NEW VOCABULARY WORDS

WORD OF THE DAY...

I stumbled across this one as a 'comment' on a white paper in a university library archive. I was researching some historical provenance on the Constitution and ran into several documents by a PHD candidate. Apparently his advisor wasn't too impressed. I have to admit, I wasn't terribly impressed either. Reminded me of undergrad work. Post-graduate study should be (mostly) beyond reproach. -- IMHO

I know this word but couldn't put a good definition down on paper, so I included it here.....

vacuous = adjective: empty minded; stupid.  adjective: empty; unfilled, void; vacant.   adjective: lacking intelligence or intelligent expression; unexpressive; as in a vacuous look. 

The etymology is easy.  It's a derivative from Latin.  From the Latin vacuus; meaning empty or vacant.

WORD OF THE DAY...

This one comes courtesy of a post in another thread. Fairly common usage these days, but still a little strange. 

miasma = noun: noxious; poisonous atmosphere or influence. noun: considered to be infectious or injurious to health. noun: noxious emanations; air made noxious by the presence of ....

The etymology is Greek. English usage first recorded in 1665.  From the Greek miainein, meaning 'to pollute'. Ancient Greek - μίασμα - 'stain, pollution'

OKAY... This post is perhaps a little late in coming. I should have led off with something like this.

Ahhh... "Trés Interresant" - I'm sure you realize that "American English" is a cultural adaptation of the language spoken for many MANY years before it came to the U.S.  As such, our 'English' contains a lot of 'bastardized' terminology, stolen from other languages. "Trés interessant" is an example of a word (saying) stolen from the French language. It means "very interesting".  We (in the U.S.) steal a lot of 'language' from others. Another example = "C'est la vie" (pronounced "Say-la-vee"). It is another very common expression in English, but stolen from the French language. There are MANY more.... Our "English" is full of them.  These words and sayings have become almost idiomatic in their widespread usage and understanding here in the U.S.

Examples:

From French:  Deja Vu; C'est la vie; Fiance; Encore; Matineé; Mirage; Utensil; Modern. --- And of course, the VERY obvious, or maybe TOO obvious ones like: A' la carte; Bon Appétit; Hors 'd oeuvre; Maitre d' hotel; A la mode; Cul-de-sac; Au contraire; Paper mâché; Avant-garde;    Art Nouveau....... And the list goes ON and ON

From Spanish:  Fiesta; Siesta; Barrio; Patio; Cafeteria; Politico; Gusto; Aficionado; Macho; Sierra; etc., etc.  As well as some phrases we all recognize: Mi casa es su casa; Hasta la vista, baby; Chili con carne; Hola, amigo(a) --- and many, MANY more.

These adaptations continue constantly and mark a general degradation in the specificity or boundaries between languages that share a common alphabet. As our languages merge, the world becomes smaller.

In the future, I'll try to remember to use the idiomatic English instead of the "borrowed" foreign terminology. It's probably best that way to prevent confusion.

---

Lets talk about "miasma" again for a minute.....

Did you know...

In notes taken during a voyage to South America on the HMS Beagle in the 1830s, Charles Darwin described an illness that he believed was caused by "miasma" emanating from stagnant pools of water. For him, miasma had the same meaning that it did when it first appeared in English in the 1600s: an emanation of a vaporous disease-causing substance. (Miasma comes from Greek miainein, meaning "to pollute.") But while Darwin was at sea, broader applications of miasma were starting to spread. Nowadays, we know germs are the source of infection, so we're more likely to use the newer, more figurative sense of miasma, which refers to something destructive or demoralizing that surrounds or permeates.

Courtesy of Merriam-Webster.com

The 'emphasis' is mine...

Thanks for the knowledge Hobbit

I like learning, kinda nerdish.

WORD OF THE DAY...

From my favorite comic strip (again...)


stertorous = adjective; sounds like... deep heavy breathing; labored breathing.

etymology is Latin; from stertor (to snore). Late 1700s -- early 1800s




9 Chickweed Lane  by  Brooke McEldowney

WORD OF THE DAY...

Ran across this one in a newspaper column.  Pretty standard usage these days, especially for a "new" word -- or at least 'modern' in comparison to most of the English language.  Frequently seen (heard) in news broadcasts and political diatribes.

xenophobia = Noun: Dislike of anything strange or foreign; particularly people or nations, foreign countries; includes bias or prejudice...

Etymology is from Greek basis but coined first in "New Latin" then to English. First appeared in English late 19th century  (1877..).

WORD OF THE DAY...

I've skipped this for a few weeks.... Here are a few words I've noted in books and ...???

These words showed up in The Bad Weather Friend by Dean Koontz.


lunula = Noun:  A small crescent-shaped marking. Especially used to name the small white half-moon shape at the base of a finger nail. Noun: In entomology, a small depression on the frons of a dipterous insect.
Etymology:  New Latin fr. Latin. Indo-European roots.

comestibles = Noun: Food. Anything that can be eaten.
Etymology:  unsure at this time....

cincture = Noun: Something that encircles or surrounds like a belt or sash. Noun: Specific. A part of an ecclesiastical garment worn by a priest, monk, or nun as a sash or tie to confine the garment. Verb: transitive. To gird, circle, encompass or surround.
Etymology:  Latin. Fr. cinctura. Indo-European roots

That book is full of vocabulary building words.  Koontz loves to make you think...
.

WORD OF THE DAY...

Also from The Bad Weather Friend by Dean Koontz...

sylph = Noun: A slim, graceful woman or girl.  Noun: An imaginary being inhabiting the air; a fairy; an elemental spirit of the air.  Noun: Any one of several species of South American hummingbirds.  Noun: Mythology - An invisible being of the air.
Etymology: New Latin 'sylpha' probably from Latin 'sylvestria' and 'nympha'.  Usage. First attested 1657. Coined 16th century by Paracelsus.

carillon = Noun: A set of tuned bells designed to play regularly composed melodies. Usually activated from a keyboard. Noun: A rapid ringing of several large bells at the same time. Noun: A composition written or arranged for the bells. Verb (Intran..): To play a carillon.
Etymology: French; alteration of Old French 'quarregnon'

mellifluous = Adjective: Having a pleasant and fluid sound.  Adjective: Flowing as with honey; smooth; flowing sweetly or smoothly.
Etymology: Middle English fr. Late Latin 'mellifluous'; Indo-European roots + Latin.

From the word of the day email:

Epigraph

1. An inscription on a building, statue, or coin.
2. A short quotation or saying at the beginning of a book or chapter, intended to suggest its theme.

EXAMPLE SENTENCES


"The epigraph of my first book is a clever quote from Dorothy Parker."

"I didn't recognize the man in the statue, but the epigraph said he was the city's first mayor."

"The brief epigraph at the beginning of the book of poetry described the author's love of the wilderness."