As a prefix, super- originates from the Latin super, an adverb and preposition meaning above, on top of, beyond, beside. That’s the original meaning of the English prefix, too, though according to the Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, it has taken on other senses over the centuries. These include: Higher in rank, quality or degree … Read more
Uncanny (ŭn-kăn’ē) is an adjective used to describe things that are strange and disturbing, to the point that they appear to have a supernatural origin. One informal synonym is spooky. Spinoza was uncanny, both personally and philosophically. He wore a signet ring reminding him to be cautious, in contrast to the flamboyant Shelley, whose own … Read more
Today while opening my email I came across a very interesting message from a friend. It was basically a message where the letters of each word were all scrambled. The first and the last letters were kept intact, but between them they were all mixed. Surprisingly enough I could read it perfectly. Below you will … Read more
The Greek prefix epi– means something like *on, over” and occurs in several English words. Here are some writing-related words that begin with it. epic Although the epi– in this word isn’t actually a prefix, I’ll include it because it is an important literary term. It comes from the Greek for “word.” In English it … Read more
Renee wrote to us to ask: Can you please clarify the proper way to use these words: loan, lend, loaned, lent? Thank you! If you’ll lend me a few minutes of your time, Renee, I’d be glad to! How to use the word “loan” as a noun and verb The word loan is most commonly … Read more
An adjective is a word that describes a noun. There are two kinds: attributive and predicative. An adjective is used attributively when it stands next to a noun and describes it: The black cat climbed a tree. NOTE: The verb participle forms can be used as adjectives: The man felt a paralyzing fear. Flavored oatmeal … Read more
A recent forum question asks about the word data. The dictionary says the word data can be treated as a singular. But strictly speaking the word is a plural. How does such a thing happen in language? You wouldn’t say, “the cars is fast”. How does a plural gain acceptance as a singular? The answer … Read more
Reader Norma H. Flaskerud wonders about few and several. She thinks “a few” refers to “maybe 2-3 items” while “several” refers to “maybe 3-6.” Her husband says “a few” is 4-7 items. Few is the opposite of many. It derives from words having the meaning of “small” and “little.” It is related to Latin paucus … Read more
The other day someone asked me for the male equivalent of “mistress.” Naturally, I shot back “master,” but that was not the answer. My questioner wanted a word that was the male equivalent of: woman having sexual relations on a regular basis and being supported by man not her husband The word that comes closest … Read more
After my recent post on reduplicatives, Jaguar asked for definitions of the terms in the post. Of course, now I’m wishing that I hadn’t included quite so many examples, but here goes: Repeating reduplicatives: ack-ack – anti aircraft fireaye-aye – yes (often used by seamen)bang-bang – sound of a gunberiberi – disease caused by vitamin … Read more
One of our readers, Billy Green, wrote to ask: Could you enlighten some of us old folks about the proper use of footnotes? Below is what I wrote to the publisher: I am a firm believer in footnotes printed on the same page where the asterisk is printed. Nowadays in many books which are published, … Read more
Well, I couldn’t let the men have all the fun. English has a lot of words that contain the Greek root meaning woman or female – gyn. This appears at the start or in the middle of many common words. As with the andr- words, many of these have biological or scientific origins. Here’s a … Read more