READING UPDATE: The Dictionary, Part 9: Closeout – Consecrate

With both hockey and the World Cup are over, a new distraction has taken hold and hampered my reading: watching season 2 of 24 on DVD. Despite this, I knocked out a number of pages and came across a number of interesting words in the last few weeks.

I am definitely getting tired of the letter C. Fortunately, I am not far from reaching a new letter, and I am getting close to hitting the 300-page mark. It may not seem like much but I keep telling myself that the last 200 pages of the dictionary are supplemental material and not definitions, which means I should be able to make up some lost time there. But I have 1,100 pages before I can get to that, so…

Interesting words worth noting:

CLOTHES- If you know anyone who ever corrected you for not pronouncing the ‘th’ in this word, you can tell them to back off. The primary pronunciation of ‘clothes’ is identical to ‘close.’ Pronouncing the ‘th’ is still a correct way to say it but it is a secondary pronunciation.

CLOUD- The folks at MW speculate that the Old English word that ‘cloud’ derives from may have come from the Greek word gloutos, which means buttocks. Not sure why those Anglo-Saxons thought those fluffy white things in the sky looked like butts but it stuck!

CLYDESDALE- I didn’t know that the horses were named after a region in Scotland where they were originated. These sorts of things make sense when you hear them but they still take you by surprise.

COACH- Here is another item named after a location. This used to refer to a specific kind of carriage that originated in Kocs, Hungary. Perhaps you knew about Clydesdale but did you know about coach?

COBALT- Oh, those Germans! The silvery-white element that can be found streaking through iron and nickel deposits were thought to be put there by goblins. The Middle High German word for goblin was ‘kobold,’ which became ‘kobalt’ in later German, and finally ‘cobalt.’

COLLIER- The definition means a coal miner, which isn’t all that interesting. What makes this word interesting is that a graduated from high school with someone whose last name was Collier.

COLUMN- I was fascinated to discover that the writing usage of the word (as in a column of text) is older than the architectural usage of the word.

COMPLEMENT vs. COMPLIMENT- Somewhere deep inside I’m pretty sure that my dual-status as a math nerd and a writing nerd knew that there were two different spellings. I must confess that I did a double take when I got to ‘complement’ because my brain wanted to auto-correct it to have an ‘I.’

COMPLICACY- It means the quality or state of being complicated. This word is going into my bag of tricks for later use because it is simple yet unique. Finding the right time to do so may be a complicacy.

COMPOUND- MW’s fourth entry for this word is the one that means a walled-in group of buildings or village. The other three forms of ‘compound’ come from Middle English. This one comes from a Malaysian word.

CONCENTRATION CAMP- This word is most commonly associated with the prison facilities constructed by the Nazis during World War II. MW traces the usage of the word back to 1901. I wonder which war or conflict was the one that saw this term rise to prominence. A cursory search provided me with no insight.

CONDOM- The word is older than I thought, going back to 1706. Amusingly, its origin is also completely unknown. Like many common words of unknown origin, I am baffled as to how these words come out of nowhere.

CONESTOGA WAGON- This particular type of covered wagon gets its name from Conestoga, Pennsylvania. As a native of Central Pennsylvania, I think it’s cool that this common term comes from my home region. The town I grew up in, Mechanicsburg, got its name because the town was one of the last stopping points for westward travelers. A large number of mechanics settled there to provide repair services to wagons heading out into the frontier.

CONFLICTED- This term is much younger than I expected. My dictionary can only trace its getting tossed around back to 1967. MW online, however can date it back to 1914, making it 100. Just another instance of why dictionaries lose their value over time. Mine is only 18 years old, but my what those MW folk can learn in two decades!

CONNIPTION- It may not be as commonly used by the general population but I like to toss this one around every so often. As normal as it is for me, it’s yet another word with an unknown origin. MW can trace a year but why don’t they just list its origin as the country or language that the earliest-found appearance comes from? So what if it doesn’t have traceable root words. That doesn’t mean you can’t pin it to a place or language.

Page Count: 283/1600 (16.79%)
Countdown to the Letter D: 45 pages

READING UPDATE: The Dictionary, Part 8: Chelicera – Close Order

I can only blame hockey (and now the World Cup) so much for my lack of progress since last post. This has to be the slowest stretch yet. I am disappointed but I soldier on when I find the time and will. At this point, I need to be firm with myself set some firm goals or the first book on my quest may drag out said quest forever. It’s already been half a year and I am far behind where I thought I could be.

The letter B was great. There were a plethora of interesting words and I felt like I was getting somewhere. The letter C is similar to the letter A. Not as many interesting words and it is a very long section, so I’ve grown tired of seeing C-words. I should have some time for large blocks of uninterrupted reading soon, so we’ll see where that takes me.

Interesting words worth noting:

CHESTNUT- The definition refers to a blight that eliminated most of a certain species of chestnut trees in America. Considering I grew up down the road from a large chestnut tree, I had no idea that the native American species was so rare. Maybe all the chestnut trees I see are descendants of foreign seeds.

CHILL OUT- My dictionary dates this phrase to 1983. MW online now dates it to 1980, but I had no idea this common phrase was so young!

CHRISTMAS CARD- Now for the opposite of the last word- MW dates this term to 1883! Hard to believe people have been sending each other pretty pieces of soon-to-be trash since Rutherford B. Hayes was president! Yowzer.

CHRONOLOGICAL- Happy quadricentennial chronological! This word goes back almost to when Columbus ‘discovered’ the New World. Maybe they just never bothered to arrange things by date before then?

CIAO- I laughed good and hard at this one. Before hipsters were called hipsters there were wannabe hip types who would use this term (knew a few peers and professors in college who used it). Bet they don’t know that it originates as a way of declaring that you are someone’s slave. And it only dates back to 1929. Hmm, what were those Italians up to?

CINEMA- Its original definition as a motion picture goes back 105 years. It makes sense if you figure that motion pictures are a 20th Century product. Still, it feels both old and not old enough for some reason.

CIRCUMLOCUTION- It’s a big word that means you use too many words when describing or explaining something. So, you can use it to show off, as long as you don’t become a victim off. Oh how ironic that would be. If Congress tried to pass a bill banning this wordiness, would they be able to keep the bill brief? I doubt it.

CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE- Here is another surprisingly old word. MW dates it back to 1866. Considering Gandhi and MLK are most famous for practicing it, I wouldn’t have pegged it for being so old.

CLAY PIGEON- I grew up shooting them and setting traps that throw them for people to shoot at. Very surprised to see how old it is. I wonder how their construction and formation has changed over the years.

CLINK- This slang term for jail is actually named after a real jail! Anglophiles may scoff at the majority of the world who never knew this before but fortunately Anglophiles don’t really count for much because of their anglophilia. It was a real jail for centuries in London.

Page Count: 254/1600 (15.88%)
Countdown to the Letter D: 74 pages