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#9271 10/29/00 02:13 PM
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tsuwm Offline OP
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verbicides,

>"avuncular" is to uncle as "???" is to aunt?

I know, I know!! (oh, I get so excited when I can answer one of these first! *<8^)

materteral - Characteristic of an aunt

it's from the Latin word for maternal aunt, but has been extended.

can you think of other Latin words that have evolved into more generalized English?




#9272 10/29/00 05:01 PM
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I know, I know!! (oh, I get so excited when I can answer one of these first! *<8^)

ALL RIGHT, WHO ARE YOU, AND WHAT HAVE YOU DONE WITH TSUWM??

Whoever you are, I think I'm safe in saying that ego has been carried over.
--------------------------------------------------------
This is an EDIT, the author(ess) having read Anna's post:
ego was not intended as a personal reference to tsuwm--
I really was just trying to think of a word that I could feel sure fit the category!



#9273 10/29/00 11:49 PM
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Thank you, tsuwm! And when I stop laughing at Jackie's post, I'll try to come up with some other examples


#9274 10/30/00 07:15 PM
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one that comes to mind is 'decimate'; originally to select by lot and kill every tenth man; now broadly to destroy a large part of. (YART! -- so what is the trick for shortening local links?)


#9275 10/31/00 01:37 AM
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What about decibel? Ten belMarduks? Wow, the Board would really sizzle then!

Probate/approbate/opprobrium?
Centurion, certainly.


#9276 10/31/00 01:50 AM
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I am told that one of me is more than enough . Hmmmm.




#9277 10/31/00 04:30 PM
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I guess that a large proportion of English is taken from Latin, but there are one or two Latin phrases that have become standard English usage, such as "status quo" - so much so that one does not even think of italicising the word to show its "foreign" provenance. "Via" is another one (although I must confess that I often do italicse that one - but that's just me being a show-off.)


#9278 10/31/00 05:24 PM
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tsuwm Offline OP
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>a large proportion of English is taken from Latin

but of(f) course; and my question was regarding words which have gone beyond a rather specific meaning in Latin. (just trying to steer back on course, momentarily :)


#9279 10/31/00 05:32 PM
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tsuwm Offline OP
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>Centurion, certainly.

is this word used at all except in a historical context?


#9280 10/31/00 07:32 PM
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I would have assumed that you would jump upon 'via' itself. I don't know much Latin, but Ithought that via (as in the famous Via Appia) meant 'roadway'. That we, in English, tend to use it metaphorically as a stopping point in any journey (ideas, roadtrips, musical discoveries etc), is surely an extended use?

cheer

the sunshine warrior


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