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Today's word is sough, from Old English swogan (to rustle, whistle, etc.). Earliest documented use: before 1066.
Learn more about today's word at: wordsmith.org/words/sough.html
Taxi to our new virtual home YÚCALE GIRAMONDI VIRTLANTIS: maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Regulus/133/67/31 Though there are already a few language activities taking place the sim's official opening will take place early May :)
Lena a' teagasg ann an Nant Gwrtheyrn
●✿●✿●✿●
Lena irakasten Nant Gwrtheyrn-en
●✿●✿●✿●
Lena teaching at Nant Gwrtheyrn
27 October 2020.
English: I am able.
Irish: Is féidir liom.
Finnish: Osaan.
Please translate to your own language.
Examples:
Jos osaan kääntää subjektin ja objektin, niin sen jälkeen se ei ole niin vaikeaa.
(If I can translate the subject and the object then the rest is not that difficult.)
Íosfad mo dhóthain, nó oiread agus is féidir liom ar aon chuma.
(I shall eat enough, or as much as I am able, anyway.)
Tair go luath, más féidir leat é!
(Come early, if you can!)
Ba mhaith liom litir a scríobh, ach ní féidir liom peann d'fháil.
(I would like to write a letter but I cannot find a pen.)
Déarfad léi teacht más féidir léi i n-aon chor é.
(I shall tell her to come if she possibly can.)
day 27.
rapidograph/adobe illustrator cs6.
3 1/2 inch square.
1 October 2020.
English: Chair.
Irish: Cathaoir.
Finnish: Tuoli.
day 1.
rapidograph/adobe illustrator cs6.
3 inch square.
Translate to your own language in comments.
7 October 2019.
English: Laziness
Irish: Leisce Welsh: Diogi
Finnish: Laiskuus Estonian: Laiskus
day 7.
rapidograph/adobe illustrator cs6.
3 inch square.
Today's word is diffidence, from Latin diffidere (to mistrust), from dis- (not) + fidere (to trust). Ultimately from the Indo-European root bheidh- (to trust), which also gave us abide, abode, fiancé, affidavit, confide, confident, defiance, fidelity, defy, infidel, and diffident. Earliest documented use: 1425.
Learn more about today's word at: wordsmith.org/words/diffidence.html
Trying to learn a bit of conversational Portuguese. The way you say "excuse me" in Portuguese is "com licença." You wouldn't believe how pretty it sounds when you say it right. It sounds completely musical. The phrasebook offers an array of more exciting phrases, too. I admire its plucky conviction that everyone who travels to Brazil should know how to get lucky.
8 October 2020.
English: All around.
Irish: Mórthimpeall.
Finnish: Kaikkialla.
I am not satisfied with this finnish translation. Finnish speakers, please post your own suggestions in comments. Everyone else translate to your own language. See examples below.
day 8.
rapidograph/adobe illustrator cs6.
3 inch square.
Examples:
Na sráidbhailte mórthimpeall an locha
The villages all around the lake.
Na fuaimeanna mórthimpeallach
Ambient sound
Do rith an gadhar mórthimpeall na páirce i ndiaidh na gcoiníní.
The dog ran all around the field after the rabbits.
Tá na préamhacha aníos as an dtalamh agus craobhacha briste ar chrainn mórthimpeall orthu.
The roots are up out of the ground, and branches broken on trees all around them.
5 October 2020.
English: Daughter.
Irish: Iníon.
Finnish: Tytär.
day 5.
rapidograph/adobe illustrator cs6.
3 inch square.
Translate into your own language in comments.
Today's word is raven messenger. In the Bible, Noah sends a raven to go scout the scene, but the bird never returns to the ark. Earliest documented use: 1400. Also known as a corbie messenger.
Learn more at: wordsmith.org/words/raven_messenger.html
30 October 2030.
English: I must.
Irish: Is éigean dom.
Finnish: Täytyy.
Please translate to your own language.
