Noah's Ark
Seven deadly sins
Seven virtues
GRE
Word Root
VocabularyWEEK 32
1. alleviate (v.) early 15c., " to mitigate, relieve (sorrows, suffering, etc.)," from Late Latin alleviatus, past participle of alleviare "lift up, raise," figuratively "to lighten (a burden), comfort, console," from Latin ad "to" (see ad-) + levis "light" in weight (see lever). Related: Alleviated; alleviating. 2. ambiguous (adj.) 1520s, from Latin ambiguus "having double meaning, shifting, changeable, doubtful," adjective derived from ambigere "to dispute about, contend, debate," literally "to wander, go about, go around," figuratively "hesitate, waver, be in doubt," from ambi- "about" (see ambi-) + agere "drive, lead, act" (see act (n.)). First attested in Sir Thomas More (1528); related ambiguity dates to c. 1400. Related: Ambiguously; ambiguousness. 3. archaic (adj.) 1810, from or by influence of French archaique (1776), ultimately from Greek arkhaikos "old-fashioned," from arkhaios "ancient," from arkhe "beginning" (see archon). Archaical is attested from 1799. 4. bizarre (adj.) 1640s, from French bizarre "odd, fantastic" (16c.), from Italian bizarro "irascible, tending to quick flashes of anger" (13c.), from bizza "fit of anger, quick flash of anger" (13c.). The sense in Italian evolved to "unpredictable, eccentric," then "strange, weird," in which sense it was taken into French and then English. Older derivation from Basque bizar "a beard" is no longer considered tenable. 5. celerity (n.) late 15c., from Old French celeritee (14c., Modern French célérité), from Latin celeritatem (nominative celeritas) "swiftness," from celer "swift," from possible PIE root *kel- (3) "to drive, set in swift motion" (source also of Sanskrit carati "goes," Greek keles "fast horse or ship," keleuthos "journey, road," Lithuanian sulys "a gallop," Old High German scelo "stallion"). 6. condone (v.) 1857, from Latin condonare "to give up, remit, permit," from com-, intensive prefix (see com-), + donare "to give" (see donation). Originally a legal term in the Matrimonial Causes Act, which made divorce a civil matter in Britain. Related: Condoned; condoning. 7. emulate (v.) 1580s, back-formation from emulation, or else from Latin aemulatus, past participle of aemulari "to rival." Related: Emulated; emulating; emulable; emulative. 8. expedite (v.) c. 1500 (implied in past participle expedit "accomplished"), from Latin expeditus, past participle of expedire "extricate, disengage, liberate; procure, make ready, put in order, make fit, prepare; explain, make clear," literally "free the feet from fetters," hence to liberate from difficulties, from ex "out" (see ex-) + *pedis "fetter, chain for the feet," related to pes (genitive pedis) "foot," from PIE root *ped- (1) "a foot" (see foot (n.)). Compare Greek pede "fetter." Related: Expedited; expediting. 9. extraneous (adj.) 1630s, from Latin extraneus "external, strange," literally "that is without, from without" (as a noun, "a stranger"), from extra "outside of" (see extra-). A doublet of strange. Related: Extraneously. 10. facetious (adj.) 1590s, from French facétieux (16c.), from facétie "a joke" (15c.), from Latin facetiae "jests, witticisms" (singular facetia), from facetus "witty, elegant, fine, courteous," which is of unknown origin, perhaps related to facis "torch." Formerly often in a good sense, "witty, amusing," but later implying a desire to be amusing that is often intrusive or ill-timed. Related: Facetiously; facetiousness. "Facetiæ in booksellers' catalogues, is, like curious, a euphemism for erotica." [Fowler] 11. menial (n.) "domestic servant," late 14c., meynyal; see menial (adj.). menial (adj.) late 14c., "pertaining to a household," from Anglo-French meignial, from Old French mesnie "household," earlier mesnede, from Vulgar Latin *mansionata, from Latin mansionem "dwelling" (see mansion). Sense of "lowly, humble, suited to a servant" is recorded by 1670s. 12. paltry (adj.) 1560s, probably an adjectival use of noun paltry "worthless thing" (1550s), associated with dialectal palt, pelt "trash," cognate with Middle Low German and East Frisian palte "rag," Middle Dutch palt "broken or torn fragment." Similar formation in Low German paltrig "rubbishy," East Frisian palterig "ragged, torn." 13. prodigious (adj.) 1550s, "ominous," from Middle French prodigieux and directly from Latin prodigiosus "strange, wonderful, marvelous, unnatural," from prodigium (see prodigy). Meaning "vast, enormous" is from c. 1600. Related: Prodigiously; prodigiosity. 