Etymology Flashcards
-phil
The root word phil comes from a Greek verb meaning to love. So, if your name is Philip, you are etymologically a ‘lover of horses!’ The city of Philadelphia is the city of ‘brotherly love.’ A philosopher is a ‘lover of wisdom;’ you will probably recognize the soph in the word philosopher—it means ‘wise.’ A philodendron is a type of plant that ‘loves trees’ because it curls up or twines around them as it climbs.
Hemophiliacs are etymologically ‘lovers of blood.’ This does not mean that hemophiliacs are vampires, but rather that they ‘love blood’ because their platelets are ineffective at clotting wounds; they therefore lose a lot of blood when wounded, causing them to need more, hence ‘loving,’ and needing, extra.
A philanthropist is etymologically a ‘lover of humans,’ that is, someone who is charitable to and does good deeds for the good of humankind as a whole. A lesser known word is philogynist, a ‘lover of women,’ that is, of all things related to the well-being of women in general (the gyn gives rise to gynecology as well).
A philologist is a scholar of language who ‘loves words;’ your soft contact lenses are probably hydrophilic because they ‘love water,’ and a bibliophile ‘loves books’!
cis
The root word cis and its variants cid and -cide come from a Latin root which means ‘cut’ or ‘kill.’ A decision, for instance, is a ‘cutting off’ of all possibilities except for one; if you are decisive you have ‘killed’ all other options. And scissors? They just ‘cut.’
Ever had an incision during surgery? That’s nothing but a ‘cutting into’ your body. On the other hand, if you excise text from a book, you are removing or ‘cutting out’ material from it.
Many words in English also come from the root cid that is a variant of cis and disturbingly enough means ‘to kill.’ Cid typically appears in the form of the suffix -cide. Let’s take a look at just some of the English words that have this chilling suffix.
Homicide means ‘killing a human,’ fratricide is ‘killing of a brother.’
Herbicides and pesticides are chemicals that are commonly used for ‘killing plants,’ and a hippopotomonstricide is the ‘killing of a giant hippopotamus.’
The legendary ‘Julius Caesar’ also shares this Latin root. The word part Caes in Caesar is believed to be a reference to Mr. Julius being cut from his mother’s womb, the first recorded cesarean section.
fall
The root words fall and fals come from a Latin word that means to ‘trick.’ Some common words derived from this root word are false and fault. Watch out for the ‘tricks’ this root can play, for the word faucet (tap) is also derived from this root word, and you’ll probably be surprised to learn why.
consider the word false. If an answer is false, it has tried to ‘trick’ someone into thinking it is true. When you falsify information, you ‘trick’ others into thinking something is true, when it, in fact, is not.
A fallacy is a ‘deceptive’ belief or notion. In the same vein, a fallacious statement is misleading or trying to ‘trick’ its readers.
If someone is infallible you mean that she cannot be ‘tricked,’ that is, she cannot make errors. The Pope is often considered infallible because he is believed to be unable to make errors when it comes to spiritual matters.
mit
he English root mit and its variant miss comes from a Latin word that means ‘to send.’
When a lightbulb emits light, what does it do? It simply ‘sends it out.’ If you are out on a mission, you’ve been ‘sent’ to do a task. If, however, you’ve been dismissed from that endeavor, you’ve been ‘sent away.’ If someone permits you to do something, you are ‘sent through’ to carry on.
If you are confused by why mit and miss mean the same thing, just notice what happens when you add suffixes to the following mit words. Permit becomes permission, likewise emit becomes emission. Don’t “miss” that mit becomes a miss!
form
The root form, which means ‘shape,’ gives us a number of words that are used every day, including reform, information, deformed, and form. To ‘form,” for instance, is simply ’to shape,’ whereas to reform is merely to ‘shape again.’ To keep you in verbal “shape,” let’s take a look at the way some other words are formed!
There are many different forms, or ‘shapes,’ in which this word is used, including the suffix ‘-form.’ For example, anything cruciform is ‘shaped’ like a cross, whereas writing that is cuneiform is ‘wedgelike in shape.’
