Latin & Greek Roots

Long ago people believed the stars controlled their lives. If people went against them or tried to throw off their influence, it was thought some evil or disaster would befall them and their lives were said to be ill-starred. Astrology relates the stars to human beings and astrologers plot the position of the stars at the time of birth and suggest what influence this may have on a person's life. Astronomy, on the other hand, is the study of the stars, sun, and moon, to find out their size, composition, movement, etc. Asteroids are small stars or objects circling the sun. Astronauts sail among the stars and the adjective astral means connected with the stars. Some people talk of astral travel, travel done when out of their body, as in sleep perhaps.

In Latin there is another word for a star, which is stella.  It is probable that the Latin words aster and stella both come from the Greek verbs steridzo or stereo which mean to establish or set in a certain position or direction. The letter a on the beginning of a Greek noun means no, not, so the a of aster may suggest that some stars at least were not fixed in position.  On the other hand, the a may be a sign of the past tense so it may mean they were spread out across the sky. I understand that the letters r and l were vowels in ancient languages and also that they often change places so that -ster and stel- could easily come from the same root:
Latin stella = a star.  It gives us constellation: con = with, together  
So a constellation is a group of stars, like the Southern Cross.

Other words connected with the stars and astronomy are:
planet from Greek planeta = a wanderer.   It seems planets were originally seen as different from fixed stars as they could be seen moving around other stars.
planetary e.g. planetary influences     -ary = adjectival ending meaning related to.
planetarium  -ium = noun ending which can mean a place where
a meteor  Greek meta = with or changing position; eor = risen, on high, and so a falling or shooting star, or fire ball on the move
a meteorite  =  a fallen meteor     -ite = noun ending suggesting connected with
meteorology  Greek logos = study;  meteoros  = on high, and so weather conditions
a meteorologist  -ist = one who
a meteorological report    -al  = adjectival ending  meaning connected with
meteoric  -ic = adjectival ending.   The adjectives meteoric, astronomic, and stellar are all used of people who rapidly rise to fame or stardom.
atmosphere  Greek atmos = vapour and sphaira or sphera = globe, ball, sphere
      The word refers to the gases round the earth and also to the condition of the air in a particular place, which might be stuffy, cold, or even tense.
atmospheric conditions are the business of meteorologists.
a comet  Greek kometes = long-haired, i.e. a star with light trailing after it like strands of hair.   The c in comet is hard and pronounced like a k.
galaxy  Greek galaktos = milk, i.e. a cluster of stars and, in particular, the Milky Way.  
      We also speak figuratively of a galaxy of beauties or talent.
galactic:  adjective meaning related to a galaxy or the galaxies.   The Greek galaktos also gives us words related to milk, like lactic acid, found in milk, and lactose,       which is milk sugar.   To lactate is to produce milk through mammary glands.

The English for sun and moon come from Old English, as does the word month, which is related to the word moon. The Latin for moon is luna and from it comes the adjective lunar, meaning related to the moon or crescent-shaped.  So we find
lunar months, cycles, quarters, phases.
      In the 14th century the idea developed that the moon affected people's mental states, and periods of insanity were blamed on phases of the moon. 
      This theory is largely discredited today, but we still speak of people being moonstruck, and the words lunacy and lunatic are still in the English language.
lunacy -acy = a noun ending
lunatic adjective and noun 
      The opposite of lunacy might be sanity from the Latin sanus = healthy and now narrowed down in English to mean health of
      mind. Thus we find
sane adjective    
insane in = not
sanity -ity = a noun ending
insanity in = not

As you know, a cap fits closely over the head, and as it sits basically on top of the head, it can also have the idea of a cover, lid or protective cover. In this sense, it has many uses. You can put the cap on your petrol tank. A cap or limit can be put on the amount of money one is permitted to spend a week. It is also used to lead into a series of memorable events, e.g. After three tries, a field goal capped off a great match for him, i.e. the field goal finished the match for him with the best outcome. It can also be used negatively in this way, e.g. I had forgotten my lunch; I was late for work, and to cap it off, I found I had lost my wallet. Here, it is in the negative so that it means ‘to finish things off with the worst that could happen’.

The geographical term, cape refers to a headland or stretch of land that sticks out from the rest of the land and often looks like a head on top of a narrower piece of land like a neck. You can look up the image of capes on the InterNet.

As an article of clothing, a cape is usually worn loosely round the shoulders today and is shorter than a cloak. However, Robert Claiborne in “The Roots of English” states it was originally worn over the head and it seems that later it was often worn with a hood over the head.

I note that pelts or skins of animals being prepared for hunting trophies are also called capes and consist of the skin from the head and neck of the animal.

The word chapeau is the French word for hat but you will also find this word in English dictionaries, still meaning a hat. Words beginning with a ch instead of a plain c have usually come into English from the Latin through French.

The word chapel also appears to be related to the word cape, which was apparently worn over the head at one time. A chapel literally means ‘little chapel’. It seems it is derived from late Latin capella and came into English through the French. Capella is a diminutive form of cappa, which is why chapel ends in -el.

It seems chapels were originally built to house holy relics or relics of a saint. Relics were important in the religion of the Middle Ages (500-1500AD) since they were considered to have healing powers. Charlemagne (742 – 816AD), King of the Franks, who was crowned Holy Roman Emperor in 800AD, ordered that there be a relic under every church altar and you will often find them there to this day. Also, in great cathedrals in Europe there are often side chapels dedicated to saints or holy relics.

