{"id":85,"date":"2016-08-01T19:38:25","date_gmt":"2016-08-01T23:38:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/greeklatinroots2\/?post_type=chapter&p=85"},"modified":"2016-12-05T19:00:50","modified_gmt":"2016-12-06T00:00:50","slug":"%c2%a7121-interesting-words","status":"publish","type":"chapter","link":"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/greeklatinroots2\/chapter\/%c2%a7121-interesting-words\/","title":{"raw":"\u00a7121. Interesting Words","rendered":"\u00a7121. Interesting Words"},"content":{"raw":"

Table 19.1<\/a> contains the Greek derivative neologism <\/i>(\u03bd\u03b5\u03bf\u03c2, \u201cnew\u201d + \u03bb\u03bf\u03b3\u03bf\u03c2, \u201cword\u201d + -\u03b9\u03c3\u03bc\u03bf\u03c2, noun-forming suffix), a newly coined word or expression. Conservative word-lovers are usually leery of neologisms, which occur often in trendy bureaucratic usage\u2014forms like privatize<\/i> and priorize<\/i>, for example. In contrast, adventurous English stylists are delighted to see new words added to the language, provided that they enrich the possibilities for communication (and that is an important proviso). Sometimes neologisms are deliberately facetious, like the delicious coinage affluenza<\/i> (\u201can affliction brought on by suddenly having too much money\u201d). If you want to keep abreast of new developments, you\u2019ll find a whole book on the subject\u2014Longman\u2019s Dictionary of Contemporary English<\/i><\/a>.<\/p>\r\n

A close relative of acronym<\/i> (\u00a7118<\/a>) is acrostic<\/i> (\u1f00\u03ba\u03c1\u03bf\u03c2, \u201ctop\u201d + \u03c3\u03c4\u03b9\u03c7\u03bf\u03c2, \u201cline\u201d), a poem or other composition in which the first letters of each line, when read vertically, form an independent word. There have been times in literary history when convoluted ingenuity of this sort\u2014crossword puzzle skills, applied to poetry\u2014have been highly treasured.<\/p>\r\n

There are other common Greek adjectives with which you should have a nodding acquaintance. Close in meaning to \u1f11\u03c4\u03b5\u03c1\u03bf\u03c2 (\u201cother\u201d) is \u1f00\u03bb\u03bb\u03bf\u03c2 (\u201canother\u201d). It is found in the linguistic term allophone<\/i>, which is a nondistinctive variant of a phoneme (e.g., the English sounds [ph<\/sup>] and [p] in pin<\/i> and spin<\/i>). In Quebec, the word allophone<\/i> (\u201canother voice\u201d) has a very different meaning: it is applied to those whose first language is neither French (francophone<\/i>) nor English (anglophone<\/i>). A Greek synonym for \u03c1\u03b1\u03bb\u03b1\u03b9\u03bf\u03c2 (\u201cold\u201d) is \u1f00\u03c1\u03c7\u03b1\u03b9\u03bf\u03c2 (\u201cancient\u201d); thus the kindred disciplines of palaeontology <\/i>(palae-ont-o-logy, \u201cthe study of old existing things\u201d[footnote] The element -ont- <\/strong>is derived from \u03bf\u03bd\u03c4\u03b1 (\u201cexisting things\u201d), the present participle of the Greek verb that means \u201cto be.\u201d[\/footnote]) and archaeology<\/i> (archae-o-logy, \u201cthe study of ancient things\u201d). Palaeozoic<\/i> (US Paleozoic, <\/i>\u201cpertaining to old life\u201d) and Mesozoic<\/i> (< \u03bc\u03b5\u03c3\u03bf\u03c2, \u201cmiddle\u201d) are two geologic eras. That adjective meaning \u201cmiddle\u201d occurs in Mesopotamia<\/i>, \u201cthe land in the middle of the rivers\u201d (Tigris and Euphrates). The word sophomore<\/i> combines two Greek adjectives that are opposite in meaning: \u03c3\u03bf\u03c6\u03bf\u03c2 (\u201cwise\u201d) and \u03bc\u03c9\u03c1\u03bf\u03c2 (\u201cfoolish,\u201d \u201cdull\u201d). A paradoxical and contradictory expression like \u201cwise-foolish\u201d or \u201cbittersweet\u201d may be called an oxymoron<\/i> (\u1f40\u03be\u03c5\u03c2, \u201csharp\u201d + \u03bc\u03c9\u03c1\u03bf\u03c2 (\u201cdull\u201d). Perhaps you have a favourite unintentional oxymoron, <\/i>like \u201cmilitary intelligence\u201d or \u201cjumbo shrimp.\u201d<\/p>\r\n

