the English language. One is used in hockey, the other means "mischevious fairy". I'm going to go out on a limb here and assume that puckish is based off the latter.
That puck comes from "A Midsummer Night's Dream" and is probably adapted from pouke, which dates to the 1300's and means "devil, evil spirit". Pouke comes from Old English puca of unknown origin. Capitalizing this word dates to the 16th century, but that is relatively obvious since Shakespeare wrote that play in the 1590's.

Now, there is a word related to puck that I find interesting: pug. This word dates to the 1560's, but it had nothing to do with dogs until about 1749. Actually, pug has meant almost everything under the sun. It was "a bargeman" in the 1590's, "a harlot" in the 1600's, "sprite, imp" around 1610, "miniature dog" around 1794, and "upper servant in a great house" around 1847. Pug-nose dates to around 1778 and is based on either the dog or monkey reference. How a word takes on so many senses is beyond me.

The suffix -ish is a 'true English' morpheme that comes from Old English -isc. It is a pretty common Germanic affix and a cognate of the Greek diminutive suffix -iskos. The colloquial practice of adding it to an hour to denote approximation (e.g. at 7:57 it is 'eight-ish') is first attested in 1916.

Today's word and the first definition were both taken from Dictionary.com's 'Word of the Day' for Tuesday, March 8
Etymologies come from the Oxford English Dictionary and/or Etymonline.com

Monday, March 7, 2011

Monkey

Monkey \MUHNG-kee\
1. You know what a monkey is

This word dates to the 1520's and the etymology is uncertain, but there are a couple theories. I think one will surprise you:

It may have come from an unrecorded Middle Low German word, *moneke, or Middle Dutch *monnekijin. The Dutch word was a colloquial word for "monkey" that was originally a diminutive of some Romanic word that also spawned French monne, Old Italian monna, and others.

There was a 1498 Low German version of the medieval story 'Roman de Renart' (translation: 'Reynard the Fox') which had a character named Moneke, who is Martin the Ape in modern translations. The Old French form of that character is called Monequin or Monnekin, which may have been a diminutive of a personal name or a that mysterious Romanic word mentioned above.

If there was a now-forgotten Romanic word that eventually became monkey, it was likely ultimately derived from Arabic maimum ("monkey"). That word literally meant "auspicious", and since apes were unlucky in the Arab culture, the name stuck.

Nothing surprising yet? How about this: Inky Fool
http://image.guardian.co.uk/sys-images/Guardian/Pix/gallery/2002/01/03/monkey300.jpg
Photo Credit: Guardian.co.uk

Chortle

Chortle \CHOR-tl\ , transitive and intransitive verb;
1. To utter, or express with, a snorting, exultant laugh or chuckle
noun;
1. A snorting, exultant laugh or chuckle

This word was coined in 1872 by Lewis Carroll in "Through the Looking Glass." It is probably a combination of chuckle and snort. The noun form dates to 1903.

This is not the first time we've seen a Carroll invention on LLL: frabjous
Here's a word that wasn't necessarily coined by the one and only William Shakespeare, but he was the first (known) person to write it down: slugabed

Today's word and the first definition were both taken from Dictionary.com's 'Word of the Day' for Monday, March 7
Etymologies come from the Oxford English Dictionary and/or Etymonline.com

Sunday, March 6, 2011

Good-Bye

I heard the etymology of this word from a priest today, so I figured I would share:

It dates to the 1590's and comes from godbwye, which is a contraction of God be with ye.

Demagogue

Demagogue \DEM-uh-gog\ , noun;
1. A leader who obtains power by means of impassioned appeals to the emotions and prejudices of the populace
2. A leader of the common people in ancient times

This word dates to the 1640's and comes from Greek demagogos ("popular leader" or "leader of the mob"), possibly with the influence of French demagogue. It comes form a combination of demos + agogos ("people" + "leader"). Agogos derives from agein, which means "to lead" and is the forebear of act. The Greek word dates back to Athens in the 5th century B.C.E. and has had a sense of disparagement since that time. There is a verb form of demagogue in American English that was first attested in 1964.

Today's word and the first definition were both taken from Dictionary.com's 'Word of the Day' for Sunday, March 6
Etymologies come from the Oxford English Dictionary and/or Etymonline.com

Saturday, March 5, 2011

Confute

Confute \kuhn-FYOOT\ , transitive verb;
1. To overwhelm by argument; to refute conclusively; to prove or show to be false.

This word dates to the 1520's and comes from Middle French confuter from Latin confutare ("repress, check; disprove, restrain, silence"). The Latin word is a combination of com- + *futare (intensive prefix + "to beat"). *Futare is derived from the Proto-Indo-Europen base *bhau-, which means "to strike, beat".

Today's word and the first definition were both taken from Dictionary.com's 'Word of the Day' for Saturday, March 5
Etymologies come from the Oxford English Dictionary and/or Etymonline.com

Friday, March 4, 2011

Gastronome

Gastronome \GAS-truh-nohm\ , noun;
1. A connoisseur of good food and drink

This word is first attested in 1823 and comes from French gastronome, a back formation of gastronomie. The alternative form, gastronomer dates to the 1820's.

Gastronomie is the forebear of gastronomy, which is first attested in English is 1814. The French word was coined in 1800 by Joseph de Berchoux in the title of a poem on good living. It was taken from the word Gastrologia, which is the title of a lost poem of antiquity that was quote by Athenaeus. It is a combination of gaster + nomos ("stomach" + "arranging, regulating").

For the record, that gaster + nomos thing was kind of confusing, so if I'm wrong let me know!