There is a story about a soldier named Martin, who, when he was serving in the Roman army in Gaul, took off his cloak, tore it in half and gave one half to a ragged beggar. For this action Martin later became a saint, and was known as St Martin of Tours, the patron saint of France. A building was constructed to house his half of the cloak as a sacred relic and this shrine was known as a chapel. Thus the word for the garment cape turned into the word chapel meaning a building which housed a sacred cloak or cape.

The word chaplain is related to the word chapel, for a chaplain was originally a minister who looked after a chapel. His office is known as a chaplaincy.

Chapters represent divisions, usually with headings, as in books, societies, or organisations. We often speak of a chapter of accidents suggesting a series of accidents. We also use the saying, chapter and verse, with the idea of ‘full, detailed information about an event’, a use which no doubt comes from the Bible which is divided into chapters and verses.

You may come across the architectural term chapiter, which refers to the head of a column or pillar. You can see what a chapiter looks like by looking up ‘images’ on the InterNet.

You may also have heard of capuchin monkeys, which inhabit South American forests and are often kept as pets. The word capuchin is derived from a group of friars known as the Order of Friars Minor Capuchin, a branch of the Franciscans, who wear brown robes with large hoods. According to Wikipedia, “when Portuguese explorers reached the Americas in the 15th century, they found small monkeys whose colouring resembled these friars, especially when in their robes with hoods down, and named them capuchins.”

I understand the word capuchin can also refer to a woman’s hooded cloak.

The word escape literally means to get out of one’s cape and so avoid someone holding you down. Apparently, in the days when a cape was worn with a hood over the head, one could easily slip out of it by bobbing down and bending slightly, then raising the cloak part. Thus one could make one's escape if accosted by a robber or unwanted person. It’s amazing how many words are related to the Latin for “head’ through the word cape.

In the word chief, the c of the Latin caput is replaced by ch suggesting that it comes through the French language. As well, the p of caput turns into an f. This may be because one has to move one’s lips only slightly to turn a p into an f and vice versa. Experiment by saying these letters one after the other and see what you discover.

A chief is a leader or head of an organisation, etc. Likewise the word chieftain, though chieftain is narrower in meaning as it is applied mainly to a tribe or clan. The word chieftain is used as a noun only whereas chief is used both as a noun and an adjective.

Chef is a doublet of chief, that is, both words come into English from the same source, in this case, finally through French. However, they have slightly different forms and slightly different meanings or uses. Chief has an i added in the spelling, and a chef is more limited in meaning than chief since the full term is ‘chef de cuisine’, the head cook in the kitchen of a restaurant or eatery.

Captain and chieftain are also doublets; the captain being the man in charge of a ship, a group of soldiers, or a team, while chieftain is mainly used as the leader of a tribe. These doublets help to make English rich because speakers have such a wealth of words to choose from. At the same time it makes English difficult for foreigners to learn since so many words have special nuances or are used under specific circumstances

The words cadet, caddie and cad are all related, and can be regarded as doublets. They come into English through the word cadet which is derived from the Latin capitellus. Capitellus is a diminutive of caput and means a little head. It seems the word cadet came into English through a French dialect from Gascony and was originally spelt capdet, but apparently dropped the p and kept the d.

The consonants p and d are both known as plosives or stops. They are formed by stopping airflow with the tongue and then suddenly letting out a puff of air. Plosives come with a harsh sound like an explosion and indeed the term plosive is a shortened form of explosive. Try saying these letters without adding a vowel and see if this is so. I think you will also find they are both formed in the same part of the mouth.

As Claiborne points out, a cadet was originally a little chief or junior officer. It has come to mean a trainee in a military academy because in French Gascony most men in the army were younger sons, the least important children of the nobility. In some countries it is also applies to students in other training institutions like police or farming.

In Scotland, the word caddie or caddy first had the sense of an errand boy or messenger, after which it came to mean one who carried a golfer’s clubs. Note that there is another word spelt caddy meaning a box or chest, especially used for holding tea. This word does not come from the Latin caput but from the word for an Asian unit of weight.

Cad is a shortened of caddie. From the meaning of an errand boy it seems it came to mean an unskilled person and then developed a negative flavour, probably because some untrained people tried to con others out of money. Today it refers to one whose behaviour is ungentlemanly or even flouts the norms of society, deliberately disregarding others' rights. Thus it may mean a scoundrel, a rogue or a rotter. I have heard it used of men only.

I don’t think the word kerchief is used much these days but it was like a scarf which covered the head. A neckerchief was similar to the kerchief but was worn round the neck, while a handkerchief was a piece of material used to wipe one’s nose or moisture from the face.

You may have heard the part in the musical ‘My Fair Lady’ where Henry Higgins explains to Eliza Doolittle the use of a handkerchief. ‘My Fair Lady’ was based on Bernard Shaw’s play ‘Pygmalion’. Here is the part in ‘Pygmalion’ where Henry Higgins explains the use of the handkerchief to Eliza by declaring, “To wipe your eyes. To wipe any part of your face that feels moist. Remember: that’s your handkerchief; and that’s your sleeve. Don’t mistake the one for the other if you wish to become a lady in a shop."

The word mischief may also be related to caput with mis- meaning badly. Robert Claiborne in “The Roots of English” says it originally meant misfortune with the idea that something came to a head badly. I wonder whether the chief part also has the idea of thinking since thinking and the head are closely linked. The word mischief was originally much stronger than today and had the idea of misfortune or harm, possibly due to wrong thinking. If you did yourself or someone else a mischief, injury was involved. However, it has now been watered down to meaning playful, annoying behaviour and is used mainly of small children.