14. profound (adj.) c. 1300, "characterized by intellectual depth," from Old French profund (12c., Modern French profond), from Latin profundus "deep, bottomless, vast," also "obscure; profound; immoderate," from pro "forth" (see pro-) + fundus "bottom" (see fund (n.)). The literal and figurative senses both were in Latin, but English, having already deep, employed this word primarily in its figurative sense. Related: Profoundly. 15. rabid (adj.) 1610s, "furious, raving," from Latin rabidus "raging, furious, enraged; inspired; ungoverned; rabid," from rabere "be mad, rave" (see rage (v.)). Meaning "made mad by rabies" in English first recorded 1804. Related: Rabidly; rabidness. 16. salubrious (adj.) 1540s, from Latin salubris "promoting health, healthful," from salus (genitive salutis) "welfare, health" (see salute (v.)). Related: Salubriously; salubriousness. 17. succinct (adj.) early 15c., "having one's belt fastened tightly," from Middle French succincte, from Latin succinctus "prepared, ready; contracted, short," past participle of succingere "tuck up (clothes for action), gird from below," from assimilated form of sub "up from under" (see sub-) + cingere "to gird" (see cinch (n.)). Sense of "brief, concise" first recorded 1530s. Related: Succinctness. 18. trivial (adj.) "ordinary" (1580s); "insignificant, trifling" (1590s), from Latin trivialis "common, commonplace, vulgar," literally "of or belonging to the crossroads," from trivium "place where three roads meet," in transferred use, "an open place, a public place," from tri- "three" (see three) + via "road" (see via). The sense connection is "public," hence "common, commonplace." The earliest use of the word in English was early 15c., a separate borrowing in the academic sense "of the trivium" (the first three liberal arts -- grammar, rhetoric, and logic); from Medieval Latin use of trivialis in the sense "of the first three liberal arts," from trivium, neuter of the Latin adjective trivius "of three roads, of the crossroads." Related: Trivially. For sense evolution to "pertaining to useless information," see trivia. 19. usurp (v.) early 14c., from Old French usurper "to (wrongfully) appropriate" (14c.), from Latin usurpare "make use of, seize for use," in later Latin "to assume unlawfully, trespass on," from usus "a use" (see use (v.)) + rapere "to seize" (see rapid (adj.)). Related: Usurped; usurping. 20. venerable (adj.) early 15c., "worthy of respect," from Old French venerable and directly from Latin venerabilis "worthy of reverence or respect," from venerari "to worship, revere" (see veneration). As a title, used in reference to ecclesiastics (in the Anglican church, specifically of archdeacons) or those who had obtained the first degree of canonization. Related: Venerably; venerability. WEEK 33 1. abjure (v.) early 15c., "renounce on oath, repudiate, forswear," originally especially "renounce or recant (a heresy) on oath," from Middle French abjurer or directly from Latin abiurare "deny on oath," from ab "off, away from" (see ab-) + iurare "to swear," from ius (genitive iuris) "law" (see jurist). Related: Abjured; abjuring. 2. allay (v.) Middle English alegen, from Old English alecgan "to put, place, put down; remit, give up, suppress, abolish; diminish, lessen," from a- "down, aside" (see a- (1)) + lecgan "to lay" (see lay (v.)). A common Germanic compound (cognates: Gothic uslagjan "lay down," Old High German irleccan, German erlegen "to bring down"). Early Middle English pronunciations of -y- and -g- were not always distinct, and the word was confused in Middle English with various senses of Romanic-derived alloy (v.) and especially a now-obsolete verb allege "to alleviate, lighten" (from Latin alleviare, from ad "to" + levis "light" in weight; see lever). Amid the overlapping of meanings that thus arose, there was developed a perplexing network of uses of allay and allege, that belong entirely to no one of the original vbs., but combine the senses of two or more of them. [OED] Hence senses "lighten, alleviate; mix, temper, weaken." The confusion with the Latin words probably also accounts for the unetymological double -l-, attested from 17c. Related: Allayed; allaying. 