Category: English

Hot & Cold

By Simon

The Italian word caldo sounds similar to the English word cold, but actually means warm, hot and other things.

caldo.. molto caldo

Caldo [ˈkal.do] in Italian means warm, hot, heat, fervour or ardour. It comes from Latin calidus (warm, hot, fiery, fierce, vehement, spirited, impassioned, rash, eager, inconsiderate), from caleō (to be warm or hot, to glow, etc), from Proto-Italic *kalēō, from Proto-Indo-European *ḱleh₁- (hot, warm) [source].

Related words in other languages include caldo (soup) in Chavacano, caldo (hot, warm, broth, juice) in Galician, caldo (broth, stock, juice) in Portuguese, and caldo (clear soup, broth, stock, wine, swill, sludge) in Spanish [source].

Words from the same Latin roots include caldre (it is needed, it is necessary, to have to, to need to, must) in Catalan, caler (to be necessary) in Occitan, calor (heat) and caldera (cauldron, boiler, caldera) in Spanish, chauffer (to heat, warm (up), tease) and chaudron (cauldron) in French, and cauldron, calorie, chafe, scald, caldera (a large crater formed by collapse of the cone of a volcano) and possibly chowder in English [source].

Words from the same PIE roots include lauw (lukewarm, cold, indifferent, nice, cool, chill) in Dutch, lau (cushy, easy) in German, flou (fuzzy, blurred, blurry, unclear) in French, flauw (boring, tasteless, uninspired, weak, vague, hazy, bland) in Dutch, and hlær (warm, mild) in Icelandic, lievä (mild, moderate, slight) in Finnish, and possibly lukewarm in English [source].

Incidentally, the English word cold comes from Middle English cold (cold, cool, lifeless), from Anglian Old English cald (cold), from Proto-West Germanic *kald (cold), from Proto-Germanic *kaldaz (cold), from *kalaną (to be cold, to freeze), from Proto-Indo-European *gel- (to be cold, to freeze) [source].

Related words include koud (cold) in Dutch, kalt (cold, chilly, calm) in German, kold (cold) in Danish, and cool in English [source].




At Sixes and Sevens

By Simon

The phrase, at sixes and sevens, is used to refer to a state of confusion, or a state of dispute or disagreement, at least in the UK, Ireland and Commonwealth countries.

Confusion

It comes from the phrase on six and seven, from Middle English on sixe and sevene, the origins of which are not known. It may have come from the game of hazard and the Old French cinc (five) and sis (six), the riskiest numbers to shoot for, which were either misheard as “six” and “seven”, or increased by one each as a form of exaggeration [source].

Apparently in Australia, a state of confusion might be called all sixes and nines, the origins of which are not known [source].

In Chinese, certain numbers are also associated with disorder in the phrase 乱七八糟 [亂七八糟] (luànqībāzāo), which means chaotic, in disorder or muddled, or literally ‘confusion / state of chaos, seven, eight, dregs’ [source].

A similar phrase is 乌七八糟 [烏七八糟] (wūqībāzāo), which means everything in disorder, in a hideous mess, obscene, dirty or filthy. The first character 乌 [烏] (wū) means crow, rook, raven or black, and the other characters are the same [source].

There is also the phrase 七上八下 (qīshàngbāxià), which means at sixes and sevens, in a perturbed state of mind or in a mess, or literally “seven up eight down” [source].

In Hokkien or Southern Min, a phrase that associates seven and eight with confusion is 有七无八 [有七無八] (ǔ-chhit-bô-poeh), which means in a state of confusion, in a state of uncertainty, in a state of disorder, or in an awful mess, or literally ‘have seven not have eight’ [source].

The words seven and eight also appear in the Chinese idioms:

  • 七嘴八舌 (qīzuǐbāshé), which means a discussion with everybody talking at once, or literally “seven mouths, eight tongues” [source].
  • 七手八腳 (qīshǒubājiǎo), which means with many people lending a hand; chaotically, or literally “seven hands, eight feet” [source].
  • 七零八落 (qīlíngbāluò), which means scattered here and there; in disorder; in confusion, or literally “seven zero, eight fall” [source].