Today we still speak of so many head of cattle. The word cattle is probably a distant relative of capital, which comes from caput. First, it had the idea of property, then wealth or portable wealth, and now means cattle or livestock. The word cattle is also a doublet of chattel, originally spelt catel in Norman French. Both meant property, but cattle came to mean livestock, while chattel (usually plural) was applied to other movable possessions. We often speak of ‘goods and chattels’. Remember that words of similar origin but with different forms and meanings are known as doublets. The three words capital, cattle and chattel are all doublets.

The word capital has many uses in English. As a noun, capital usually refers to the chief or head city. It is an important city, because the seat of government is there. Financially, it may refer to one’s wealth or wealth that can be invested to increase one’s assets. This is the meaning that cattle and chattels are linked to. It is also a term used in sculpture and refers to the top of a column.

Used as an adjective, as in a capital offence, it means an offence which deserves the loss of one’s head, i.e. the crime is punishable by death. The word capital may also be used to express keen agreement, as when we exclaim, “Capital!” Used conversationally or colloquially, it can mean, “Fine, I agree.” As an adjective, you may hear, “You’re a capital fellow”, meaning here is no disagreement or conflict in what has been suggested. So your thinking is similar.

Capitation and per capita are terms used in statistics and economics. Capitation relates to government financial regulations and refers to payments, fees or taxes calculated per head of population or those people eligible for it or having to pay it. Schools may be given a capitation grant, that is, a grant reckoned according to the number of children in the school. Taxes are based on per capita, that is, how many people are eligible to pay and then the same rate for all is decided upon.

Likewise, the phrase per capita, which literally means by the head, and may be translated as ‘per head’. The debt of a country is often stated as so much per capita or per person, and includes every man, woman and child.

Originally, to capitulate and capitulation came into English with the idea of making or agreeing to conditions set out under headings, but since then it has shifted its sense to giving in or surrendering under conditions which are laid out under headings. However, often the formal sense of giving in to terms set out under headings becomes less formal and it simply means giving in.

You may never come across the term capitulum, which is derived from a diminutive of caput, meaning ‘a little head’. It is a botanical term referring to the flowerhead of a plant which consists of a cluster of small flowers, their stalks, stems and coloured leaves. The flowerhead may look like one flower from a distance. Such plants come under the family of Asteraceae (aster = Greek for star) or Compositae and includes the zinnia, sunflower, dahlia, chrysanthemum, cornflower, daisy, marigold, dandelion, yarrow, and many others.

Decapitation refers to the losing of one’s head. Literally, it means the process or act of head down or head off. You will probably know that during the French revolution, 1789-1799, many people lost their heads by being decapitated with the guillotine. Prior to that many English kings were beheaded by having their heads chopped off.

Originally, to capitulate and capitulation came into English with the idea of making or agreeing to conditions set out under headings, but since then the sense has shifted to mean giving in or surrendering under conditions which are laid out under headings. However, often the formal sense of giving in to terms set out under headings becomes less formal and it simply means giving in.

A precipice is a particularly steep cliff from which you can fall headlong. The prefix, pre-, means 'before' so the word could literally mean headfirst. You go too close to the edge of the cliff to look over it and fall headfirst. The adjective precipitous usually refers to cliffs or high mountains, which are steep.

Precipitate is a verb but is also an adjective meaning rushing headlong and is mostly used of actions, behaviour, and decisions. Precipitate actions or decisions may bring about sudden and unexpected consequences because they have not been thought out carefully, and thinking is done in the head. The word precipitate also conveys the idea of haste, for if you fall headfirst over a cliff your descent is probably fairly fast. Very often war between nations begins with some sort of dissatisfaction or resentment, but the actual fighting is precipitated by a single event, such as an assassination, which triggers the fighting.

Chemistry seems to have taken over the idea of falling headfirst and has applied it to solids settling at the bottom of a solution due to a chemical reaction. This process is known as precipitation and the solid is known as the precipitate, so you see that these forms precipitate and precipitation have several uses. Rain, hail, sleet and snow which fall to the earth may also be referred to as precipitation.

The musical term da capo comes from the Italian language and means from the head or beginning, so the musician returns to the beginning of the piece and plays it again.

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Caro = the flesh, carnis = of the flesh

From caro, carnis come words relating to the flesh, the flesh of the human body or the body of an animal; also the flesh of fruit. The letter n tends to float in and out of words, but here it mainly comes into English after the r, as if the r on its own is not enough. On the other hand, it seems the letter r, was once a vowel and this may be the reason.

Most words come into English from the genitive, carnis, which is the stem of the noun:

The carnation or clove pink is a flower of the Dianthus family. It seems to mean ‘flesh-coloured’ suggesting this was its original colour, though today it ranges from white through pink to dark red.

A carnival suggests festivities, often with entertainment, perhaps a circus or merry-go-round, and probably held annually. It derives from the feasting which took place in the last three days before Lent, which was a time of self-denial or fasting, of removing meat from the diet, for about six weeks before the Christian festival of Easter.

Carnal pleasures, such as the enjoyment of food or sex, relate to the flesh and senses.

A carnivore is a flesh-eating animal or plant. The opposite is a herbivore, a plant eater. Carnivorous, the adjective formed from carnivore, has the accent on the second syllable, -ni-.

Carnage suggests piles of dead bodies, usually the result of war, while carrion refers to dead, rotting, decaying flesh, usually of animals. The carrion crow is a bird that feeds on dead flesh.

We don’t hear of charnel-houses much now, but they are family vaults built to hold dead bodies, bones or skulls, and mainly found in cemeteries. Notice the softer ch, suggesting it has come through French.

The word incarnation is used of our being born in human flesh into this world.