3. complacent (adj.) 1650s, "pleasing," from Latin complacentem (nominative complacens) "pleasing," present participle of complacere "be very pleasing" (see complacence). Meaning "pleased with oneself" is from 1767. Related: Complacently. 4. connoisseur (n.) 1714, from French connoisseur (Modern French connaiseur), from Old French conoisseor "an expert, a judge, one well-versed," from conoistre "to know," from Latin cognoscere "to get to know, recognize, become well-acquainted with," from com "with, together" (see com-) + gnoscere "recognize" (see notice (v.)). 5. debilitate (v.) 1530s, from Latin debilitatus, past participle of debilitare "to weaken," from debilis "weak" (see debility). Related: Debilitated; debilitating. 6. deter (v.) 1570s, from Latin deterrere "to frighten from, discourage from," from de- "away" (see de-) + terrere "frighten" (see terrible). Deterrent is from 1829. 7. discreet (adj.) mid-14c., "morally discerning, prudent, circumspect," from Old French discret "discreet, sensible, intelligent, wise," from Latin discretus "separated, distinct," in Medieval Latin "discerning, careful," past participle of discernere "distinguish" (see discern). Meaning "separate, distinct" in English is late 14c. Spellings discrete and nativized discreet co-existed until after c. 1600, when discreet became the common word for "careful, prudent," and discrete was maintained in philosophy, medicine, music and other disciplines that remembered Latin and made effort to obey it. Related: Discreetly. 8. evanescent (adj.) 1717, "on the point of becoming imperceptible," from French évanescent, from Latin evanescentem (nominative evanescens), present participle of evanescere "disappear, vanish, pass away," figuratively "be forgotten, be wasted," from assimilated form of ex "out" (see ex-) + vanescere "vanish" (see vanish). Sense of "quickly vanishing, having no permanence" is by 1738. 9. foment (v.) early 15c., "apply hot liquids," from Old French fomenter "apply hot compress (to a wound)" (13c.), from Late Latin fomentare, from Latin fomentum "warm application, poultice," contraction of *fovimentum, from fovere "to warm; cherish, encourage" (see fever). Extended sense of "stimulate, instigate" (1620s), on the notion of "encourage the growth of," as if by heat, probably was taken from French. Related: Fomented; fomenting. 10. glean (v.) early 14c., "to gather by acquisition, scrape together," especially grains left in the field after harvesting, but the earliest use in English is figurative, from Old French glener "to glean" (14c., Modern French glaner) "to glean," from Late Latin glennare "make a collection," of unknown origin. Perhaps from Gaulish (compare Old Irish do-glinn "he collects, gathers," Celtic glan "clean, pure"). Figurative sense was earlier in English than the literal one of "gather grain left by the reapers" (late 14c.). Related: Gleaned; gleaning. 11. impetuous (adj.) late 14c., "hot-tempered, fierce;" late 15c., "done or given with a rush of force," from Old French impetuos (13c., Modern French impétueux) and directly from Late Latin impetuosus "impetuous, violent" (source also of Spanish and Italian impetuoso), from Latin impetus "attack" (see impetus). Related: Impetuously; impetuousness. 12. occult (adj.) 1530s, "secret, not divulged," from Middle French occulte and directly from Latin occultus "hidden, concealed, secret," past participle of occulere "cover over, conceal," from assimilated form of ob "over" (see ob-) + a verb related to celare "to hide," from PIE root *kel- (2) "to cover, conceal" (see cell). Meaning "not apprehended by the mind, beyond the range of understanding" is from 1540s. The association with the supernatural sciences (magic, alchemy, astrology, etc.) dates from 1630s. 13. penitent (adj.) mid-14c., from Old French pénitent (14c.) and directly from Latin paenitentem (see penitence). As a noun, late 14c., from the adjective. 