Category: English

Fording Fjord Ports

By Simon

Are the words ford, fjord and port related? Let’s find out.

Eynsford

A ford [fɔːd / fɔɹd] is a location where a stream is shallow and the bottom has good footing, making it possible to cross from one side to the other with no bridge, by walking, riding, or driving through the water.

It comes from Middle English fōrd (ford, watering place, a spring, passage, path), from Old English ford (ford), from Proto-West Germanic *furdu (ford), from Proto-Germanic *furduz (ford), from Proto-Indo-European *pértus (crossing) [source].

Words from the same Proto-Germanic root include Förde (firth, fjord) and Furt (ford) in German, voorde (ford) in Dutch, ffordd (road, distance, way) in Welsh, and fordh (road, way, manner) in Cornish [source].

Fjords (61)

A fjord [ˈfiːɔːd / fiˈɔɹd] is a long, narrow, deep inlet between cliffs, and was borrowed from Norwegian.

The Norwegian word fjord [fjuːr] comes from Old Norse fjǫrðr (firth, fjord), from Proto-Germanic *ferþu(z) (inlet, fjord), from Proto-Indo-European *pértus (crossing) – so the same PIE root as ford, but a different Proto-Germanic root [source].

Words from the same Proto-Germanic root include fjörður (fjord) in Icelandic, fjørður (fjord, firth) in Faroese, fjord (firth, fjord, inlet) in Danish, and firth (an arm or inlet of the sea; a river estuary) in English [source].

Y Felinheli / Port Dinorwic

Meanings of port [pɔːt / poɹt] include: a place on the coast at which ships can shelter, or dock to load and unload cargo or passengers; a town or city containing such a place, and the left-hand side of a vessel, including aircraft, when one is facing the front.

It comes from Middle English port (harbour, haven), from Old English port (port, harbour, haven, town, harbour town), from Latin portus (harbour, port, haven, refuge, warehouse), from Proto-Italic *portus (harbour), from Proto-Indo-European *pértus (crossing) – so the same PIE root as ford and fjord [source].

Words from the same PIE root include porto (port, harbour) in Italian, puerto (port, harbour) in Spanish, port (port) in French, and port (harbour, port, river bank, mound, refuge, haven) in Irish, porth (port, harbour, haven, estuary, landing-place) in Welsh and پل (pul – bridge, sound post) in Persian [source].




Nearly Nigh

By Simon

Which is nearer, near or nigh? Let’s find out.

My Student "Digs".

The word nigh [naɪ] means near, close by, kindred, closely allied or intimate. It is used mainly in particular phrases, such as the end is nigh and is considered archaic and poetic.

It comes from Middle English neygh (near, adjacent), from Old English nēah (near, close), from Proto-West Germanic *nāhw (near, close), from Proto-Germanic *nēhw (near, close), from *nēhwaz (near, close), from Proto-Indo-European *h₂neḱ- (to reach, attain)

Nigh was originally the word for near, while near was the comparative form meaning nearer, and next was the superlative form, meaning nearest [source].

Related words include:

  • nighen = to come near, approach, bring near, appropriate
  • nigh-hand = nearby, nearhand
  • nigh on = almost, nearly, approaching, not quite
  • nighness = the quality or state of being nigh, or near

These are all archaic, with the exception of nigh on, which is still used.

Words that come from the same roots may include near, enough and bring in English, nach (after, past, behind, to) and nahe (near) in German, na (after) and genoeg (enough, plenty) in Dutch, nog (enough, sufficient, probably) in Swedish, cyfoeth (wealth, riches) in Welsh, and cumhacht (power, might) in Irish [source].

The English word neighbour / neighbor also comes from the same roots, via Middle English neyghbour (neighbour), from neygh (near, adjacent) and bour (house, dwelling). Also from the same roots are Nachbar (neighbour) in German, nabo (neighbour) in Danish, naapuri (neighbour) in Finnish (via Old Swedish nabo), and nàbaidh (neighbour) in Scottish Gaelic (via Old Norse nábúi) [source].

Incidentally, in Middle English the word neyghbour replaced the word prome (neighbour), which was borrowed from Old French proeme (neighbour), from Latin proximus (nearest, next).




Griffonage

By Simon

What do griffons have to do with messy writing? Let’s find out.

Griffin

Griffonage [ˈɡrɪfəˌnɑːʒ] is a rarely-used word that means careless handwriting or a crude or illegible scrawl. It comes from the French word griffonner (to scribble, scrawl), from griffer (to scratch), from Old French grifer, from griffe (claw, talon), from Old High German grīfan (to grab, grasp, gripe), from Proto-Germanic *grīpaną (to grab, grasp), from PIE *gʰreyb- (to grab, grasp) [source].