The possibility of etymological confusion is acute in derivatives of \u03ba\u03b5\u03bd\u03bf\u03c2 (\u201cempty\u201d), \u03ba\u03bf\u03b9\u03bd\u03bf\u03c2 (\u201ccommon\u201d[footnote] The \u201ccommon\u201d Greek dialect of late antiquity\u2014the language of the Greek New Testament\u2014is known as the \u03ba\u03bf\u03b9\u03bd\u03b7 (koin\u0113), a feminine adjective form.[\/footnote]), and \u03ba\u03b1\u03b9\u03bd\u03bf\u03c2 (\u201cnew\u201d or \u201crecent\u201d)\u2014all of which may appear in English as cen-<\/i>. In North American dictionaries, you will find the spellings cenotaph<\/i> (\u201cempty tomb\u201d), cenobite<\/i> (\u201cone who lives a common life\u201d\u2014a type of monastic regimen), and Cenozoic<\/i> (\u201cpertaining to new life\u201d\u2014the most recent geologic era). In British practice, as reflected in the Oxford<\/i> English<\/i> Dictionary<\/i>, the etymological distinctions are made clearer by the historically accurate and distinctive spellings cenotaph<\/i>, coenobite<\/i>, and Caenozoic<\/i>.<\/p>\r\n

If you want a challenging experience in etymology, consult a geological time scale in any encyclopedia. You will learn, for example, that the Cenozoic<\/i> era\u2014the last 65 million years on earth\u2014is divided into seven epochs: Holocene<\/i> (\u201cwhole new\u201d), Pleistocene<\/i> (\u201cmost new\u201d), Pliocene<\/i> (\u201cmore new\u201d), Miocene<\/i> (\u201cless new\u201d), Oligocene<\/i> (\u201clittle new\u201d), Eocene<\/i> (\u201cdawn new\u201d[footnote] Greek \u201cdawn\u201d is \u1f20\u03c9\u03c2; the prehistoric ancestor of all horses was the eohippus<\/em> (\u201cdawn horse\u201d).[\/footnote]), and Paleocene<\/i> (\u201cold new\u201d). The last is an excellent oxymoron<\/i>.<\/p>","rendered":"

Table 19.1<\/a> contains the Greek derivative neologism <\/i>(\u03bd\u03b5\u03bf\u03c2, \u201cnew\u201d + \u03bb\u03bf\u03b3\u03bf\u03c2, \u201cword\u201d + -\u03b9\u03c3\u03bc\u03bf\u03c2, noun-forming suffix), a newly coined word or expression. Conservative word-lovers are usually leery of neologisms, which occur often in trendy bureaucratic usage\u2014forms like privatize<\/i> and priorize<\/i>, for example. In contrast, adventurous English stylists are delighted to see new words added to the language, provided that they enrich the possibilities for communication (and that is an important proviso). Sometimes neologisms are deliberately facetious, like the delicious coinage affluenza<\/i> (\u201can affliction brought on by suddenly having too much money\u201d). If you want to keep abreast of new developments, you\u2019ll find a whole book on the subject\u2014Longman\u2019s Dictionary of Contemporary English<\/i><\/a>.<\/p>\n

A close relative of acronym<\/i> (\u00a7118<\/a>) is acrostic<\/i> (\u1f00\u03ba\u03c1\u03bf\u03c2, \u201ctop\u201d + \u03c3\u03c4\u03b9\u03c7\u03bf\u03c2, \u201cline\u201d), a poem or other composition in which the first letters of each line, when read vertically, form an independent word. There have been times in literary history when convoluted ingenuity of this sort\u2014crossword puzzle skills, applied to poetry\u2014have been highly treasured.<\/p>\n

There are other common Greek adjectives with which you should have a nodding acquaintance. Close in meaning to \u1f11\u03c4\u03b5\u03c1\u03bf\u03c2 (\u201cother\u201d) is \u1f00\u03bb\u03bb\u03bf\u03c2 (\u201canother\u201d). It is found in the linguistic term allophone<\/i>, which is a nondistinctive variant of a phoneme (e.g., the English sounds [ph<\/sup>] and [p] in pin<\/i> and spin<\/i>). In Quebec, the word allophone<\/i> (\u201canother voice\u201d) has a very different meaning: it is applied to those whose first language is neither French (francophone<\/i>) nor English (anglophone<\/i>). A Greek synonym for \u03c1\u03b1\u03bb\u03b1\u03b9\u03bf\u03c2 (\u201cold\u201d) is \u1f00\u03c1\u03c7\u03b1\u03b9\u03bf\u03c2 (\u201cancient\u201d); thus the kindred disciplines of palaeontology <\/i>(palae-ont-o-logy, \u201cthe study of old existing things\u201d[1]<\/sup><\/a>) and archaeology<\/i> (archae-o-logy, \u201cthe study of ancient things\u201d). Palaeozoic<\/i> (US Paleozoic, <\/i>\u201cpertaining to old life\u201d) and Mesozoic<\/i> (< \u03bc\u03b5\u03c3\u03bf\u03c2, \u201cmiddle\u201d) are two geologic eras. That adjective meaning \u201cmiddle\u201d occurs in Mesopotamia<\/i>, \u201cthe land in the middle of the rivers\u201d (Tigris and Euphrates). The word sophomore<\/i> combines two Greek adjectives that are opposite in meaning: \u03c3\u03bf\u03c6\u03bf\u03c2 (\u201cwise\u201d) and \u03bc\u03c9\u03c1\u03bf\u03c2 (\u201cfoolish,\u201d \u201cdull\u201d). A paradoxical and contradictory expression like \u201cwise-foolish\u201d or \u201cbittersweet\u201d may be called an oxymoron<\/i> (\u1f40\u03be\u03c5\u03c2, \u201csharp\u201d + \u03bc\u03c9\u03c1\u03bf\u03c2 (\u201cdull\u201d). Perhaps you have a favourite unintentional oxymoron, <\/i>like \u201cmilitary intelligence\u201d or \u201cjumbo shrimp.\u201d<\/p>\n