Reincarnation (literally, the act of (coming) back into the flesh), is the belief that the dead, both people and animals, return to this life in a new body.

Note that the -tion ending of carnation and incarnation is pronounced as if it were the word shin

The cortex of the brain may also be related to Latin caro meaning flesh. In his Dictionary of Etymology, Chambers relates cortex, corticis which means bark, rind, or outer layer of a plant, vegetable or organ to the Latin corium meaning skin or hide. As the cortex of the brain, the outer fleshly layer of that organ, might be said to look like wrinkled skin or bark, its meaning may well have been influenced by caro, corium, and cortex.

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Cauda = a tail

Cauda meaning the tail, of an animal, for example, gives us a few English words:

A coward is one who runs away, tail between his legs, as a dog does perhaps when scolded. You can act in a cowardly (adjective) fashion or show cowardice (noun) by giving in. It is tempting to think that the verb to cower, which suggests flinching, drawing back or crouching down in fear or even shame, may be related to the Latin cauda, but, according to Robert Claiborne in “The Roots of English” it more likely comes from a German word meaning ‘to lie in wait’.

Queue and cue are homophones in that they sound alike. You may line up and stand in a queue waiting to get into a sports venue, for example. It’s not often a straight line so it may look curved like a tail. Queue-jumpers or those who try to push in ahead of their turn are usually unpopular so queue-jumping is not recommended. The French for the tail is la queue, the same spelling as in English.

The word cue has two meanings. In acting or music it is the tail end of a speech or phrase signalling the performer that it is their turn to enter, speak, or play. To be on cue means one has come in at just the right moment. The second meaning of cue relates to a long tapered shaft with a leather tip used to strike the ball in the games of billiards, pool, or snooker. It was apparently originally a stick.
Both words queue and cue sound exactly like the letter q, and I understand that q used to be written in scripts as a signal for actors to enter, etc. When written as a word, it is spelt cue.

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Cor = the heart, cordis = of the heart

La coeur is French for heart. It comes through the Latin and, as you can see, is very similar to the Latin in spelling. Most Latin words come into English from what is called the stem of the noun, which in the case of cor, is cordis = of the heart, which is known as the genitive. However, in the case of this Latin noun, quite a few words come from cor, the form for the subject of a sentence, which is known as the nominative. Those which include the letter “d” like “cordial” are said to come from the stem of the noun, cord-, or genitive:

Apart from meaning the organ which pumps our blood around every part of the body, the English word heart is used in several other senses. Perhaps the two main figurative senses are the centre of something or the essential part of it. The heart is probably the centre of the body just as a core is in the centre of an apple or a pear. Unless the heart is working, the body cannot survive; therefore it is also essential to the body. So it is with apples and pears; without a core they dry up and die.

We also speak of the core issue, the main issue, or the core curriculum which contains subjects considered essential to an education; therefore all students must take them.

The word heart is also used as if it means courage itself. So to encourage means to put courage or heart into the fearful, while its opposite, to discourage, is rather to take courage away from.

Basically, cordial means related to the heart, but like many words, as language develops, it acquires new and different meanings. In the 14th century it gained the meaning of any medicine, food or drink that stimulates the heart. You will find this meaning in the Prologue to Geoffrey Chaucer’s ‘Canterbury Tales’, written in the late 1300’s. The meaning has also been watered down to mean a pleasant, sweet fruit-flavoured drink.

We also speak of a cordial welcome or invitation which suggest these come from the heart and so are heartfelt, sincere, pleasant, warm and friendly. You may also find it meaning ‘intensely felt’.

In the words discord, concord and accord, the cor- has more the meaning of agreement. Where hearts are not in accord, people are in disagreement, and there is discord. If you are acting in accordance with the law, your heart mainly agrees with the law so you probably try to keep it.

The word concord is not so common and perhaps more formal, but the basic idea behind it is that hearts are together and so in agreement. Sometimes it is used interchangeably with accord. The result is that there is no discord. Treaties between nations are sometimes called Concords. The word concord is associated with a number of technical subjects related to learning as in music, medicine and grammar. Likewise, the adjective concordant implies the idea of agreement and harmony. We say things are in concordance when everything agrees, as when our body language agrees with what we say.

However, the noun, concordance has developed another meaning; it is like a dictionary in which words are in alphabetical order. You will find a Biblical concordance, also a Shakespearian concordance. These books list the main words in the Bible or Shakespeare and tell you where to find them, i.e. in which book of the Bible or where or in which Shakespearian play they appear.

You have probably heard of the supersonic plane called the Concorde, which halved the time it took to fly between England and America. It flew between 1969 and 2003, and was possibly retired as the result of a crash in 2000. It was developed through a treaty agreed between England and France and named Concorde because concord in English and concorde in French meant agreement. You may look up its interesting history on the Internet. Apparently this plane could cross the Atlantic in under three and a half hours and could fly at twice the speed of sound!

A record originally had the idea of 'got by heart', by being put into the memory or mind. Recording of information was done from memory and thus songs, dates, historical events and genealogies, etc, were learned by heart, remembered, and passed down orally from generation to generation. Much, of course, was forgotten, but this is how olden events were first recorded; they were learnt by heart. In schools today mathematical tables may be recited together by classes until they are learnt by heart and firmly implanted in the memory.

In our age of technology we have tape recorders and sophisticated equipment to do recordings of all kinds. We can record information on our PC’s. I used to own music records, but now they have been superseded by DVD's, etc, though the big old round music record seems to be making a comeback today. A speech may be given live or pre-recorded; similarly broadcasts may be made live or pre-recorded. I understand singers may also tape their songs to pre-recorded music.