Examples:
Hänen täytyi lähteä kouluun.
(She had to set off for school)
"Is éigean dom fanacht mar tá rang ar siúl sa seomra."
(I must wait because there is a class going on in the room.)
(From comment on https//:www.mikesdipper.blogspot.com )
day 30.
rapidograph/adobe illustrator cs6.
3 1/2 inch square.
19 October 2020.
English: Cup.
Irish: Cupán.
Finnish: Kuppi.
Please translate into your own language.
Examples:
Cuirfimíd braon bainne sa chupán agus cuirfimíd uisce tríd.
(We shall put a drop of milk in the cup and we shall add water to it.)
Tule, sanoi täti kahvia kuppeihin kaataessan.
(Come, said her aunt as she poured coffee into the cups.)
day 19.
rapidograph/adobe illustrator cs6.
3 inch square.
Today's word is contrafactum, from Latin contrafacere (to counterfeit), from contra- (against) + facere (to make or do). Earliest documented use: 1940.]
NOTES. A contrafactum aka contrafact is, literally speaking, counterfeiting. It's what you get when an existing tune is used with a new set of words. A well-known example is The Star-Spangled Banner, the national anthem of the US, which is sung to the music of "The Anacreontic Song" popularly known as a drinking song. Other examples of contrafacta are when secular music is used for religious purposes and vice versa.
Learn more at: wordsmith.org/words/contrafactum.html
Today's word is alterity, from French altérité, from Latin alteritas (otherness), from alter (other), from Greek heteros (other). Earliest documented use: 1500.
Learn more at: wordsmith.org/words/alterity.html
2 October 2020.
English: I drink.
Irish: Ólaim.
Finnish: Juon.
Add your own language in the comments.
day 2.
rapidograph/adobe illustrator cs6.
3 inch square.
For use in my blog today.
I comment about my life and opinions in my eJournal and images every single day. This photo was used there today.
This purple vegetable has names. In American English it goes as an eggplant, in South African and South Asian Englishes as a brinjal, in British English as an aubergine, and in the language of emojis, well, we’ll talk about that some other time.
In all the names for this bulbous vegetable, there is one that truly sticks out. Many words have traveled, but when it comes to linguistic miles covered, it would be hard to beat the aubergine. It rises above all.
The aubergine spread its seed far and wide before reaching the English language. It came to English from Sanskrit via Persian, Arabic, Catalan, and French. That’s some serious wanderlust.
This week we’ll look at some other words that have earned the well-traveled designation, words that have bounced around before planting their flag in the English language.
On a different note, this Saturday I drove all the way to Lumen Field, a football stadium here in Seattle, and it turned out no game was taking place. So disappointing! Not!
Some 8,000 people were getting vaccinated that day. I too had an appointment. Got my first Pfizer shot. Here's to science! And to adults being in charge of running the country again!
Today's word is zen, after Zen, a school of Mahayana Buddhism. From Japanese zen (meditation), from Chinese chan (meditation), from Pali jhanam (jhanam), from Sanskrit dhyana (meditation). Earliest documented use: 1727. Also see satori.
Learn more about today's word at: wordsmith.org/words/zen.html
18 October 2020.
English: Silence.
Irish: Tost.
Finnish: Vaitiolo.
Please translate to your own language.
Examples:
Bhí sé ina thost agus do bhíos-sa ag caint.
(He was silent and I was talking.)
day 18.
rapidograph/adobe illustrator cs6.
3 inch square.
This is the second of four sets of flash cards to help students with verb forms. The cards are unique in that they are two-sided. One side of the simple (base form) verb cards give simple definitions of some of the verb meanings on the other side, while the matching past tense verb cards have illustrations on the reverse side. This set includes 72 cards.
The cards come with a book which offers a variety of suggestions, including ideas for teaching and learning verb form phrasing in context.