Let’s talk science. When Isaac Newton gave the formula for gravitational force he was giving a scientific ‘shape’ to gravity. A formula in general is a mathematical equation which gives ‘shape’ to known rules or facts. But as we now know, Newton’s formula was misinformed or somewhat ‘badly shaped.’ It took the genius of Einstein to correctly transform or ‘shape’ Newton’s work ‘across’ into more precise scientific territory.
cogn
A Latin word meaning ‘to learn’ gives rise to the English word roots cogn and conn.
We have much to ‘learn’ in this post, which may take some cognition on your part, or mental process of ‘learning.’
When a person recognizes another, he gets to ‘learn’ about her ‘again,’ since he has presumably met her before. The more we are cognizant, or ‘learned’ about our acquaintances, the more we continue to ‘learn’ about them.
If you possess precognition, or ‘foreknowledge,’ you have ‘learned’ something ‘before’ most people would be able to, for you can foretell the future.
Are you a cognoscente of French cuisine, ‘having learned’ all the ins and outs of haute cuisine? Or might you be a connoisseur of sushi, ‘knowing’ much of its fishy art?
morph
The root word morph comes from a Greek word meaning ‘shape.’ Ever heard of the ‘Mighty Morphin Power Rangers’? When they are ‘morphin’ they are changing ‘shape.’ Let’s stay in good academic ‘shape’ and take a look at the intellectual words that derive from this root.
chron
Let’s take a couple of minutes of your ‘time’ to talk about chron, the Greek root word for ‘time.’
Ever owned a Timex? Yes, you knew I was talking about watches, that is, keepers of ‘time.’ Watches are technically chronographs, or writers of ‘time’. The Chrono is one of Timex’s all-‘time’ bestsellers, meant to keep accurate ‘time’ to keep you on ‘time.’ In the same vein, some watches have stopwatches or chronometers, which measure how much ‘time’ has elapsed during an event.
Ever watched synchronized swimmers in the Olympics? They all make their moves at the same ‘time.’ Synchronous events, therefore, happen at the same ‘time.’
You may have encountered the Greek god Chronos during your mythology studies, who was the god of ‘time.’ He is the origin of our depiction of Father ‘Time,’ and was often pictured with wings since ‘time’ tends to fly by.
graph
You’ve seen the graph root, which means ‘to write,’ written everywhere. From geography classes to math graph paper to English paragraphs, this root presents itself in many, many forms. Take a look at the graphic of the graph tree, and read on with the writing below!
There is much to say about the Greek root graph which means ‘to write,’ so let this ‘written’ discourse begin!
One of the most common uses of this root is in the suffix -graphy. Geography is simply ‘writing’ about the physical characteristics of the Earth. A biography is ‘writing’ about someone’s life, whereas an autobiography is ‘writing’ about your own life. And a bibliography is a ‘written’ lists of books you’ve used when writing a paper.
ject
The Latin word root ject means ‘throw.’ Many common words are ‘thrown’ about each day which use this root, including eject, reject, object, and projector. Perhaps a pointed way to help remember this word is when you receive an injection, which is a shot ‘thrown’ into your body.
fer
Just like a ferry carries people across the water, so too does the Latin word root fer mean to ‘carry.’ Many different words come from fer, including prefer, refer, and conference. Perhaps the easiest way to help remember this root word is when you transfer money, or ‘carry’ across funds from one bank account to another.
duc
The Latin root words duc and duct mean to ‘lead.’ Some common English vocabulary words that come from this root word include educate, reduce, produce, and product. Perhaps the best way to remember this root word is to think of someone who is educated, or has been ‘led’ forth into knowledge.
If you are going to be the Duke or Duchess of Word Roots, you are doing to have to know that the Latin root words duc and duct mean to ‘lead.’ Speaking of those words duke and duchess, they, of course, were and still are ‘leaders’ in the British peerage system, ranking just below the Queen and right ahead of the Marquis and Marquess.
Going from peers to repairs, today’s handyman can fix just about anything using duct tape. Duct tape was originally designed to be used with ducts, which simply refer to any tube or other enclosed passage which ‘leads’ air or fluid through it, such as the tear ducts in your eyes or the air conditioning ducts in your home.