There is also an idiom in Japanese – 七転び八起き (nana korobi ya oki) which means not giving up until succeeding, or the ups and downs of life, or literally “seven times falling down, eight times rising up” [source]. It has a short form: 七転八起 (shichiten hakki), which means life has its ups and downs, and is used an encouragement to keep going no matter how tough it is. Its literally meaning is “seven tumbles, eight stand ups” [source].

Are there other phrases that associate particular numbers with confusion, disorder, chaos or other things?




Magic Machines

By Simon

What connects the words magic and machine? Let’s find out in this Omniglot blog post.

Magic Book

Magic [ˈmadʒɪk / ˈmædʒɪk] is the application of rituals or actions, especially those based on occult knowledge, to subdue or manipulate natural or supernatural beings and forces in order to have some benefit from them. (Other meanings are available).

It comes from Middle English magik (magic, sorcery, magical), from Old French magique (magic, magical), from Latin magicus (magic, magical), from Ancient Greek μαγικός (magikós – magical, skilled in magic), from μάγος (mágos – magical), from Old Persian 𐎶𐎦𐏁 (maguš⁠ – Mazdean priest), from Proto-Iranian *magúš, from Proto-Indo-Iranian *magʰúš, from *megʰ-ú-s, from *megʰ- (to be able)[source].

Related words include mago (magician, sorcerer) in Spanish, μάγος (magician, wizard, sorcerer) in Greek, magico (magic, enchanting) in Italian, and mage and magus in English [source].

In Old English, one word for magic, and also spell, charm or incantation, was ġealdor / galdor [ˈjæɑl.dor] (magic, sorcery, magical). This became galder (a type of pagan incantation, spell or charm) in modern English. It comes from Proto-West Germanic *galdr (singing, song, incantation), from Proto-Germanic *galdraz (singing, song, charm, incantation, spell), from Proto-Indo-European *gʰel- (to call, chant, shout) [source].

Related words include galdur (magic, sorcery, witchcraft, a trick) in Icelandic, galder (sorcery, wizardry, spell, incantation) in Danish, hałas (noise, racket, din) in Polish, and possibly gale and yell in English [source].

machine

Machine [məˈʃi(ː)n] is a device that directs and controls energy, often in the form of movement or electricity, to produce a certain effect. (Other meanings are available).

It comes from Middle French machine (machine, device), from Latin māchina (contrivance, siege engine, scaffold), from Doric Greek μαχανά (contrivance, machine, device), possibly from Proto-Indo-European *megʰ- (to be able) – the same root as magic [source].

Related words include mokër (millstone, boulder) in Albanian, მანქანა (mankana – machine, car) in Georgian, macina (millstone, quern) and macchina (machine, car) in Italian, máquina (machine) in Spanish, and machine (machine, device, engine) in French [source].




Fire Arrows

By Simon

The other day the word 火箭 (huǒ​jiàn) came up in my (Mandarin) Chinese lessons. It means rocket or literally “fire arrow”.

2207太空中心＿ARRC火箭專案＿屏東旭海

I knew that the first characters meant fire, but wasn’t sure about the second character. Once I knew that the word meant rocket, I guessed that the second character meant arrow or something similar. I was right.

One of the things I like about Chinese is that rather than borrowing words other languages, they often coin new words based on native roots, or borrow words from Japanese that are based on Chinese roots.

Other examples featuring the character 火 (huǒ​), which means fire, flame, burn, anger or rage, include:

  • 火车 [火車] (huǒ​chē) = train, (lit. “fire cart / vehicle”).
  • 火印 (huǒyìn) = brand, branded mark (lit. “fire seal”)
  • 火山 (huǒshān) = volcano (lit. “fire mountain” – should not be confused with a 山火 (shānhuǒ) = mountain fire, wildfire
  • 火筷子 (huǒkuàizi) = fire tongs, hair curling tongs (lit. “fire chopsticks”).
  • 火石 (huǒshí) = flint (lit. “fire stone”)
  • 火药 (huǒyào) = gunpowder (lit. “fire medicine”)
  • 火星 (huǒ​xīng) = (the planet) Mars, spark (lit. “fire star”) – not to be confused with 星火 (xīnghuǒ​) = spark, meteor.
  • 火星人 (huǒ​xīngrén) = Martian (lit. “fire star person”) – borrowed from Japanese 火星人 (kaseijin)
    [source]