See also Basic Level Verb Forms, Intermediate Level Verbs, and Advanced Level Verbs.
see accompanying book which offers instructions and ideas
flickr.com/photos/33759312@N05/3147918768/
Complete catalog www.2learnenglish.com
marketing by www.searchpage1.com
6 October 2020.
English: Wind.
Irish: Gaoth.
Finnish: Tuuli.
Add a translation in your own language in the comments.
day 6.
rapidograph/adobe illustrator cs6.
3 inch square.
21 October 2020.
English: Stay!
Irish: Fan!
Finnish: Jää!
Please translate to your own language.
Examples:
Älä jää tähän!
(Don't stay here!)
Fan amach uathu anois!
(Stay away from them now!)
day 21.
rapidograph/adobe illustrator cs6.
3 inch square.
14 October 2020.
English: Assistant.
Irish: Cúntóir.
Finnish: Apulainen.
day 14.
rapidograph/adobe illustrator cs6.
3 inch square.
www.exchangelanguages.org/ french language learning, french language software, french learning, french lessons, french lessons online, french study, german language, german language courses
“Working” has a different meaning for writers. If you are a writer, writing doesn’t necessarily mean typing away on a keyboard or scribbling on a piece of paper. Writing happens when you are walking or taking a shower or pulling weeds in the backyard. Simply staring out a window also works. Once your writing is done, you just need to dump it on a sheet of paper or into a computer.
This week we’ll see a few words related to writing. How would you describe what you do in a way that clears misconceptions or puts it in a different light? Email us at words@wordsmith.org.
Today's word is chosisme, from French, from chose (thing), from Latin causa (case, thing). The idea is associated with the writer and filmmaker Alain Robbe-Grillet. Earliest documented use: 1960s.
Learn more at: wordsmith.org/words/chosisme.html
Today's word is yichus, from Yiddish yichus/yikhus (pedigree), from Hebrew yihus (pedigree). Earliest documented use: 1890.
Learn more at: wordsmith.org/words/yichus.html
6 October 2019.
English: Take
Irish: Gabhaim Welsh: Cymryd
Finnish: Ottaa Estonian: Võtma
day 6.
rapidograph/adobe illustrator cs6.
3 inch square.
Today's word is refoulement. Originally the term refoulement referred to the overflowing of a river or of the water being dammed back due to the accumulation of ice. Today, non-refoulement is a principle of international law prohibiting turning away refugees and asylum seekers to a place they
are fleeing from.
Learn more at: wordsmith.org/words/refoulement.html
9 October 2019.
English: Storm
Irish: Stoirm Welsh: Tymestl
Finnish: Myrsky Estonian: Torm
day 9.
rapidograph/adobe illustrator cs6.
3 inch square.
VIRTLANTIS is a free resource and open community of practice for language learners and teachers in the virtual world of Second Life®. We offer free informal language learning activities for a growing number of languages including English, French, Spanish, German, Chinese, etc. All of our activities are offered free of charge by volunteer language teachers and/or native speakers.
Everyone is welcome to offer a language activity at VIRTLANTIS. We provide free resources and ongoing support. We also collaborate with and promote other language communities in Second Life.
In addition to our main island and the various social meeting points at Knowingly, we have additional locations which can be used when needed.
If you are interested in participating in any of our current activities or would like to offer your own language activity, feel free to contact us in-world, on Facebook, on Skype or via e-mail: info@virtlantis.com.
*In order to visit VIRTLANTIS, you will need to join Second Life and install a Second Life viewer.*
Join Second Life here: join.secondlife.com.
Download the default viewer here: secondlife.com/support/downloads.
A list of alternate viewers can be found here: wiki.secondlife.com/wiki/Third_Party_Viewer_Directory.
Official VIRTLANTIS Website:
Teleport Link:
slurl.com/secondlife/Knowingly/99/141/21
Free Language Activities Calendar:
www.google.com/calendar/embed?src=virtlantis%40googlemail...
