Month: July 2017

• Etymology of the day: avocado

  Today is National Avocado Day. Why don’t you observe it with a little etymology? Via Spanish, avocado comes from the Nahuatl (Aztec) ahuacatl. It means “testicle.” (Try that on some toast.) The Nahuatl language also gives us the words tomato and chocolate, as I discuss in an old post. m ∫ r ∫

  John Kelly

  July 31, 2017

  Etymology of the Day

• Review: Hair of the Dog to Paint the Town Red by Andrew Thompson

  Some recent US political events have thrust two interesting idioms in the headlines: waiting for the other shoe to drop and pass the buck. Thinking of a writing post on the expressions, I started doing some research online. Then, much to my pleasure, I remembered I had an entire book dedicated to them: Andrew Thompson’s…

  John Kelly

  July 30, 2017

  Review

• It’s time for another Friday etymological news roundup

  We had a lot of interesting words in the news this week (some more polite than others). Here’s a news review with—what else?—an etymological twist. 

  John Kelly

  July 28, 2017

  Feature

• Etymology of the day: woebegone

  Woebegone doesn’t mean “Woe, go away!” It means “beset with woe.” The begone comes from an old, obsolete verb, bego, “to go about, surround,” among other senses. So, in Middle English, you might have heard the expression: “Me is wo begon.” m ∫ r ∫

  John Kelly

  July 27, 2017

  Etymology of the Day

• Etymology of the day: uncouth

  Uncouth originally meant “unknown,” from the Old English cuth (known), past participle of cunnan (to know), source of can. Its sense evolved from “unknown” to “strange” to “clumsy” to “unsophisticated.” m ∫ r ∫

  John Kelly

  July 26, 2017

  Etymology of the Day