The character 箭 (​jiàn) means arrow and appears in words like:

  • 射箭 (shèjiàn) = to shoot an arrow, to let loose an arrow; archery
  • 弓箭 (gōngjiàn) = bow and arrow
  • 弓箭手 (gōngjiànshǒu) = archer
  • 箭猪 [箭豬] (jiànzhū) = porcupine (lit. “arrow pig”).
  • 箭鱼 [箭魚] (jiànyú) = swordfish (lit. “arrow fish”).
    [source]




Ashen Hearted

By Simon

The word 灰心 (huī​xīn) came up in my Chinese lessons recenlty. It could be translated literally as ‘ashen heart’ or ‘heart of ash(es)’, but what does it actually mean?

Discouraged

灰心 (huī​xīn) means to lose heart, to be discouraged or to despair. 灰 (huī​) means ash(es), dust, lime or mortar, and 心 (​xīn) means heart, mind, intelligence or soul [source].

灰 can also mean grey/gray when combined with 色 (sè – colour), as in 灰色 (huī​sè), so I thought at first that 灰心 meant ‘grey heart’ [source].

Related phrases include 灰心喪氣 (huīxīnsàngqì), which means disheartened, discouraged, downhearted, downcast or in dispair, or literally “ash heart lose qi”, and 心灰 (xīnhuī), which means extremely disappointed or discouraged [source].

The character 心 (​xīn) also appears in phrases such as:

  • 开心 [開心] (kāixīn) = happy, delighted, to make fun of (sb), to open up the mind, to enlighten the mind, (lit. “open heart”).
  • 关心 [關心] (guānxīn) = to be concerned about, to care for, to put first, (lit. “closed heart”).
  • 担心 (dānxīn) = anxious, worried, uneasy, to worry, to be anxious (lit. “to carry (the) heart”).
  • 小心 (xiǎoxīn) = to be careful of something, to mind, to beware of, to take care, to be careful (lit. “small heart”).
  • 耐心 (nàixīn) = patient (lit. “to withstand (the) heart”).
  • 黑心 (hēi​xīn) = ruthless and lacking conscience (lit. “black heart(ed)”).
  • 好心 (hǎoxīn) = goodheartedness, kindness (lit. “good heart(ed)”) [source].




Dressed to Pieces

By Simon

The word ワンピース (wanpīsu) came up in my Japanese lessons the other day. You could translate it as ‘one-piece’, and it refers to an article of clothing, but which one?

SDF_2147

ワンピース (wanpīsu) [wàńpíꜜìsù] actually refers to a dress or other piece of clothing that comes in one piece, such as a bathing costume / swimsuit, and can be shortened to ワンピ(wanpi). It was borrowed from the English term one-piece, which is an adjective meaning ‘composed of a single integral unit, or so appearing’, e.g. a one-piece metal hammer, or a one-piece article of clothing, especially a swimsuit [source].

ワンピース (wanpīsu) or One Piece is also a manga series, an anime TV series and media franchise. Here’s some music from one of the One Piece spin offs, One Piece film RED, sung by Ado:

A similar word is ツーピース (tsūpīsu) [tsɨːpʲiːsɨ], which means a two-piece suit, particular women’s suits. It comes from English two-piece, which refers to a suit or dress in two pieces [source].

Similar words are also found in Korean: 원피스 (wonpiseu) [wʌ̹npʰi(ː)sʰɯ] = dress, and 투피스 (tupiseu) [ˈtʰu(ː)pʰi(ː)sʰɯ] = two-piece suit / dress [source].

Another word for dress in Japanese is ドレス (doresu), which was borrowed from English dress [source].

Incidentally, the English word dress comes from Middle English dressen (to arrange, put in order, to direct or aim), from Anglo-Norman / Old French drecier (to stand up, get to one’s feet), from Late Latin *dīrēctiāre (to guide, direct, put in order), from Classical Latin dīrēctus (laid straight, direct, straight), from Proto-Italic *dwizrektos, from dīrigō (lay straight, direct, distribute) [source].