14. propensity (n.) 1560s, "disposition to favor," with -ty + obsolete adjective propense "inclined, prone" (1520s), from Latin propensus, past participle of propendere "incline to, hang forward, hang down, weigh over," from pro "forward" (see pro-) + pendere "hang" (see pendant). 15. quarry (v.) 1774, from quarry (n.2). Related: Quarried; quarrying. quarry (n.1) "what is hunted," early 14c., quirre "entrails of deer placed on the hide and given to dogs of the chase as a reward," from Anglo-French quirreie, Old French cuiriee "the spoil, quarry" (Modern French curée), altered (by influence of Old French cuir "skin," from Latin corium "hide"), from Old French corée "viscera, entrails," from Vulgar Latin *corata "entrails," from Latin cor "heart," from PIE root *kerd- (1) "heart" (see heart (n.)). Sense of "anything chased in hunt" is first recorded 1610s; earlier "bird targeted by a hawk or other raptor" (late 15c.). quarry (n.2) "open place where rocks are excavated," c. 1400 (mid-13c. as a place name), from Medieval Latin quareia, dissimilated from quarreria (mid-13c.), literally "place where stones are squared," from Latin quadrare "to square" (see quadrant). 16. reproach (v.) mid-14c., reprochen "to rebuke, reproach," from Anglo-French repruchier, Old French reprochier "upbraid, blame, accuse, speak ill of," from reproche (see reproach (n.)). Related: Reproached; reproaching. reproach (n.) mid-14c., "a rebuke, blame, censure;" also "object of scorn or contempt;" c. 1400, as "disgrace, state of disgrace," from Old French reproche "blame, shame, disgrace" (12c.), from reprochier "to blame, bring up against," said by some French etymologists to be from Vulgar Latin *repropiare, from Latin re- "opposite of" + prope "near" (see propinquity), with suggestions of "bring near to" as in modern "get in (someone's) face." But others would have it from *reprobicare, from Latin reprobus/reprobare (see reprobate (adj.)). 17. slovenly (adj.) 1510s, "low, base, lewd," later "untidy, dirty" (1560s), from sloven + -ly (1). Related: Slovenliness; also in this sense was slovenry (1540s), which OED reports in common use early 17c. 18. somber (adj.) 1760 "gloomy, shadowy" (earlier sombrous, c. 1730), from French sombre "dark, gloomy," from Old French sombre (14c.), from an adjective from Late Latin subumbrare "to shadow," from sub "under" (see sub-) + umbra "shade, shadow," perhaps from a suffixed form of PIE *andho- "blind, dark" (see umbrage). Related: Somberly; somberness. 19. tantamount (adj.) 1640s, from verbal phrase tant amount "be equivalent" (1620s), from Anglo-French tant amunter "amount to as much" (late 13c.), from Old French tant "as much" (11c., from Latin tantus, from tam "so;" see tandem) + amonter "amount to, go up" (see amount (v.)). 20. wary (adj.) late 15c., with -y (2) + ware, from Old English wær "prudent, aware, alert, wary," from Proto-Germanic *waraz (source also of Old Norse varr "attentive," Gothic wars "cautious," Old Saxon giwar, Middle Dutch gheware, Old High German giwar, German gewahr "aware"), from PIE root *wer- (4) "to perceive, watch out for" (see ward (n.)). Related: Warily; wariness. WEEK 34 1.antiquated (adj.) 1620s, past participle adjective from antiquate (1530s) "to make old or obsolete," from Latin antiquatus, past participle of antiquare (see antique (adj.)). An older adjective in the same sense was antiquate (early 15c.), from Latin. 2. asinine (adj.) c. 1600, "obstinate, stupid," from Latin asininus "stupid," literally "like an ass," from asinus "ass," also "dolt, blockhead" (see ass (n.1)). The literal sense in English is recorded from 1620s. 3. au courant (adj.) "aware of current events," 1762, French, literally "with the current" (see current (n.)). 4. calumny (n.) "False & malicious misrepresentation of the words or actions of others, calculated to injure their reputation" [Fowler], mid-15c., from Middle French calomnie (15c.), from Latin calumnia "trickery, subterfuge, misrepresentation, malicious charge," from calvi "to trick, deceive," from PIE root *kel- (6) "to deceive, confuse" (source also of Greek kelein "to bewitch, seduce, beguile," Gothic holon "to deceive," Old Norse hol "praise, flattery," Old English hol "slander," holian "to slander"). 