Words from the same roots include grip, gripe, grab, grasp, grave, groove, grope, grovel, grub and engrave in English, gryp (to grab) in Afrikaans, gräifen (to reach for, grab, catch) in Luxembourgish, grinfia (claw) in Italian, grípa (to catch, grab, clasp) in Icelandic, and grippe (influenza, flu) in French [source].

Other ways to describe messy handwriting in English include scribble, scrawl, chicken scratch and cacography, which also means bad spelling or puntuation, or deliberate comic misspelling [source]. Are there others?

Ways to describe messy handwriting in other languages include:

  • ագռավի ճանկեր (ագռավի ճանկեր) = crow’s claws in Armenian
  • 涂鸭 [塗鴨] (tú​yā) = daub(ings) of a duck in Chinese
  • kragetæer = crow’s feet in Danish
  • hanenpoten = cockerel feet in Dutch
  • harakanvarpaat = magpie toes in Finnish
  • pattes de mouche = fly’s legs in French
  • ορνιθοσκαλίσματα (ornithoskalísmata) = chicken carvings in Greek
  • ysgrifennu fel traed brain = writing like crow’s feet in Welsh [source]

It seems that messy handwriting is associated with crows and other birds in quite a few languages.

This post was inspired by this video on TikTok.




Fribblish Fribblers

By Simon

Do you fribble? Are you a fribblish fribbler?

Fribble

Fribble [ˈfɹɪbəl] is an old word meaning to waste or fritter; to behave in a frivolous way or to totter. As an adjective it means of little or no importance or frivolous, and as a noun it means a trifling action, a trifler, a frivolous, contemptible fellow or a fop [source].

It is possibly related to frivol (to behave frivolously, to triffle), from French frivole (vain, conceited), from Latin frīvolus (silly, empty, trifling, frivolous, worthless), possibly from PIE *bʰreyH- (to scrape, pierce) [source].

Words related to fribble include fribbledom (frivolous or trifling behaviour), fribbleism (frivolity), fribbler (one who trifles or behaves frivolously), and fribblish (frivolous, trifling).

Words related to frivol include frivolous (silly, slight, trivial), frivolity (frivolous act, state of being frivolous) and maybe brine (salt water) and fray in English, frivol (frivolous) in Romanian, frívolo (frivolous, futile, inconstant, silly) in Portuguese, frívolo (frivolous, flippant) in Spanish [source].




Horse Gate

By Simon

What does a horse at a gate have to do with breaking and entering? Let’s find out.

Star's Pretty Red Gate

The Chinese word 闯入 [闖入] means to break into, to barge into, to intrude (into), to charge in, or to gate-crash. It’s pronounced chuǎngrù in Mandarin and cong2 jap6 in Cantonese. It’s also found in Japanese as 闖入 (chinnyū), meaning instrusion or forced entry [source].

What’s that all got to do with horses and gates?

Well, the first character, 闯 [闖] means to rush, to charge, to dash, to break through, to temper oneself (through battling hardships) in Mandarin and Cantonese [source 1], [source 2], and to rush in or burst in in Japanese [source]. It’s made up of the characters 门 [門] (mén / mun4 / mon), meaning gate, door, entrance, and 马 [馬] (mǎ / maa5 / ba), meaning horse. It’s an ideogrammic compound that could be interpreted as a horse rushing through a gate [source].

The second character, 入 means to enter, go into, join and various other things in Chinese, and to enter or insert and so on in Japanese [source].

The character 闯 [闖] also appears in words such as:

  • 闯荡 [闖盪] (chuǎng​dàng / cong2 dong6) = to leave home to work, to get away from home, to wander the world, well-traveled, adventurous (Mandarin & Cantonese)
  • 闯祸 [闖禍] (chuǎngguò / cong2 wo6) = to get into trouble, to suffer disaster, to suffer an accident, to induce or cause a disaster or misfortune (Mandarin / Cantonese)
  • 私闯 [私闖] (sī​chuǎng / si1 cong2) = to enter (a place) without permission, to intrude into (Mandarin / Cantonese)
  • 闯关者 [闖關者] (chuǎng​guān​zhě​ / cong2 gwaan1 ze2) = gate-crasher, person who crashes through a barrier (Mandarin / Cantonese)
  • 闖入者 (chinnyūsha) = to intruder or trespasser (Japanese)
  • 闖入する (chinnyū suru) = to intrude or break in (Japanese)

Sources: Wiktionary, MDBG, CC-Canto, jisho




Grabbing Gripes

By Simon

Are the words grip, gripe and grab related? Let’s find out.

holding tightly to Mum

Grip [ˈɡɹɪp] means to take hold (of), particularly with the hand, a hold or way of holding, particularly with the hand, and various other things. It comes from Middle English grippen (to grip, grab onto, steal), from Old English grippan (to seize, grip), from Proto-Germanic *gripjaną (to grip, hold on to), from *grīpaną (to grab, grasp), from Proto-Indo-European *gʰrebʰ- (to seize, grab, dig, rake) [source].