Perhaps the most specialised word in this list is the adjective cordate, which belongs to the sciences of botany and zoology. It often refers to leaves which are heart-shaped. You can look up images of such leaves on the InterNet. Heart-shaped shells may also be described as cordate.

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Latin corpus, corporis = the body

From corpus, corporis come words relating to the human body and also to the body when it suggests a group of people.

Notice that some words come into English from corpus, the body (the nominative case or subject) and some from the stem of the word which is derived from the genitive or possessive case, corporis = of the body. Usually words come into English from the stem of a noun.

From corpus, corporis come words relating to the human body and to the body when it suggests a group of people.

Notice that some words come into English from corpus, the body (the nominative case or subject) and some from the stem of the word which is derived from the genitive or possessive case, corporis = of the body. Usually words come into English from the stem of a noun.

Corps suggests a body or group of people with a special function, e.g. corps de ballet, diplomatic corps, army corps. The p and s are silent in the singular and the p alone is silent in the plural. Corpse, which used to be written corse, is a dead body, usually human. The adjective corporal means related to the human body, as in corporal punishment. But as a noun, corporal usually refers to an officer in the armed forces. However, this word may have originally come from the Latin caput = head, and may have been spelt caporal.

Corpulent and corpulence suggest too much body, a big belly, while corpuscles are literally little bodies of the blood and so are very small blood cells.

According to Robert Claiborne in “The Roots of English”, a corsage originally meant a bodice but now refers to a posy of flowers pinned on the bodice. A corset is literally ‘a little body ’, a garment worn round the hips to make one look slimmer. Corselettes are similar but usually covered the bust as well as the hips. Today corsets and corselettes look much the same. Corselets were worn by knights of old to protect the upper body. Today a corsetiere makes or fits corsets.

Where a man, especially, has too much body on the belly or abdomen, we say he has a corporation, but mainly the word corporation is a legal term used in the world of business. It suggests a group of people authorised to act on behalf of a larger group, such as its investors. We speak of a Body Corporate, a group of people who make decisions on behalf of a group, often of tenement or unit owners. There are also Incorporated Societies, often non-profit-making organisations which operate under specific rules.

The verb to incorporate is more generally used and means to include in a body of material just as a poem may be incorporated into a speech.

The adjective corporeal, with the e in it, has the idea of bodily, material or physical, as opposed to mental or spiritual. Its opposite is incorporeal meaning having no material form or body. In Law corporeal suggests being composed of material objects while incorporeal implies no physical existence and is used of items like easements and copyright.

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Costa = the rib or side

A few words have come into English from the Latin noun, costa. They are:

Costal is an adjective which means ‘relating to the ribs’. We have 24 ribs, all of which are attached to the spinal column, but only seven pairs of which are attached to the sternum or breastbone in the chest. This attachment is made through extensions called costal cartilages.(Cartilage is often referred to as gristle, but is actually tough, flexible connective tissue found in many places in the body). Then there are what we call ‘false ribs’, five pairs of which are joined to the cartilage of the rib above, while the last two pairs do not extend to the front of the body and are known as ‘floating ribs’.

Intercostal is also an adjective. It refers to spaces, muscles, and nerves found in between the ribs. You can suffer from intercostal pain.

Originally, the verb to accost meant to come along side of someone to speak to them, but today it has a sinister meaning, so that someone, perhaps a stranger, who accosts you, comes right up to you with criminal intentions. They may want to steal your purse or injure you, etc.

The coast indicates the border of the land just as ribs show where the chest begins and ends. Notice that the spelling is changed by the addition of the letter a. As a verb, it suggests moving without effort and more slowly, as a runner does, when he or she knows they have the race won.

To ensure the coast is clear is a colloquialism suggesting one is making sure there is no danger or that nobody is watching.

A coaster usually refers to a ship that trades along the coast of a country. In America it can be short for roller coaster, while in New Zealand a Coaster refers to a person who comes from the West Coast of the South Island of NZ. You may recognise coaster as meaning a small mat on which a bottle or glass of drink is placed to prevent the surface under it getting wet. If you look up “drink coaster” on the InterNet, Wikipedia will give you a very interesting history of the word. Apparently coasters were made for wine bottles so that they could be slid or “coasted” round the dinner table after the servants had retired.

Coastline and coastguard are compound nouns, being made up of two English nouns. Probably they were written as two words for a start but were so often used together that they have become written as one word. Guards may be found anywhere, but coastguards are found only on the beach where the land ends, their job being to keep swimmers safe.

The spelling of cutlet has probably been influenced by the word to cut, as with a knife, but the word cutlet literally means a little side or rib, the suffix -let being a diminutive. Robert Claiborne suggests that the cutlet was “originally sliced from the ribs of an animal”.

Claiborne also suggests that the root word kost- or cost- may have originally been related to ost = a bone. This means the initial k or c must have been lost at some stage, and this could well be so, since ribs are made of bone.

Words that have come into English from the Latin os, ossa meaning a bone are osprey, a bird which eats fish, presumably with the bones, ossify (= to turn into bone and so harden) and ossuary (= a place where bones are kept, i.e. a vault, crypt, or container where bones of the dead are kept). Through the Greek osteon, come medical terms like osteoarthritis (= arthritis of the cartilage of the joints), osteology (= study of bones), osteoporosis (= porous bone), etc. To ostracize or ostracise also comes from the Greek osteon. Originally, when one was ostracised or banished, the voting was done with bits of shell, shell being related to bone.