The possibility of etymological confusion is acute in derivatives of \u03ba\u03b5\u03bd\u03bf\u03c2 (\u201cempty\u201d), \u03ba\u03bf\u03b9\u03bd\u03bf\u03c2 (\u201ccommon\u201d[2]<\/sup><\/a>), and \u03ba\u03b1\u03b9\u03bd\u03bf\u03c2 (\u201cnew\u201d or \u201crecent\u201d)\u2014all of which may appear in English as cen-<\/i>. In North American dictionaries, you will find the spellings cenotaph<\/i> (\u201cempty tomb\u201d), cenobite<\/i> (\u201cone who lives a common life\u201d\u2014a type of monastic regimen), and Cenozoic<\/i> (\u201cpertaining to new life\u201d\u2014the most recent geologic era). In British practice, as reflected in the Oxford<\/i> English<\/i> Dictionary<\/i>, the etymological distinctions are made clearer by the historically accurate and distinctive spellings cenotaph<\/i>, coenobite<\/i>, and Caenozoic<\/i>.<\/p>\n

If you want a challenging experience in etymology, consult a geological time scale in any encyclopedia. You will learn, for example, that the Cenozoic<\/i> era\u2014the last 65 million years on earth\u2014is divided into seven epochs: Holocene<\/i> (\u201cwhole new\u201d), Pleistocene<\/i> (\u201cmost new\u201d), Pliocene<\/i> (\u201cmore new\u201d), Miocene<\/i> (\u201cless new\u201d), Oligocene<\/i> (\u201clittle new\u201d), Eocene<\/i> (\u201cdawn new\u201d[3]<\/sup><\/a>), and Paleocene<\/i> (\u201cold new\u201d). The last is an excellent oxymoron<\/i>.<\/p>\n

  1. The element -ont- <\/strong>is derived from \u03bf\u03bd\u03c4\u03b1 (\u201cexisting things\u201d), the present participle of the Greek verb that means \u201cto be.\u201d ↵<\/a><\/li>
  2. The \u201ccommon\u201d Greek dialect of late antiquity\u2014the language of the Greek New Testament\u2014is known as the \u03ba\u03bf\u03b9\u03bd\u03b7 (koin\u0113), a feminine adjective form. ↵<\/a><\/li>
  3. Greek \u201cdawn\u201d is \u1f20\u03c9\u03c2; the prehistoric ancestor of all horses was the eohippus<\/em> (\u201cdawn horse\u201d). ↵<\/a><\/li><\/ol><\/div>","protected":false},"author":20,"menu_order":4,"template":"","meta":{"pb_show_title":"on","pb_short_title":"Chapter 19: Greek Adjectives and Adverbs","pb_subtitle":"","pb_authors":[],"pb_section_license":""},"chapter-type":[52],"contributor":[],"license":[],"class_list":["post-85","chapter","type-chapter","status-publish","hentry","chapter-type-numberless"],"part":78,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/greeklatinroots2\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/85","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/greeklatinroots2\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/greeklatinroots2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/chapter"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/greeklatinroots2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/20"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/greeklatinroots2\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/85\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":539,"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/greeklatinroots2\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/85\/revisions\/539"}],"part":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/greeklatinroots2\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/parts\/78"}],"metadata":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/greeklatinroots2\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/85\/metadata\/"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/greeklatinroots2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=85"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"chapter-type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/greeklatinroots2\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapter-type?post=85"},{"taxonomy":"contributor","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/greeklatinroots2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/contributor?post=85"},{"taxonomy":"license","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.bccampus.ca\/greeklatinroots2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/license?post=85"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}