Free Language Learning/Teaching Resources:
www.virtlantis.com/resources.html
Free Event Hosting & Support:
www.virtlantis.com/events.html
Social Meeting Points @ VIRTLANTIS:
www.virtlantis.com/slurls.html
Facebook Community Site:
Contact Info:
Have questions? No problem! Send an e-mail to info@virtlantis.com or contact Kip Yellowjacket or Abraxas McAndrews in-world. Please also feel free to contact us via Skype: ID = VIRTLANTIS
NEW!
In addition to providing our main island as a free resource, we now have a second island which can be used for special language or culture related events such as presentations, workshops, seminars, roundtables, conferences, demos, concerts and parties!
Our new "Paradise Island" can be used free of charge by anyone who needs a private or public space for a large event (maximum 20 avatars). We gladly provide additional support and resources on an as needed basis. We can also modify the look and feel of the island to help create the ideal atmosphere for your event.
*To reserve and make use of Paradise Island, simply send an e-mail to info@virtlantis.com or contact Kip Yellowjacket or Abraxas McAndrews in-world.*
VIRTLANTIS is a non-profit project of the Oxford School for English, a private language school located in Germany and Austria. It is also a collaborative effort which includes language teachers and learners from all over the world.
Oxford School for English:
www.oxfordschool.de | www.oxfordschool.at
Disclaimer: Second Life® and Linden Lab® are trademarks or registered trademarks of Linden Research, Inc. All rights reserved. No infringement is intended.
VIRTLANTIS is a free resource and open community of practice for language learners and teachers in the virtual world of Second Life®. We offer free informal language learning activities for a growing number of languages including English, French, Spanish, German, Chinese, etc. All of our activities are offered free of charge by volunteer language teachers and/or native speakers.
Everyone is welcome to offer a language activity at VIRTLANTIS. We provide free resources and ongoing support. We also collaborate with and promote other language communities in Second Life.
In addition to our main island and the various social meeting points at Knowingly, we have additional locations which can be used when needed.
If you are interested in participating in any of our current activities or would like to offer your own language activity, feel free to contact us in-world, on Facebook, on Skype or via e-mail: info@virtlantis.com.
*In order to visit VIRTLANTIS, you will need to join Second Life and install a Second Life viewer.*
Join Second Life here: join.secondlife.com.
Download the default viewer here: secondlife.com/support/downloads.
A list of alternate viewers can be found here: wiki.secondlife.com/wiki/Third_Party_Viewer_Directory.
Official VIRTLANTIS Website:
Teleport Link:
slurl.com/secondlife/Knowingly/99/141/21
Free Language Activities Calendar:
www.google.com/calendar/embed?src=virtlantis%40googlemail...
Free Language Learning/Teaching Resources:
www.virtlantis.com/resources.html
Free Event Hosting & Support:
www.virtlantis.com/events.html
Social Meeting Points @ VIRTLANTIS:
www.virtlantis.com/slurls.html
Facebook Community Site:
Contact Info:
Have questions? No problem! Send an e-mail to info@virtlantis.com or contact Kip Yellowjacket or Abraxas McAndrews in-world. Please also feel free to contact us via Skype: ID = VIRTLANTIS
NEW!
In addition to providing our main island as a free resource, we now have a second island which can be used for special language or culture related events such as presentations, workshops, seminars, roundtables, conferences, demos, concerts and parties!
Our new "Paradise Island" can be used free of charge by anyone who needs a private or public space for a large event (maximum 20 avatars). We gladly provide additional support and resources on an as needed basis. We can also modify the look and feel of the island to help create the ideal atmosphere for your event.
*To reserve and make use of Paradise Island, simply send an e-mail to info@virtlantis.com or contact Kip Yellowjacket or Abraxas McAndrews in-world.*
VIRTLANTIS is a non-profit project of the Oxford School for English, a private language school located in Germany and Austria. It is also a collaborative effort which includes language teachers and learners from all over the world.