5. commodious (adj.) early 15c., "beneficial, convenient," from Medieval Latin commodiosus "convenient, useful," from Latin commodus "proper, fit, appropriate, convenient, satisfactory" (see commode). Meaning "roomy, spacious" first attested 1550s. Related: Commodiously; commodiousness. 6. cumbersome (adj.) late 14c., from cumber (v.) + -some (1). Meaning "unwieldy, hard to carry" is from 1590s. Related: Cumbersomely; cumbersomeness. 7. disheveled (adj.) also dishevelled, early 15c., "without dressed hair," parallel form of dishevel (adj.); see dishevel. General sense of "with disordered dress" is from c. 1600. 8. divulge (v.) mid-15c., from Latin divulgare "publish, make common," from dis- "apart" (see dis-) + vulgare "make common property," from vulgus "common people" (see vulgar). Related: Divulged; divulging. 9. facade (n.) 1650s, "front of a building," from French façade (16c.), from Italian facciata "the front of a building," from faccia "face," from Vulgar Latin *facia (see face (n.)). Figurative use by 1845. 10. fastidious (adj.) mid-15c., "full of pride," from Latin fastidiosus "disdainful, squeamish, exacting," from fastidium "loathing, squeamishness; dislike, aversion; excessive nicety," which is of uncertain origin; perhaps from *fastu-taidiom, a compound of fastus "contempt, arrogance, pride," and taedium "aversion, disgust." Fastus is possibly from PIE *bhars- (1) "projection, bristle, point," on the notion of "prickliness" (Watkins) or "a semantic shift from 'top' to 'haughtiness' which is conceivable, but the u-stem is not attested independently" [de Vaan], who adds that "fastidium would be a tautology." Early use in English was both in passive and active senses. Meaning "squeamish, over-nice" in English emerged 1610s. Related: Fastidiously; fastidiousness. 11. fluctuate (v.) 1630s, from Latin fluctuatus, past participle of fluctuare "to undulate" (see fluctuation). Related: Fluctuated; fluctuates; fluctuating. 12. grimace (v.) 1707, from French grimacer, from grimace "grotesque face" (see grimace (n.)). Related: Grimaced; grimacing. grimace (n.) Look up grimace at Dictionary.com 1650s, from French grimace (15c.) "grotesque face, ugly mug," possibly from Frankish or another Germanic source (compare Old Saxon grima "face mask," Old English grima "mask, helmet"), from the same root as grim (adj.). With pejorative suffix -azo (from Latin -aceus). 13. interrogate (v.) late 15c., a back-formation from interrogation or else from Latin interrogatus, past participle of interrogare "to ask, question." The Old French word was interroger (14c.) which yielded English interroge (late 15c.), now obsolete. Related: Interrogated; interrogating. 14. noisome (adj.) late 14c., "harmful, noxious," from noye "harm, misfortune," shortened form of anoi "annoyance" (from Old French anoier, see annoy) + -some (1). Meaning "bad-smelling" first recorded 1570s. Related: Noisomeness. 15. pittance (n.) c. 1200, "pious donation to a religious house or order to provide extra food; the extra food provided," also "a small portion, scanty rations," from Old French pitance "pity, mercy, compassion; refreshment, nourishment; portion of food allowed a monk or poor person by a pious bequest," apparently literally "pity," from pitié (see pity). Meaning "small amount, portion" first recorded 1560s. 16. site (v.) "to give a location to, place," 1590s, from site (n.). Related: Sited; siting. site (n.) "place or position occupied by something," especially with reference to environment, late 14c., from Anglo-French site, Old French site "place, site; position," and directly from Latin situs "a place, position, situation, location, station; idleness, sloth, inactivity; forgetfulness; the effects of neglect," from past participle of sinere "let, leave alone, permit," from PIE *si-tu-, from root *tkei- "to settle, dwell, be home" (see home (n.)). 17. tenacious (adj.) c. 1600, from Latin stem of tenacity + -ous. Related: Tenaciously; tenaciousness. 18. unkempt (adj.) 1570s, from un- (1) "not" + kempt "well-combed, neat," from variant past participle of Middle English kemben "to comb," from Old English cemban "to comb," from Proto-Germanic *kambijan, from *kamb- "comb" (see comb (n.)). Form unkembed is recorded from late 14c. The verb kemb is rare after 1400s, but its negative past participle form endures. 