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Dens = a tooth, dentis = of a tooth

The Latin word is dens, dentis. However, when we pronounce the letters, d, t, and th our tongue is placed behind our top set of teeth and so these consonants may sound similar. Thus we find that these letters are often interchangeable, and English tooth and teeth are both forms of the Latin word dent-. Experiment with saying these letters and see what you think.

You’ll notice that most of these words come from the genitive of dens, which is dentis, and thus they have the letter t in them. Here is a list of them:

You’ll probably know that a dentist works with people’s teeth, checking, filling and cleaning them, etc. He may work in a dental clinic, assisted by a dental nurse. He may suggest patients use dental floss to clean in between their teeth.

Dentine is the hard stuff that a tooth is mainly composed of. I understand it is usually a pale yellow colour and is underneath the white enamel coating.

Those who are unfortunate enough to have lost their upper or lower set of teeth need a denture, a false set of teeth, so that they can eat.

Steradent is a trade name for a paste that is said to clean dentures and natural teeth as well.

Dentifrice is any paste or powder put on a brush to clean one’s teeth. The ending comes from the Latin verb fricare, which means to rub

A trident is a spear with three prongs used for spearing fish. It was the weapon used in some gladiatorial fights and is also the name of a class of nuclear missiles carried by certain submarines. The Greek god Poseidon, (or Neptune in Latin), carried a trident as a sign of his power. With it, he was said to bring about earthquakes and torrential rain. He was supposed to have had power over heaven, earth, and hell, which was their underworld. Britannia also holds a trident, as does the Hindu god, Shiva. It is interesting to look up images of these on the Internet. You may also find tridents on flags, logos and coats of arms. The symbol for psi, the 23rd letter of the Greek alphabet, also has 3 prongs and looks like this: ψ.

An orthodontist specialises in straightening crooked teeth. He works with jaws and the bite. A periodontist, on the other hand, works with the tissues around the teeth. He diagnoses and treats gum disease and implants teeth. Modern medical and scientific terms are often taken straight from Greek, which is the predecessor of Latin. This is what has happened with orthodontist and periodontist. The Greek orthos means straight or correct, while peri- means around and odonti means a tooth.

As mentioned above, tooth and teeth are versions of dent-, with d’s, t’s, and th’s sounding much alike. Thus they were readily interchanged by mistake.

According to Claiborne in “The Roots of English” tusk is a variation of tooth. He claims it was “originally, a canine tooth, as of a wild boar” .

The word dentil is an architectural term which refers to lines of toothlike blocks used as decoration and copied from Greek and Roman buildings. You can see them in the IMAGES section of dentils on the Internet.

We used to begin each paragraph on a new line and about an inch in from the margin. This was called an indent. The space created by the indent guided the eye to each paragraph. We also speak of an indent in the coast. These are tooth-like notches or deep recesses made by the sea. They are called coastal indentations. Indentations can also be made in the mud or wet ground, so we speak of indentations in the mud like footprints.

Indent is also a term used in ordering goods. It seems payment must be paid before goods are supplied and the manufacturer produces exactly the number of goods ordered by the retailer.

An indenture is a binding deed of contract for services made between two parties with each having an identical copy of the agreement. It seems it began in England as early as the 14th century when apprentices were legally bound to a master tradesman to learn his trade. It still applies in this sense today. According to Chambers Dictionary of Etymology, such a document was originally “written in identical versions on a single sheet which was then cut apart along a zigzag or notched line. By matching the notched edges of two copies, it was possible to prove the genuineness of a document”. I guess photocopying has replaced this today.

Indentured is a term often linked to the slave trade in the sugar plantations of America in the 17th century. Black Africans came to North America as indentured servants with a contract to work for a certain period of time, after which they were to be freed, but with the shortage of labour they were soon turned into slaves with no rights at all.

The word dandelion literally means the ‘tooth of a lion’, and is said to come from the shape of its leaves. Check with the IMAGES on the InterNet.

Dentition is a technical word describing the development and arrangement of teeth in humans and animals.

Dentate and edentate are adjectives describing those who have teeth and those without teeth. I have heard it said that due to diseases of the mouth, we have an increasing edentate population today. Edentata is an order of mammals which have few or no teeth. These include sloths, anteaters and armadillos. Dentate can also refer to tooth-like projections or edges, as of leaves, for example.

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Domus = building, house, home

Words connected with Latin domus = building, house, home and Greek doma = house, housetop.

Related Latin words are dominus = master and domina = mistress; also, domicilium = residence.

[Many of these words have the idea of lording it over or being superior to because one is the master of the household]

You’ll notice that the vowels o, a, and e often swap places. This is quite normal when words pass from one language into another. Also, the n seems to replace the m, especially in Spanish and in the words danger and dungeon. I’m not sure how common this is, though n’s often drop out of some forms of words. It might be argued that an m is really a double n, and so they may swap places readily.

It is common for d’s, t’s, and th’s to change places because the pronunciation of these consonants is very similar. It is the tongue that moves rather than the lips. A good example of this is tooth or teeth, and dental or dentist, where the initial t of tooth becomes a d in dental and the th turns into a t.

Likewise, it seems domus passed into German as zimber, the material of which a house is made, and became timber in English. A z is also similar in sound to d’s and t’s.

Under the feudal system in Europe (from the 9th to the 14th century AD) land was owned by lords. People lived in villages controlled by a lord. Thus, as Robert Claiborne suggests, in ‘The Roots of English: A reader’s handbook of word origins’, it was dangerous to offend the lord of the manor since one might end up in his dungeon.

The g in danger and dungeon may come from the letter i in a Latin word like dominium (the place or rule of the master).

