New Words and Etymologies

Newly discovered words

4/22/2009

Exegesis - Critical explanation or analysis, especially of a text. GREEK: exegeisthai “explain, interpret,” from ex- “out” + hegeisthai “to lead, guide.”

Invidious - Tending to rouse ill will, animosity, or resentment. LATIN: invidiosus “envious,” from invidia “ill will”. Consider: envy

Braggadocio – A braggart. Stock character in drama, such as Shakepeare’s Falstaff. From: Brag, braggen, ORIGIN UNKNOWN

Cardamom - A rhizomatous Indian herb having capsular fruits with aromatic seeds used as a spice or condiment. GREEK: kardamōmon : kardamon, “cress” + amōmon, an Indian spice

Eidetic - Marked by or involving extraordinarily accurate and vivid recall especially of visual images; technical term for ‘photographic memory’; GREEK: eidos, “form”

Rhizomatous - A horizontal, usually underground stem that often sends out roots and shoots from its nodes. Also called rootstalk, rootstock. GREEK: rhiza, “root”

4/23/2009

Transgenic - Of, relating to, or being an organism whose genome has been altered by the transfer of a gene or genes from another species or breed. LATIN: trans-, “beyond, across, over” + ENGLISH: genic, “produced or generating something” OR “relating to genes”

Catechism – A summary or exposition of religious doctrine. GREEK: katechizein, “teach orally, instruct by word of mouth,”

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Etymological origins discovered

4/22/2009

Spawn – LATIN: expandere, “to spread out, pour out”; The notion is of a “spreading out” of fish eggs released in water.

Tadpole - tadde “toad” OLD ENGLISH: tadige, tadie + pol “head” MIDDLE DUTCH: pol “head, top.”

Fall - OLD ENGLISH: feallan. Noun sense of “autumn” (now only in U.S.) is 1664, short for fall of the leaf (1545).

Autumn - LATIN: autumnus, a word probably of Etruscan origin. Harvest was the Eng. name for the season until autumn began to displace it 16c.

Narcoleptic – GREEK: narke, “numbness, stupor” (consider: narcotic) + lepsis, “an attack, seizure.”

Remember – LATIN: rememorari “recall to mind, remember,” from re- “again” + memorari “be mindful of,” from memor “mindful”. Consider: memory

Jism – DISPUTED: Probably related to Jazz, which has an undetermined etymology. Possibly african or gaelic origin. AMERICAN

Root – OLD NORSE: rot, “root”

4/23/2009

Fluorescent – Glowing in ultraviolet light. Coined by Eng. mathematician and physicist Sir George G. Stokes (1819-1903) from fluorspar(fluorine), because in it he first noticed the phenomenon, + ending -escence from opalescence, phosphorescence

Fluorine – Element 9, symbol F. LATIN: fluor, “a flowing, flow”. Consider: fluent

Ibid. – LATIN: ibidem, “in the same place,” from ibi, “there” + demonstrative suffix -dem.

Terrace – LATIN: terra, “earth, land”. Consider: terrain

Indonesia – LATIN: indus, “india” + GREEK: nesos, “island”