Today's word and the first definition were both taken from Dictionary.com's 'Word of the Day' for Friday, March 4
Etymologies come from the Oxford English Dictionary and/or Etymonline.com

Thursday, March 3, 2011

Gimcrack

Gimcrack \JIM-krak\ , noun;
1. A showy but useless or worthless object; a gewgaw
adjective;
1. Tastelessly showy; cheap; gaudy

This word dates to the 1610's with the definition "showy person" and the sense of "trifle" is first attested in 1839. The origin of gimcrack is uncertain, but it may be an alteration of gibecrake, which is a kind of ornament on wooden furniture. Alternatively, it could be a combination of giber + crak (Old French "to rattle, shake" + Middle English "sharp noise, crack"). In the 18th and 19th centuries the word was also used to mean "a person who has a turn for mechanical contrivances." Gimgrack may be a forebear of gimmick.

I really like the word gewgaw, so I had to look up its etymology too:
It dates to the early 13th century with the form giuegaue, definitely a result of reduplication, possibly connected with Old French gogue ("rejoicing, jubilation; joke, prank, mockery, game") or jou-jou ("toy"). Jou-jou is a baby-talk word derived from jouer ("to play" from Latin jocare).

While we're on the topic of reduplication: whimsy by The Virtual Linguist

Today's word and the first definition were both taken from Dictionary.com's 'Word of the Day' for Thursday, March 3
Etymologies come from the Oxford English Dictionary and/or Etymonline.com

Wednesday, March 2, 2011

Wunderkind

Wunderkind \VOON-duhr-kint\ , noun;
(plural wunderkinder \VOON-duhr-kin-duhr\)
1. A child prodigy
2. One who achieves great success or acclaim at an early age

This word dates to 1891 and comes from German Wunderkind, which is literally "wonder-child". This term is most often used to refer to a prodigious child musician.

Today's word and the first definition were both taken from Dictionary.com's 'Word of the Day' for Wednesday, March 2
Etymologies come from the Oxford English Dictionary and/or Etymonline.com

Tuesday, March 1, 2011

Masticate

Masticate \MAS-tih-kayt\ , transitive verb;
1. To grind or crush with or as if with the teeth in preparation for swallowing and digestion; to chew
2. To crush or knead into a pulp
intransitive verb;
1. To chew food

This word dates to the 1640's and comes from Late Latin masticat-, the past participle stem of masticare. Masticare probably derives from Greek mastikhan ("to gnash the teeth"), which is related to mastax ("mouth, jaws") and masasthai ("to chew"). It ultimately comes from Proto-Indo-European *menth- ("to chew, mouth"), which is the forebear of Old English muð ("mouth"). Somewhat surprisingly, muð is not the forebear of Modern English mouth. That word followed this progression:
*mnto-s > *munthaz > muþ > mouth
Proto-Indo-European > Proto-Germanic > Old English > Modern English

So I have this vague memory of hearing this word for the first time in junior high or something and feeling very scandalized because it sounds so similar to a certain solo sex act...

THAT word dates to 1766 from Modern Latin masturbationem, from Latin masturbatus, the past participle of masturbari. The etymology before that is somewhat speculative, but the long-running theory is that it was a result of an alteration of *manstuprare, influenced by turbare ("to stir up"). *Manstuprare comes from manu + stuprare (the ablative of manus, meaning "hand" + "defile (oneself)"). Stuprare comes from stuprum ("defilement, dishonor"), which is related to stupere ("to be stunned, stupefied"), which just so happens to be the forebear of stupid. Another theory is that the first element of the word comes from an unattested word *mazdo-, meaning "penis".

Either way, it's pretty funny that it is either "to stir up the hand" or "to stir up the penis". How's that imagery for you?


Today's word and the first definition were both taken from Dictionary.com's 'Word of the Day' for Tuesday, March 1
Etymologies come from the Oxford English Dictionary and/or Etymonline.com

The "C" Word

 Cunt \kuhnt\ , noun;
1. The female genitals
2. Offensive slang: A woman considered sexually
3. Offensive slang: A mean or obnoxious person

I went to my first Vagina Monologues last week and was very impressed by the show. One monologue talked about reclaiming the word cunt, much like African Americans have done with the "n" word. The woman did a fantastic job, but I thought that I would just throw it out there that this word has not always had the nasty connotations that it does today. Don't get me wrong, it has been very taboo for a very long time, but not always. In fact, until the 1400's it was simply a common (though possibly somewhat crude) term for female genitalia.


The first known reference of this word in English dates to about 1230, and it was in the form of a street name in Oxford Gropecuntlane. The name stuck until the late 14th centuries and it was purportedly a place where prostitutes hung out. The Middle English form of the word was cunte, meaning "female genitalia" and its etymology is somewhat shaky. Some suggested forebears:
Latin cuneus ("wedge")
Proto-Indo-European base *geu- ("hollow place")
Proto-Indo-European *gwen- (the root of queen)
Greek gyne ("woman")
Latin cunnus ("female pudenda" or vulgarly "woman")
If it comes from cunnus, then the etymology there also uncertain. Cunnus may have literally meant "gash, slit", deriving from Proto-Indo-European *sker- ("to cut," literally "sheath") from Proto-Indo-European *kut-no, from the base *(s)keu- ("to conceal, hide").

This word has been avoided in public (a.k.a. polite) speech since the 15th century and has been considered obscene since the 17th century.

Apparently some 18th centuries referred to this word as "the monosyllable". In John S. Farmer and William E. Henley's Slang Dictionary, they list 552 English synonyms for "the monosyllable", plus 5 pages of French, German, Italian, Spanish and Portuguese synonyms. Their entry for cunt, on the other hand, is quite short.

As a side note, Dutch slang for this piece of anatomy is quite poetic: Liefdesgrot is literally "cave of love" and vleesroos is literally "rose of flesh".