Words from the same roots include address, adriot (deft, dexterous, skillful) and direct in English, dresser (to raise, build, lift, prepare) in French, addirizzare (to straighten, correct, direct, guide) in Italian, díreach (straight, direct, exact) in Irish, and derecho (straight, upright, right, correct) in Spanish [source].




Sadly Satisfying Assets

By Simon

What connects the word asset to the words satisfy and sad?

Hotels and Pounds

An asset [ˈæsɛt] is

  • A thing or quality that has value, especially one that generates cash flows.
  • Any component, model, process or framework of value that can be leveraged or reused.

It comes from assets, from Anglo-Norman as(s)etz (enough), from Old French as(s)ez (enough, sufficiently), from Early Medieval Latin ad satis (copiously), from ad (to) and satis (enough) [source].

Words from the same Latin roots include assai (very) in Italian and assez (enough, quite, rather) in French [source].

The English word (to) satisfy also comes from the same Latin roots, via Middle English satisfyen, Old French satisfier (to satisfy, to pay) and Latin satisfacere (to satisfy, content, secure, pay off), which comes from satis (enough) and faciō (to make, construct). [source].

The Latin word satis (adequate, enough, plenty, satisfactory, sufficient) comes from Proto-Indo-European *sh₂tis (satiation, satisfaction), from *seh₂- (to satiate, to satisfy) [source].

Words from the same PIE roots include sásaigh (to satisfy, to please) in Irish, zat (fed up, have had enough, drunk, sated, full) in Dutch, satt (not hungry, satiated, full, done, fed up, sick of) in German, and (to) satiate (to fill to satisfaction, to satisfy) and satiety in English [source].

The English word sad used to mean sated, satisfied, weary, steadfast, valiant, dignified, serious, grave, naughty, troublesome, wicked, unfashionable, etc. In Middle English it meant sated, weary, firm, solid, heard, considered, thoughtful, serious, etc. From the 14th century it was used to mean inspiring or having sorrow.

It comes from Old English sǣd (full, sated, weary), from Proto-West Germanic *sad (sated, full), from Proto-Germanic *sadaz (sated, satisfied), from PIE *seh₂- (to satiate, to satisfy) – the same root as asset and satisfy [source].




Losing Marbles

By Simon

If you say that someone has lost their marbles, you either mean that they can’t find their marbles, or that they’re crazy, mad, incompetent, are losing their mind, or are suffering from a mental illness.

Marbles

It’s not known exactly when or why losing one’s marbles came to be associated with losing one’s mind. One early example that connects marbles with mental capicity appears in a story from April 1898 in The Portsmouth Times, a newspaper from Ohio in the USA:

Prot. J. M. Davis, of Rio Grande college, was selected to present J. W Jones as Gallia’s candidate, but got his marbles mixed and did as much for the institution of which he is the noted head as he did for his candidate.

By the early 20th century, losing or not having all one’s marbles was commonly associated with a decent into madness. For example, American Speech, Vol. 2, No. 8 (May, 1927) has a collection of dialect words from West Virginia that includes the definition:

marbles, doesn’t have all his (verb phrase), mentally deficient. “There goes a man who doesn’t have all his marbles.”

One French equivalent of this idiom is perdre la boule, which literally means ‘to lose the ball’.

Other ways to say this in French include:

  • perdre le nord = ‘to lose the north’ – see also Losing the North
  • perdre la boussole = ‘to lose the compass’
  • perdre la raison = ‘to lose the reason’
  • perdre le sens commun = ‘to lose the common sense’
  • se perdre les oies = ‘to lose the geese’
  • péter les plombs = ‘to blow the fuses’
  • péter un câble = ‘to blow a cable’

Incidentally, perdre comes from the same root as the English word perdition (eternal damnation, hell, absolute run, downfall).

Are there interesing ways to say that someone has lost their marbles in other languages?

Sources:
https://www.phrases.org.uk/meanings/lose-your-marbles.html
https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/perdre_la_boule#French
https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/perdo#Latin
https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/perdition#English