Gripe [ɡɹaɪp] means to complain, to whine, to annoy, to bother, a complaint, often a petty or trivial one, and so on. Like grip, it comes from Middle English grippen (to grip, grab onto, steal), etc [source].

So grip and gripe are related. What about grab?

Grab [ˈɡɹæb], which means to grip suddenly, to seize, to clutch, and so on, comes from Middle Dutch grabben or Middle Low German grabben (to grasp, grab, seize, snatch), from Old Saxon gravan (to dig), from Proto-West Germanic *grabbōn, form Proto-Germanic *grabōną (to gather, rake), from Proto-Indo-European *gʰrebʰ- (to seize, grab, dig, rake) [source].

So grip, gripe and grab are probably related.

Other words from the same roots include grasp, grave, groove, grope, grovel, grub and engrave in English, grijpen (to grab) and begrijpen (to understand) in Dutch, greifen (to grab, grasp, grip) in German, griffer (to scratch) in French, grabar (to record, engrave) in Spanish, gribe (to catch, seize, grab, grasp, grip) in Danish, grabić (to rake, rob, plunder) in Polish, and greim (to grip, hold, bite, stitch) in Irish [source].




Roaring Waves

By Simon

One word that came up in my Cantonese lessons recently was 海嘯 (hoi² siu³), which means tsunami. This surprised me, as I would have guessed that the Japanese word 津波 (tsunami) would have been borrowed into Chinese and given a Chinese pronunciation. Apparently not.

Tsunami

海嘯 [海啸] is also found in Mandarin, means the same thing, and is pronounced hǎixiào. The first character, 海 (hoi² / hǎi) means ocean, sea or a great number of people or things, while the second character, 嘯 [啸] (siu³ / xiào) means to hiss or whistle in Cantonese, and to whistle, screech, howl or roar in Mandarin. So 海嘯 [海啸] could be translated literally as ‘ocean whistle’, ‘ocean roar’, ‘sea hiss’, and so on [source].

Related words include:

  • 大海嘯 [大海啸] (daai⁶ hoi² siu³ / dàhǎixiào) = megatsunami (an extremely large tsunami-like wave caused by an avalanche or landslide displacing large amounts of water very quickly)
  • 氣象海嘯 [气象海啸] (hei³ zoeng⁶ hoi² siu³ / qìxiàng hǎixiào) = meteotsunami (a tsunami-like wave of meteorological origin)

嘯 [啸] (siu³ / xiào) also appears in 呼嘯 [呼啸] (fu¹ siu³/ hū​xiào) = to whistle, scream, whiz; and 長嘯 [长啸] (coeng⁴ siu³/ ​chángxiào) = to let out a long, loud and clear cry [source].

The word 海嘯 (kaishō) also exists in Japanese, and means a tidal bore, a tsunami or a tidal wave [source].

The Japanese word 津波 (tsunami) means tsunami or tidal wave. 津 (tsu / shin) means harbour, port or ferry. It appears in words such as 津液 (shineki – saliva, spit, spittle), and 津々 (shinshin – gushing, overflowing, everlasting, unfailing, endless) [source].

波 (nami / ho) means wave, billow, ripple break, swell, ups and downs, advancing step by step, surging forward unopposably, succession of changes, tendency or (new) wave [source].

It appears in words such as:

  • 波打つ (namiuchi) = to dash against, billow, roll, wave, heave, pound, undulate)
  • 波風 (namikaze) = wind and waves, discord, trouble, strife, hardships)
  • 波立つ (namidachi) = to be choppy, rough, swell, beat fast, be in turmoil)
  • 波頭 (namigashira / hotō) = wave crest, white caps
  • 波長 (hochō) = wavelength
  • 波長 (hochō) = wavelength
  • 波紋 (homon) = ripple, ring on the water, repercussions
  • 波乱 (horan) = disturbance, trouble, commotion, uproar, turmoil, ups and downs (of live) vicissitudes, small and large waves

The characters 津 and 波 are both used in Chinese, but not together. 津 (jīn) means saliva, sweat, a ferry crossing or a ford (river crossing), and appears in the name of 天津 (Tiān​jīn), a city in the northeast of China; while 波 (bō) means wave, ripple, storm or surge, and appears in 波兰 [波蘭] (Bō​lán), the Chinese name for Poland [source].




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].