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May 18, 2008

Gothic (adjective)

Pronunciation: ['gah-thik]

Definition: Referring to the Teutonic tribes (Goths) who sacked Rome and provided the final impetus to collapse the Roman Empire from 378-450, hence barbarous, crude; a medieval art and architecture style of northern Europe, from the12th through 15th centuries; fiction that emphasizes the grotesque, mysterious and desolate.

Usage: The connotations of "Gothic" have changed over time, but the word stays alive. "Barbarous" reflects the Roman attitude toward the Germanic tribes that Rome never conquered effectively. After the Dark Ages, Gothic referred to architecture that did not follow Latin or Greek aesthetic principles. In the 18th and 19th centuries, "Gothic" categorized a popular literary genre that relied on the mysterious and desolate to create sensation in the reader. Ann Radcliffe's 'The Mysteries of Udolpho' (1794) is the epitome of the Gothic—and a very fun read. In contemporary U.S. subculture, the word "Goths" describes people who affect a dramatically depressive look by wearing black, whitening their faces, emphasizing the eyes and lips with heavy make-up, and wearing elaborate, dyed hairstyles.

Suggested Usage: To make a theoretical statement, one might say, "In style and art, the Gothic seeks to reject accepted standards of propriety or proportion." Are the Goosebumps books for kids yet another incarnation of the gothic? Probably, but the true Gothic in art relies on suspense to heighten the reader's response. "Horror" annihilates the ability to respond thoughtfully because of its displays of violence or depravity. Mary Shelley's 'Frankenstein, or The Modern Prometheus' is the epitome of a Gothic work. Shelley's depiction of the Creature encourages us to consider the human condition, the ethics of scientific advancement, and moral responsibility.

Etymology: From Old English Gota, Greek Gothoi, related to Gothic gutthiuda "Gothic people." The meaning of gutthiuda is taken to be "men, people" judging from the stem gut- or got- in Old Norse, but a definitive etymology of "gothic" is unknown. Parts of the Bible were translated into the West Gothic language in the 4th century (Wulfila Bible). The dialects of Gothic were Crimean Gothic, Ostrogoth and Visigoth. The last speakers were reported in the Crimea in the 18th century. By the way, "vandal" comes from the name of the other Germanic tribe fighting alongside the Goths against the Romans: “the Vandals and the Goths.”

May 19, 2008

Disparate (adjective)

Pronunciation: ['dis-pê-rêt]

Definition: Incompatibly different or incongruous in character or make-up.

Usage: Today's word gives us two meanings for the price of one: "disparate" is semantically is a combination of "distinct" and "separate." If Elmer's business personality and home personality are not the same, they may be distinct but still compatible. If his two personalities are disparate, they share little or nothing in common. This adjective has two nouns: "disparity," which refers to the specific difference between two things, and "disparateness," which reflects the simple fact that two objects are incompatibly different. Not to be confused with "desperate."

Suggested Usage: This word offers a subtle way around the negative connotations of "hypocritical": "Thalia seems to have disparate attitudes about the dangers of sunning when she is talking to her friends and when she is alone at the beach." Remember that unlike "difference," "disparity" implies incompatibility, "Their attitudes toward art and sports are so disparate they could never be friends." With different or even distinct attitudes, friendship would still be possible.

Etymology: Latin disparatus, past participle of disparare "to separate" from dis-"apart" + parare "to prepare." "Parade" comes from the same root, referring to the preparations for military parade. "Parry" comes from an Old French word meaning "ward off a blow" which also requires preparation. The same root is found in the Latin verb parere "give birth to," the participle of which is parentus "bearing," the source of our "parent." This is a wonderful built-in etymological warning since few of us are prepared for the demands parenting. Listen to the word!

May 20, 2008

Myself (pronoun)

Pronunciation: [mI-'self]

Definition: "Myself" is from a family of words called 'reflexive pronouns,' formed by combining the possessive pronouns like "my," "your," "her," and the reflexive "-self." Oddly, the 3rd person masculine "himself" and plural "themselves" do not use the possessive "his" or "their," which explains why some dialects correct this inconsistency by (mis)using "hisself" and "theirselves."

Usage: Increasingly, speakers in the US are using "myself" to bail out of the "I or me?" trap: "Imelda and myself went shopping for sparkly red shoes." Incorrect. The only time to use a reflexive pronoun is when a noun or pronoun in subject position identifies the "-self." "Imelda went to shop for herself," is correct, where "herself" refers back to "Imelda." So is "I would have gone—she didn't have to go herself." In English the reflexive pronoun tends to go at the end of the sentence.

Suggested Usage: The ultimate solution to the "I or me?" trap is to drop everything before the word in question to figure out what you want to say. In "Imelda and myself went shopping," think "____ went shopping." Now the problem is easy to solve. "I went shopping," so "Imelda and I went shopping" is the way to go. "No one saw Imelda and me shopping" is correct for the same reason.

Etymology: The reflexive pronoun in English is used to show action reflecting on the subject, so it can never be the subject of a sentence itself. You can, however, also use these forms as emphatic pronouns, for which the 'no-subject' rule does not apply. "I didn't actually see Bill himself," simply emphasizes "Bill." This emphatic use also shows up in the subject, as "He himself doesn't eat caviar but he serves it at parties;" in fact, sometimes it appears, sarcastically, alone in this function: "Well! Herself seems to have eaten all the caviar!"