The e after the g as in dungeon makes the g soft so that it sounds like a j (as in jug). A g is normally hard, as in gun.

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Duco = I lead, bring about, draw, carry, guide

Duco can also mean I draw behind, bring, carry, guide. It often comes into English with the idea of bear in the sense of support.

The words sane, insane, sanity, insanity and saneness, are usually used of mental health, but can sometimes have a more general use, even a figurative or colloquial one, as in “You’re driving me insane” when one is expressing annoyance at another’s behaviour or “That’s an insane idea” when one thinks the idea is crazy or quite impractical.

Sanitation, sanitary, and unsanitary usually relate to physical health. The words unsanitary and insanitary seem to be used interchangeably, both meaning unhealthy or likely to cause disease.

Town and city councils have departments of sanitation whose staff see that streets, buildings, streams and water supplies are clean, unpolluted and health-promoting. Good sanitation describes healthy-living conditions while unsanitary conditions promote disease rather than health; they are unhygienic and may contain dirt, dust, mould, rubbish, body waste or vermin like rats and mice. Health or sanitary inspectors decide whether a place is fit for habitation or not.

While sanitation comes from Latin, a similar word or synonym, hygiene, is of Greek origin coming from the name of the Greek goddess of physical health, hygiene and cleanliness, Hygeia. She is usually pictured as a woman holding a snake. The snake was worshipped in many ancient religions and seems to have been linked to healing. Note the letter "y" in hygiene, which is a clue that it comes from Greek. The goddess Hygeia had a sister called Panakela, from which probably comes panacea, meaning a remedy for all diseases. Pan means all in Greek while akos means cure or remedy.

A sanatorium, sometimes spelt sanitarium, which seems the preferred spelling in America, is a place where patients go to improve their health, to convalesce or recuperate after an illness. Sanatoriums or sanatoria are often situated in the country or among hills where the air is fresh and clean.

Sanitize and sanitise both mean to make healthy by getting rid of dirt or germs. The -ize seems to be preferred in America while the -ise, suggesting French influence, is used more in Britain. These two words can also be used figuratively, especially of writing which needs the editing out of words that make it unfit for publication.

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Scribo = I write

An equal number of words seems to have come into English from the present tense of scribo = I write, and from the past participle scriptum = written.

Many of these words are well known, for instance, describe which means to write down what something looks like. Others, however, are not so common.

You may have heard of “the scribes and Pharisees” if you are familiar with the New Testament of the Bible. In the first century A.D. scribes were in charge of the scrolls containing the law of the Jewish nation and religion. They drew up legal contracts such as marriage contracts, etc. They copied the law and probably knew it off by heart. Thus they were important people because they were regularly consulted in legal matters.

Likewise in Europe before the days of the printing press (said to have been invented by Gutenberg of Germany in 1440), books and documents were all written by hand. This was the job of the scribe, who may have written up contracts while keeping and copying government accounts and records. Thus he had a wide knowledge of what was happening in his community whereas most people, being unable to read and write, were ignorant of the true situation. The scribe was a man of letters, an educated person, possibly with access to government secrets, and so a man of power in days when illiteracy was common.

The word scrivener is not heard much today, but historically a scrivener did much the same work as a scribe. A scrivener made his living by writing or copying documents for those who could not read nor write. It seems they may also have managed people’s money or property for them. Like scribes, they have become our secretaries, legal assistants, public servants, and even accountants and agents. For an interesting description of the work of a scrivener, see the notes in Wikipedia. As pointed out in their commentary, scriveners are still employed today in countries where literacy is low.

It is worth noting that the letters b, p, and v sound very much alike and may easily be confused. Perhaps this is why all three are found in words derived from scribo.

Notice also the two b’s in scribble, scribbling, and scribbler. The first b closes the initial syllable (scrib-) and keeps the vowel i short while the second b is pronounced and begins the second syllable (-ble). Scribble means writing written down quickly and so is often illegible or difficult to read.

The word scribe has only one b, as do most words which come from the present tense of scribo. The i in the word scribe is long, however. The silent e on the end of scribe opens the syllable, making it a long vowel. As well, it says its name as found in the alphabet.

Script literally means anything written. It can include articles, books, the law, and has developed several specialised meanings, such as the way things are written. In this sense script can mean handwriting or the type of print used, e.g. italics.

A medical doctor or general practitioner may write down for his patient details of a needed medicine. This is called a prescription or a script. Once written out, it can be taken to a chemist or pharmacist and made up into the required form.

Actors also follow the script or words written down by the playwright and if they add extra words, these are the unscripted parts.

If a person or thing is called non-descript, it suggests there is nothing one could write down about them, nothing to distinguish them from others like them, and this may imply they are uninteresting or dull.

The word manuscript is literally something written by hand. It may refer to an old book, law or document, written before the invention of printing, and these are usually valuable because rare. It may also mean an author’s original hand-written or typed text, set out before it is published and printed. The word manuscript is often abbreviated to MS while the plural is MSS.

Meanwhile, the word scripture refers to sacred writing.

The long epic poems of the Iliad and the Odyssey are ascribed to the Greek poet Homer, though I think there is no proof that he wrote them. However, we write these poems down to him, as it were.

Inscriptions are words carved or written into rock, stone, or metal as on a locket, watch, or coin.

Superscriptions are titles written above statues or paintings. For those who know the Bible, Pilate wrote the title, “JESUS OF NAZARETH, THE KING OF THE JEWS”, and this was placed above the cross on which Jesus was crucified as a superscription.

A superscript can be used for corrections placed above the written text. It also refers to small letters or numbers printed above the ordinary text. Ordinal numbers may be printed like this, e.g. 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, showing the order in which one was placed. Likewise, a subscript refers to a letter or number printed below the ordinary-sized letter, as in chemical formulas.