Oxford School for English:
www.oxfordschool.de | www.oxfordschool.at
Disclaimer: Second Life® and Linden Lab® are trademarks or registered trademarks of Linden Research, Inc. All rights reserved. No infringement is intended.
The musician Leo Kottke once said, “The Germans have done for the consonants what the Hawaiians have done for the vowels.”
What does that mean?
You may have seen German words such as krummholz or kitsch. Then there’s Hawaiian with words such aa and, well, just look at the spelling of the word Hawaii.
The Hawaiian language has five vowels in an alphabet of 13 letters. German? The same as English (more or less).
We could feature a whole week of words borrowed from German, we could feature a week of words borrowed from Hawaiian, but we don’t want to do anything imprudent. Better to keep the world’s consonant/vowel store in balance, so instead this week we’ll alternate German words with Hawaiian.
Today's word is Sehnsucht, from German Sehnsucht (longing or yearning), from sehnen (to long or yearn) + Sucht (craving or addiction). Earliest documented use: 1847.
Learn more at: wordsmith.org/words/sehnsucht.html
Teenager learning Greek in a playful manner at an EU Funded non-formal education project in Athens run by UNICEF/ELIX.
©EU/ECHO
VIRTLANTIS is a free resource and open community of practice for language learners and teachers in the virtual world of Second Life®. We offer free informal language learning activities for a growing number of languages including English, French, Spanish, German, Chinese, etc. All of our activities are offered free of charge by volunteer language teachers and/or native speakers.
Everyone is welcome to offer a language activity at VIRTLANTIS. We provide free resources and ongoing support. We also collaborate with and promote other language communities in Second Life.
In addition to our main island and the various social meeting points at Knowingly, we have additional locations which can be used when needed.
If you are interested in participating in any of our current activities or would like to offer your own language activity, feel free to contact us in-world, on Facebook, on Skype or via e-mail: info@virtlantis.com.
*In order to visit VIRTLANTIS, you will need to join Second Life and install a Second Life viewer.*
Join Second Life here: join.secondlife.com.
Download the default viewer here: secondlife.com/support/downloads.
A list of alternate viewers can be found here: wiki.secondlife.com/wiki/Third_Party_Viewer_Directory.
Official VIRTLANTIS Website:
Teleport Link:
slurl.com/secondlife/Knowingly/99/141/21
Free Language Activities Calendar:
www.google.com/calendar/embed?src=virtlantis%40googlemail...
Free Language Learning/Teaching Resources:
www.virtlantis.com/resources.html
Free Event Hosting & Support:
www.virtlantis.com/events.html
Social Meeting Points @ VIRTLANTIS:
www.virtlantis.com/slurls.html
Facebook Community Site:
Contact Info:
Have questions? No problem! Send an e-mail to info@virtlantis.com or contact Kip Yellowjacket or Abraxas McAndrews in-world. Please also feel free to contact us via Skype: ID = VIRTLANTIS
NEW!
In addition to providing our main island as a free resource, we now have a second island which can be used for special language or culture related events such as presentations, workshops, seminars, roundtables, conferences, demos, concerts and parties!
Our new "Paradise Island" can be used free of charge by anyone who needs a private or public space for a large event (maximum 20 avatars). We gladly provide additional support and resources on an as needed basis. We can also modify the look and feel of the island to help create the ideal atmosphere for your event.
*To reserve and make use of Paradise Island, simply send an e-mail to info@virtlantis.com or contact Kip Yellowjacket or Abraxas McAndrews in-world.*
VIRTLANTIS is a non-profit project of the Oxford School for English, a private language school located in Germany and Austria. It is also a collaborative effort which includes language teachers and learners from all over the world.
Oxford School for English:
www.oxfordschool.de | www.oxfordschool.at
Disclaimer: Second Life® and Linden Lab® are trademarks or registered trademarks of Linden Research, Inc. All rights reserved. No infringement is intended.
