suffrage (2009-09-29)

Part of Speech: noun

Pronunciation: ['sê-frij]

Definition: (1) The right to vote; (2) a vote cast in deciding an issue. (3) A short, intercessory prayer on behalf of souls departed.

Usage: Although the word was more closely associated with the movement to give women the right to vote in the previous two centuries, it, in fact, refers to anyone's right to vote, "We would probably elect a better government if we extended suffrage to elementary school children." But don't forget that it also refers to a prayer on behalf of a soul to be promoted to a higher office, "Let's all offer suffrages for Larry to be promoted to some position far from this office."

Suggested Usage: This word entered English in the 14th century meaning "a short prayer of intercession" but by the 16th century it was used to refer to voting in the British parliament. The adjective is "suffragial" but the more interesting term is "suffragette," the name given to women at the beginning of the 20th century who demonstrated for the woman's right to vote, for women's suffrage, which women in the US suffered without until 1920.

Etymology: The English word "break" (German "brechen") goes back to a Proto-Indo-European root, *bhreg. The initial [bh] became [b] in English and the [g] became [k], both by regular historical change. The [bh] in Latin, however, standing at the beginning of a word as it does here, became [f], so the Latin word for "break" is "frangere," past participle "fractus," the origin of our word "fracture." With the prefix sub- "under" (the final [b] assimilating to the following [f]), this stem gave Latin suffragari "to vote." Why the connection between "break" and "vote"? The guess is that the early Romans used broken shards of pottery for casting votes.