May 21, 2008

Sough (noun)

Pronunciation: [sêf (or sau)]

Definition: A pleasant rushing or whispering sound such as that made by wind on leaves or the surf; a sigh; a drain or small pool of water; a rumor (Scotland).

Usage: Today's word is unfortunately used so seldom, no one seems to know exactly how it is pronounced: like "tough" or like "sow?" We prefer a rhyme with "tough" since it has been (mis)spelled "suff" and "suffe" historically. In Scotland it is still sometimes prounounced "sukh," appropriately enough, ending on a hushing sound itself. Today's word also functions as a verb, as in arrows soughing through the sky. If you sough words of disappointment about someone, you have spoken with a sigh.

Suggested Usage: The impact of the notion, "We were sitting on the beach enjoying the sough of the waves," will vary depending on whether you pronounce the word like "sow" or "tough." At one time, the word was quite popular. Robert Burns wrote in 'Cotter's Saturday Night' (1785) "November chill blaws loud wi' angry sugh" while Charlotte Brontë wrote in 'Jane Eyre' (1847), "That evening calm betrayed alike the tinkle of the nearest streams, the sough of the most remote."

Etymology: Today's word is a legitimately inherited Germanic word and not a borrowing. It devolved from Middle English verb "swowen" or "soughen" from Old English "swogan." Akin to Old Icelandic sugr "a rushing sound," e.g. arn-sugr "eagle swoosh." Also related to swough "strong movement" or "swoon" and, probably, "sound."

May 22, 2008

Idiosyncrasy (noun)

Pronunciation: [i-dee-ê-'sin-krê-si]

Definition: An eccentricity of character or behavior.

Usage: The only trick to today's word: spell it with an [s] rather than a [c]. As a mnemonic device, remember that –cracy in such words as "democracy," comes from Greek kratos "power" while the stem in "idiosyncrasy" comes from krasis "mixture." (See how etymology helps with your vocabulary?) The adjective is "idiosyncratic" and the adverb, "idiosyncratically."

Suggested Usage: All interesting people have idiosyncrasies but they can be difficult to express in a society where reconfiguring (or disfiguring) your body with tattoos, scrap metal, and rainbow-colored hair dye is now commonplace. Eating crispy fried ants and chocolate-laced locusts is still a bit idiosyncratic, though it would sooner raise stomach contents than eyebrows. Language has its idiosyncrasies, too. If "conduciveness" and "vindictiveness" are regular nouns (they are), certainly "stick-to-it-iveness" is grammatically idiosyncratic.

Etymology: Greek idiosynkrasi comprising idios "own, personal" + synkrasis "admixture" from syn "together, with" + krasis "mixture, temperament." Attic Greek "idiotes" meant "private, ordinary person" as opposed to a public figure. However, since this implied that an idiotes was unaware of the koina "affairs of the city," he was, by implication, also ignorant, hence the English meaning of "idiot." The meaning of "private" remains in Modern Greek where idiotikopoiesis does not mean "idiotic poetry," but "privatization," since "poiesis," the origin of our word "poetry," still means "making, creating."

May 23, 2008

Tendentious (adjective)

Pronunciation: [ten-'den-chês]

Definition: Exhibiting a strong tendency or point of view, overbearingly didactic or partisan.

Usage: Not to be confused with "tendential" which means simply "relating to a tendency." "Tendential ideas" are those with a decided point of view but not an overbearing one. "Tendentious ideas" so strongly support a tendency as to become repulsive.

Suggested Usage: Remember that today's word is pejorative and use it with care: "I find Rodney tendentious in his ideas and I have long since desisted in discussing politics with him." This does not mean it lacks household uses, "I find your reasoning for not cleaning out the garage tendentious and would prefer pursuing the matter no further. Do it!"

Etymology: From Latin tendencia "a cause," the noun of tendere "to tend to." "Tendere" comes from PIE *ten "stretch", which also gave us English "thin." English "tone" is from Greek tonos "string" hence "sound, pitch," of the same origin. Greek tetanos "stiff, rigid," Sanskrit tantram "loom," and Persian tar "string" from which "sitar" is derived—all share the same origin. "Tenor" is a Latin borrowing from tenere "to hold," another variant of *ten.

May 24, 2008

Ironic (adjective)

Pronunciation: [I-'rah-nik]

Definition: (1) Pertaining to a surprising state of affairs opposite to what would naturally be expected (irony), e.g. it would be ironic for a car dealer to have to walk to and from work (unless he does it intentionally for the exercise). (2) Pertaining to a figure of speech (irony) in which the intended meaning is the opposite of the literal meaning: "Oh, no, John isn't musically inclined at all" (knowing he graduated with honors from Juilliard).

Usage: (1) It is coincidental (not ironic) that today's game will be played in the same stadium that the same two teams played in exactly 10 years ago today. It is neither coincidental nor ironic that President-elect Bush was standing on the inaugural podium as the son of the newly sworn President Bush only 12 years earlier—just a fact. Now, I am at a loss for a good example of irony. After all my talk about irony, that is ironic.

Suggested Usage: Despite its overuse, this is a concept describing some of the more entertaining events of life. "It isn't ironic that the chef at Pierre's always eats at Sam's Diner; he knows what he's doing." "Ironically, Adelaide's mom found her car keys in the car after searching the house an hour for them."

Etymology: Latin ironia "irony" from Greek eironeia "feigned ignorance to confound an antagonist," from eiron "dissembler," possibly going back to eirein "to say."