Word of the Week – Figure

by | Mar 5, 2012 | Word of the Week

What a striking figure. No, not that lady over there, the one I figured out for the math problem. Go figure, right? I know, I know–it’s just a figure of speech. 😉
Figure obviously has a lot of meanings, both as a noun and as a verb. It entered the English language waaaaay back in the 13th century with its two basic meanings: (1) the form of a person or (2) numeral. It adopted rhetorical uses only a century later, yet it took until 1824 for figure of speech to come about. 
As a verb, its primary meaning of “to represent” (Beatrice figures in The Divine Comedy as an inspirational guide through Paradise . . .) is from the 14th century; three hundred years later it evolved into “to picture” or “to make an appearance.” Interestingly, combining it with the “numeral” definition from the noun side of things didn’t happen until the middle of the 19th century–so not until then did you “figure out” a math problem.
Hope everyone has a great Monday!

Word of the Week – Snob

by | Feb 20, 2012 | Word of the Week

There’s little I like more than realizing a word in common use today has come to mean the opposite of what it once did. 
Snob is definitely one of those words.
It appeared in English from some mysterious place, and scholars aren’t sure of its origins–just that it made its debut round about 1781 with the meaning of “shoemaker.” That’s right–shoemaker. LOL. The boys at Cambridge University soon adopted it and applied it to anyone of the working class.
Fifty-ish years later the word took a turn and was used to mean someone of a lower class who “vulgarly apes his superiors.” Slowly, throughout the nineteenth century, it evolved into one who puts on airs . . . who insists upon his gentility . . . and finally, by 1911, someone who insists upon it to the point of looking down their nose at those who are inferior.
Quite the trek that word has taken, eh? Love this one!

Word of the Week – Finagle & Maneuver

by | Feb 13, 2012 | Word of the Week

You get two for the price of one today. =)
I can’t tell you how many times in historical writing I have the urge to use the word “finagle.” You know, like She finagled him up the aisle. Or He finagled his way out of it. Something to convey some tricky footwork, so to speak.
But I generally can’t, because finagle didn’t come about until 1926. Really late! And at the time, it meant to cheat at cards. One authority says it’s related to figgle, which is to fidget. Hmmm. Either way, it’s modern meaning of some fancy (and likely questionable) maneuvering is waaaaaay too new to use in any of my historicals.
So then I have to think of what word I can use, and I inevitably fall back on maneuver. Maneuver has been around since the 15th century with a meaning of “hand labor.” (Man meaning hand, that’s no surprise.) But in the mid-1700s, it was applied to military movements. And from there, it was a quick jump to “artful plan, adroit movement.” More what I’m usually looking for.
But wait! Interestingly, the noun came first. The verb was actually a back-formation and didn’t make its literary debut until 1777. Thus far safe for all my historicals, but if I ever write earlier than that, I’m going to have to keep that in mind!
So there you have it. Some interesting factoids to help you maneuver through your week. 😉

Word of the Week – Cool

by | Feb 6, 2012 | Word of the Week

Cool. It could be argued (successfully, I think) that cool is a word that not only gets used, but over-used. It’s the word we use to mean someone is hip, fashionable, or has that certain something that sets them apart as desirable. Or, spinning off that, it’s the word we use to say we really like something. It’s the word we use to tell someone to stop (cool it!). And of course, it’s a temperature word, too. =)
Last week I found myself wanting to write “cool it!” so I looked it up. Well, I didn’t find the etymology of that particular use in my quick browsing, but I did find a few of the others interesting. I tend to think of “cool” as a modern word, and that “fashionable” meaning is indeed rather new, coming from 1933. But still, it’s older than I thought, and comes, so it is said, from the jazz movement. Which makes sense, because I can totally hear Louis Armstrong in my head going “Cool, man. Cool.”
Where it surprised me, though, was that its use of being attached to a sum to give emphasis to the amount is from 1728. You know, like “He won a cool million in the game.” I had no idea that one was that old!
In 1825 it adopted the meaning of “calmly audacious.” That, I daresay is what made the way for the above-mentioned “fashionable,” since, well, it’s pretty cool (ha ha ha) to be calmly audacious. =)
I hope everyone had a great weekend and is gearing up for a stellar Monday! Time for me to get down to business–I’m going to finish this manuscript I’m working on in the next three weeks, even if it kills me. So if you have the urge to say a prayer that I survive it . . . 😉

Word of the Week – Show

by | Jan 23, 2012 | Word of the Week

This ranks as one of those “who’d a thunk?” late arrivals to the English language. Not in every sense, of course, but I think you’ll be surprised by some of the years on this!
Okay, so “show” as in act or performance is as old as you might expect, coming from the 1300s. And an appearance put on to deceive, or an ostentatious display are from the 1500s. As a verb, it’s even older, though with a twist unique to English. Ours evolved into a meaning of “to make known” in the 1200s, but the correlating word in other languages still carried its original meaning of “to look at.”
But some of the meanings we use most often are the ones that’ll get you.
Did you know, for instance, that “show up” didn’t come along until 1888? That’s after “show biz” which is from the 1850s! And it’s even after “I’ll show you!” That particular meaning comes from the 1820s.

Interesting, huh? =)

Hope everyone has a great Monday!

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