Today's word is gobsmacked, from gob (mouth), probably from Irish and/or Scottish Gaelic gob (beak, mouth) + smack (to strike with the palm), probably imitative. Earliest documented use: 1935.
Learn more at: wordsmith.org/words/gobsmacked.html
In the October 2013 issue of Travel Beyond Excuse Magazine:
+ Benny Lewis and Tim Ferriss talk about maximizing the joy of traveling by learning the local language, and how to do it
+ Circumnavigate the World for Less than $500!
+ Life at the South Pole! - and Finding Work Overseas to Finance Your Travel Addiction
+ Interview with The Points Guy--Learn Insider Tips and Tricks for Earning and Using Frequent Flyer Miles
+ Travel Experts Talk About Why Money is a Lame Excuse for Not Traveling
www.travelbeyondexcuse.com/2013/09/30/the-first-issue-of-...
The best way to enrich vocabulary is organically, by coming across words in their natural habitat, taking the time to learn about them, their histories, and making lifelong friends with them.
- Anu Garg, American author, speaker, columnist, and founder of Wordsmith.org (b. April 5, 1967)
VIRTLANTIS is a free resource and open community of practice for language learners and teachers in the virtual world of Second Life®. We offer free informal language learning activities for a growing number of languages including English, French, Spanish, German, Chinese, etc. All of our activities are offered free of charge by volunteer language teachers and/or native speakers.
Everyone is welcome to offer a language activity at VIRTLANTIS. We provide free resources and ongoing support. We also collaborate with and promote other language communities in Second Life.
In addition to our main island and the various social meeting points at Knowingly, we have additional locations which can be used when needed.
If you are interested in participating in any of our current activities or would like to offer your own language activity, feel free to contact us in-world, on Facebook, on Skype or via e-mail: info@virtlantis.com.
*In order to visit VIRTLANTIS, you will need to join Second Life and install a Second Life viewer.*
Join Second Life here: join.secondlife.com.
Download the default viewer here: secondlife.com/support/downloads.
A list of alternate viewers can be found here: wiki.secondlife.com/wiki/Third_Party_Viewer_Directory.
Official VIRTLANTIS Website:
Teleport Link:
slurl.com/secondlife/Knowingly/99/141/21
Free Language Activities Calendar:
www.google.com/calendar/embed?src=virtlantis%40googlemail...
Free Language Learning/Teaching Resources:
www.virtlantis.com/resources.html
Free Event Hosting & Support:
www.virtlantis.com/events.html
Social Meeting Points @ VIRTLANTIS:
www.virtlantis.com/slurls.html
Facebook Community Site:
Contact Info:
Have questions? No problem! Send an e-mail to info@virtlantis.com or contact Kip Yellowjacket or Abraxas McAndrews in-world. Please also feel free to contact us via Skype: ID = VIRTLANTIS
NEW!
In addition to providing our main island as a free resource, we now have a second island which can be used for special language or culture related events such as presentations, workshops, seminars, roundtables, conferences, demos, concerts and parties!
Our new "Paradise Island" can be used free of charge by anyone who needs a private or public space for a large event (maximum 20 avatars). We gladly provide additional support and resources on an as needed basis. We can also modify the look and feel of the island to help create the ideal atmosphere for your event.
*To reserve and make use of Paradise Island, simply send an e-mail to info@virtlantis.com or contact Kip Yellowjacket or Abraxas McAndrews in-world.*
VIRTLANTIS is a non-profit project of the Oxford School for English, a private language school located in Germany and Austria. It is also a collaborative effort which includes language teachers and learners from all over the world.
Oxford School for English:
www.oxfordschool.de | www.oxfordschool.at
Disclaimer: Second Life® and Linden Lab® are trademarks or registered trademarks of Linden Research, Inc. All rights reserved. No infringement is intended.
4 October 2020.
English: Blanket.
Irish: Plaincéad.
Finnish: Peite.
day 4.
rapidograph/adobe illustrator cs6.
3 inch square.