19. unmitigated (adj.) 1590s, from un- (1) "not" + past participle of mitigate (v.). 20. vigil (n.) c. 1200, "eve of a religious festival" (an occasion for devotional watching or observance), from Anglo-French and Old French vigile "watch, guard; eve of a holy day" (12c.), from Latin vigilia "a watch, watchfulness," from vigil "watchful, awake, on the watch, alert," from PIE root *weg- (2) "be lively or active, be strong" (source also of Old English wacan "to wake up, arise," wacian "to be awake;" Old High German wahta "watch, vigil;" see wake (v.)). Meaning "watch kept on a festival eve" in English is from late 14c.; general sense of "occasion of keeping awake for some purpose" is recorded from 1711. WEEK 35 1.cliche (n.) 1825, "electrotype, stereotype," from French cliché, a technical word in printer's jargon for "stereotype block," noun use of past participle of clicher "to click" (18c.), supposedly echoic of the sound of a mold striking molten metal. Figurative extension to "trite phrase, worn-out expression" is first attested 1888, following the course of stereotype. Related: Cliched (1928). 2. countenance (v.) late 15c., "to behave or act," from countenance (n.). Sense of "to favor, patronize" is from 1560s, from notion of "to look upon with sanction or smiles." Related: Countenanced; countenancing. countenance (n.) mid-13c., from Old French contenance "demeanor, bearing, conduct," from Latin continentia "restraint, abstemiousness, moderation," literally "way one contains oneself," from continentem, present participle of continere (see contain). Meaning evolving Middle English from "appearance" to "facial expression betraying a state of mind," to "face" itself (late 14c.). 3. debacle (n.) "disaster," 1848, from French débâcle "downfall, collapse, disaster" (17c.), a figurative use, literally "breaking up (of ice on a river)," extended to the violent flood that follows when the river ice melts in spring; from débâcler "to free," from Middle French desbacler "to unbar," from des- "off" + bacler "to bar," from Vulgar Latin *bacculare, from Latin baculum "stick" (see bacillus). Sense of "disaster" was present in French before English borrowed the word. 4. effrontery (n.) "shamelessness, impudence, boldness in transgressing the bounds of modesty and propriety," 1715, from French effronterie, from effronté "shameless," from Old French esfronte "shameless, brazen," probably from Late Latin effrontem (nominative effrons) "barefaced, shameless," from assimilated form of Latin ex "out" (see ex-) + frontem (nominative frons) "brow" (see front (n.)). Also compare affront. Latin frontus had a sense of "ability to blush," but the literal sense of effrontery often has been taken to be "putting forth the forehead." Forehead in Johnson's Dictionary (1755) has a secondary sense of "impudence; confidence; assurance; audaciousness; audacity." English had an earlier verb effront "treat with effrontery" (17c.). 5. equanimity (n.) c. 1600, "fairness, impartiality," from French équanimité, from Latin aequanimitatem (nominative aequanimitas) "evenness of mind, calmness; good-will, kindness," from aequanimis "mild, kind," literally "even-minded," from aequus "even, level" (see equal (adj.)) + animus "mind, spirit" (see animus). Meaning "evenness of temper" in English is from 1610s. 6. flabbergasted (adj.) see flabbergast. flabbergast (v.) 1772, flabbergasted, mentioned (with bored) in a magazine article that year as a new vogue word, of uncertain origin. Perhaps from some dialect (in 1823 flabbergast was noted as a Sussex word), perhaps ultimately an arbitrary formation alluding to flabby or flapper and aghast. "Like many other popular words expressing intensity of action, ... not separable into definite elements or traceable to a definite origin" [Century Dictionary]. Related: Flabbergasted; flabbergasting; flabbergastation. 7. gaunt (adj.) "lean and haggard," from or as if from hunger, mid-15c. (as a surname from mid-13c.), from Middle French gant, of uncertain origin; perhaps from a Scandinavian source (compare Old Norse gand "a thin stick," also "a tall thin man") and somehow connected with the root of gander. Connection also has been suggested to Old French jaunet "yellowish" [Middle English Dictionary]. 