An inscription placed around a coin or medal may be known as a circumscription. A circumscription is also a mathematical concept relating to circles drawn round triangles. As anything enclosed in a circle is limited by that circle, so the word circumscribed, has come to mean restricted and this is probably the most common meaning of circumscription today. I notice that some people’s movements and the movement of goods around the world are now becoming drastically circumscribed due to the spread of the coronavirus.

A postscript is found at the bottom of a note or letter; it is like an afterthought and is often preceded by the shortened form of the word, PS.

In ancient times enemies of the government could be proscribed . Their names would be written up on a board for all to see. If your name was on the list, you were outlawed; your property was taken by the state, and death was the probable outcome should you return to that city or country. Today it is used to mean activities or actions forbidden by law, religions or cultures. Thus athletes who have been caught out taking proscribed drugs may be banned from some competitions. The word proscribe is not so common today, but you may meet it occasionally.

Conscription has a military meaning and is used by countries when they don’t have enough volunteers to fight their wars for them. People’s names are written with others on a list and these people are legally bound to enlist in the army.

Subscriptions are becoming common today. One subscribes to a series of books or magazines. Literally, one writes one’s signature underneath an agreement, consenting in advance to purchase a newspaper, update, podcast or blog, daily, monthly, annually, etc. Some subscriptions, however, may be free.

The idea of to transcribe is to write over or across from one medium to another. You may practise a speech by taping it and later make a printed copy of it. This is called transcribing. Interviews may be taped and then transcribed so that the audio is put across into print. You can transcribe thoughts, speech or data into the printed or written form. Transcribe is also used of putting a piece of music or a song into a different key, or writing it for a different voice, instrument or group of instruments. It is also used of taking an article in one language and putting into another language.

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Seco = I cut

The Latin verb seco has the idea of cutting or dividing into sections. As is common, most words derived from it come into English from the past participle sectum.

A segment is a piece or part of anything that divides up naturally. We speak of a segment of a circle, of citrus fruit like an orange, of the body of an insect. Words can be segmented into their separate sounds, e.g. soup becomes s-ou-p. This is a skill necessary when one is learning to read. Sentences can be segmented into words. This helps to get children started on phonological awareness, which also helps with the reading process.

The noun segmentation is a device used in marketing. Customers are divided into groups who have similar needs and characteristics. There are many ways of doing this, but some are buying habits, age, gender, or location.

The saw, sickle, and scythe are all tools used by tradesmen and farmers. The saw is a tool used by carpenters to cut through logs and timber. The saw has a serrated edge and is used by moving it backwards and forwards. The sickle is used by farmers to cut grain. It has a short handle and what is called a C-shaped blade. The short handle forces the farmer to bend over and from it developed the scythe with a longer handle, which meant one could stand up straight when harvesting grain. These words are related to the idea of cutting and come from seco through German.

Section is perhaps a general word for a part of something and there are many synonyms for it, such as part, bit, chunk, piece. Land is usually cut up into sections, and houses built on them, especially in cities.

The noun sector seems to be used mainly in the public or commercial arena. Cities are divided into sectors for civil defence purposes. We speak of primary industries like agriculture, mining, and fishing with secondary industries covering the manufacturing of items like milk powder and oatmeal. Hospitality can be placed in the tertiary sector. Businesses offering similar goods or services are classed together like the educational sector, the financial sector, the technological and the housing sector. Each sector is cut away from a larger grouping, making it easier to deal with. The word sector also has applications in mathematics and the military.

To bisect is to cut in two; to dissect is to cut up and examine; to transect is to cut across or through, and to perform a vivisection is to cut through a living animal for scientific research. A transect or a transect line is used in geography or biology to count the diversity of insect or plant life in forest, bush, grassland, stream or beach, etc. Bisect, dissect and transect are terms used in mathematics, while bisect, dissect, transect, and vivisection are all terms found in surgery.

Insects have a hard skeleton and a segmented body consisting of a head, thorax and abdomen. As insect literally means ‘cut into’, perhaps it is so named because of the segmented body.

An insecticide is a substance which kills insects. (See caedo)

The plural noun secateurs is literally French for those cutting or those which cut. They are like thick scissors for cutting branches of trees and shrubs; they have two prongs and require one hand to use. They can be described as pruning shears.

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Hints for Learning

2. Try to relate the vocabularies back to the Latin or Greek root.

3. If you know most of the words, try to understand a word you don’t know.

4. If you know a few words only, choose the easiest word you can find to learn.

5. Check out which column an English word is in. Is it under the present tense heading or the past participle? This gives a clue to its spelling.

6. Check the Latin infinitive for the second last vowel which may affect the English spelling also. The e in agere appears in words like agent while the a in vocare shows in vocal and vocabulary.

7. Listen for these words in conversation and watch for them in books. This is the easiest way to learn how words are used.

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Suadeo = I convince

Suadeo is related to the Latin adjective suavis meaning sweet, so underlying suadeo is the idea that you convince someone by making them think your idea is sweeter or better than any they may have. The letter ‘u’ is the equivalent of the letter ‘w’ in suadeo.

To persuade is to convince by making one feel your recommendation is more agreeable than theirs. The prefix per emphasises the meaning of the root verb, convince.

Dissuasion is advising against one’s ideas.

The adjective suave is used of a charming and gracious man though he may not be sincere. It is rarely used of a woman, who is more likely to be called ‘elegant’.

To assuage fears is to calm them down by making them less horrific and more agreeable.