The final word in this week's theme "Words borrowed from Yiddish" is gelt, from Yiddish gelt (money) and/or German, Dutch geld (money). The words gild, gilt, yield, and guild are cousins of this word. Earliest documented use: 1529.
Learn more and see the rest of this week's words at: wordsmith.org/words/gelt.html
Magawa the rat is retiring from his job detecting landmines. In his long and distinguished career, this gold-medalist creature has sniffed out dozens of landmines and other explosives in Cambodia. (www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-57345703)
Magawa is special, but even ordinary rodents are smarter than some humans. They have inspired poems. Robert Burns’s “To a Mouse” tells us: “The best-laid schemes of mice and men / Go oft awry.”
They do. And best-laid landmines kill and maim decades after they have been planted. I propose a journalistic standard that whenever someone writes an article about landmines somewhere, they should also mention who put them there in the first place.
Also, I propose that after a person steps on a landmine, if they survive, when they hobble out of the hospital on crutches, a representative of the armament factory meets them at the hospital gate and presents them with a certificate of authenticity. It’s the least they can do.
On the other hand, why worry about all this? Phnom is probably the wrong religion and going to hell anyway. And if she didn’t want her legs blown off, why did she choose to be born in the wrong country? Why did she pick the wrong skin color? And, above all, why did she go out to play in the open instead of staying in the nicely fenced and manicured backyard in her home?
Fortunately, treaties are in place banning landmines, but some countries have not signed on. No, we haven’t maimed and killed enough people yet. H. sapiens,* literally “wise man”. Wise indeed! Can we rename ourselves to something else? What happened to the truth-in-advertising laws? I propose H. nesciens or H. malevolens.
Enough about humans and their despicable actions. Sometimes it takes a rat like Magawa to clean up after humans. This week we’ll feature five words derived from rats and mice.
*We are so wise that if I spell out the H in H. sapiens this email would be blocked by email filters at many schools and corporations as containing a slur. Because smart computers! High-tech! AI! If these email nannies were any smarter, they would filter out “landmines”.
Today's word is myology, from myo-/my- (muscle), from Greek mys (mouse, muscle). Ultimately from the Indo-European root mus- (mouse, muscle), which also gave us mussel (a respelling of muscle), mustelid (any member of the weasel family), and mysticete (baleen whale), from Greek ho mus to ketos (literally: the mouse, the whale so called). Earliest documented use: c. 1649.
NOTES:
What does a muscle have to do with a mouse? Some thought a flexing muscle (especially of the upper arm) resembled the movement of a mouse. Note that myopia has nothing to do with mice. Rather it’s from Greek myein (to shut) + ops (eye), referring to the squinting of a myopic person. That said, people have used the term myopia as if relating to the mouse and used the term mouse-sight as a synonym for myopia.
Learn more at: wordsmith.org/words/myology.html
When I’m being interviewed or when I take questions at the end of a talk, usually one of the questions is about my favorite word.
I respond that I do not play favorites with words. They all are fascinating to me. You meet someone on the street and they may appear to be the most plain-looking person. You might think: What could be interesting about them anyway? Once you get to know them, once you learn their background and what paths they took to reach where they are, you may have a different opinion.
It’s the same with words. You may take any everyday word but once you get to know its history -- we call it etymology -- you realize there’s no everyday word. A window is, literally, wind’s eye.
I don’t have favorite words, but I can tell you my favorite category of words: eponyms. An eponym is a word coined after someone’s name, from Greek ep- (after) + -onym (name). There are thousands of eponyms in the English language, words that are in everyday use (boycott) and words that are relatively uncommon (pasquinade).
This week we’ll look at five eponyms, coined after people from fact and fiction.
Today's word is hoyle, after Edmond Hoyle (1672?-1769), British writer on games. Earliest documented use: 1906. The word is typically used in the phrase according to Hoyle, meaning strictly following rules and regulations.
Learn more at: wordsmith.org/words/hoyle.html