8. hirsute (adj.) "hairy," 1620s, from Latin hirsutus "rough, shaggy, bristly," figuratively "rude, unpolished," related to hirtus "shaggy," and possibly to horrere "to bristle with fear" (see horror). 9. lampoon (v.) 1650s, from lampoon (n.), or else from French lamponner, from the Middle French noun. Related: Lampooned; lampooning. lampoon (n.) "A personal satire; abuse; censure written not to reform but to vex" [Johnson], 1640s, from French lampon (17c.), a word of unknown origin, said by French etymologists to be from lampons "let us drink," which is said to have been a popular refrain for scurrilous songs, in which case it would be originally a drinking song. French lampons is from lamper "to drink, guzzle," a nasalized form of laper "to lap," from a Germanic source akin to lap (v.). Also see -oon. 10.mien (n.) "facial expression," 1510s, probably a shortening of Middle English demean "bearing, demeanor" (see demeanor) and influenced by Middle French mine "appearance, facial expression," which is of unknown origin, possibly Celtic (compare Breton min "beak, muzzle, nose," Irish men "mouth"). 11. non-entity (n.) also nonentity, c. 1600, "something which does not exist," from non- + entity. Meaning "a person or thing of no importance" is attested from 1710. 12. parable (n.) mid-13c., parabol, modern form from early 14c., "saying or story in which something is expressed in terms of something else," from Old French parable "parable, parabolic style in writing" (13c.), from Latin parabola "comparison," from Greek parabole "a comparison, parable," literally "a throwing beside," hence "a juxtaposition," from para- "alongside" (see para- (1)) + bole "a throwing, casting, beam, ray," related to ballein "to throw" (see ballistics). Replaced Old English bispell. In Vulgar Latin, parabola took on the meaning "word," hence Italian parlare, French parler "to speak" (see parley (n.)). 13. pensive (adj.) late 14c., from Old French pensif "thoughtful, distracted, musing" (11c.), from penser "to think," from Latin pensare "weigh, consider," frequentative of pendere "weigh" (see pendant). Related: Pensively; pensiveness. 14. refute (v.) 1510s, "refuse, reject," from Middle French réfuter (16c.) and directly from Latin refutare "drive back; rebut, disprove; repress, repel, resist, oppose," from re- "back" (see re-) + -futare "to beat," probably from PIE root *bhau- "to strike down" (see bat (n.1)). Meaning "prove wrong" dates from 1540s. Since c. 1964 linguists have frowned on the subtle shift in meaning towards "to deny," as it is used in connection with allegation. Related: Refuted; refuting. 15. sanctimonious (adj.) c. 1600 (in "Measure for Measure," with the disparaging sense "making a show of sanctity, affecting an appearance of holiness"), from sanctimony + -ous. The un-ironic, literal sense was used occasionally in English from c. 1600 to c. 1800. Related: Sanctimoniously; sanctimoniousness. 16. stupor (n.) late 14c., from Latin stupor "insensibility, numbness, dullness," from stupere "be stunned" (see stupid). 17. vivacious (adj.) 1640s, from Latin vivax (genitive vivacis) "lively, vigorous" (see vivacity) + -ous. Related: Vivaciously. 18. whet (v.) Old English hwettan "to whet, sharpen," figuratively "incite, encourage," from Proto-Germanic *hwatjan (source also of Old Norse hvetja "to sharpen, encourage," Middle Low German, Middle Dutch wetten, Old High German wezzan, German wetzen "to sharpen," Gothic ga-hvatjan "to sharpen, incite"), from PIE root *kwed- "to sharpen" (source also of Sanskrit codati "incites," literally "sharpens;" Old English hwæt "brave, bold," Old Saxon hwat "sharp"). 19. whimsical (adj.) 1650s, from whimsy + -ical. Related: Whimsically. 20. wince (v.) c. 1300, wincen; mid-13c. winchen, "to recoil suddenly," from Anglo-French *wenchir, Old North French *wenchier (Old French guenchir) "to turn aside, avoid," from Frankish *wenkjan, from Proto-Germanic *wankjan (source also of Old High German wankon "to stagger, totter," Old Norse vakka "to stray, hover;" see wink (v.)). Originally of horses. Modern form is attested from late 13c. Related: Winced; wincing.
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