{"id":4389,"date":"2026-03-21T15:39:09","date_gmt":"2026-03-21T15:39:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/radio\/?p=4389"},"modified":"2026-03-22T11:15:13","modified_gmt":"2026-03-22T11:15:13","slug":"adventures-in-etymology-holding-it-together","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/radio\/?p=4389","title":{"rendered":"Adventures in Etymology &#8211; Holding It Together"},"content":{"rendered":"<div itemscope itemtype=\"http:\/\/schema.org\/AudioObject\"><meta itemprop=\"name\" content=\"Adventures in Etymology &amp;#8211; Holding It Together\" \/><meta itemprop=\"uploadDate\" content=\"2026-03-21T15:39:09+00:00\" \/><meta itemprop=\"encodingFormat\" content=\"audio\/mpeg\" \/><meta itemprop=\"duration\" content=\"PT2M32S\" \/><meta itemprop=\"description\" content=\"In this Adventure in Etymology, we're holding it together as we uncover the origins of the words content and content.\n\n\n\nAs an adjective, content [k\u0259n\u02c8t\u025bnt] means satisfied, pleased or contented, and as a noun, it can mean satisfaction, contentment o...\" \/><meta itemprop=\"contentUrl\" content=\"https:\/\/media.blubrry.com\/radio_omniglot\/www.omniglot.com\/soundfiles\/etymology\/holdingittogether.mp3\" \/><meta itemprop=\"contentSize\" content=\"2.4\" \/><div class=\"powerpress_player\" id=\"powerpress_player_4564\"><audio class=\"wp-audio-shortcode\" id=\"audio-4389-1\" preload=\"none\" style=\"width: 100%;\" controls=\"controls\"><source type=\"audio\/mpeg\" src=\"https:\/\/media.blubrry.com\/radio_omniglot\/www.omniglot.com\/soundfiles\/etymology\/holdingittogether.mp3?_=1\" \/><a href=\"https:\/\/media.blubrry.com\/radio_omniglot\/www.omniglot.com\/soundfiles\/etymology\/holdingittogether.mp3\">https:\/\/media.blubrry.com\/radio_omniglot\/www.omniglot.com\/soundfiles\/etymology\/holdingittogether.mp3<\/a><\/audio><\/div><\/div><p class=\"powerpress_links powerpress_links_mp3\" style=\"margin-bottom: 1px !important;\">Podcast: <a href=\"https:\/\/media.blubrry.com\/radio_omniglot\/www.omniglot.com\/soundfiles\/etymology\/holdingittogether.mp3\" class=\"powerpress_link_pinw\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"Play in new window\" onclick=\"return powerpress_pinw('https:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/radio\/?powerpress_pinw=4389-podcast');\" rel=\"nofollow\">Play in new window<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/media.blubrry.com\/radio_omniglot\/www.omniglot.com\/soundfiles\/etymology\/holdingittogether.mp3\" class=\"powerpress_link_d\" title=\"Download\" rel=\"nofollow\" download=\"holdingittogether.mp3\">Download<\/a><\/p><p>In this Adventure in Etymology, we&#8217;re holding it together as we uncover the origins of the words <strong>content<\/strong> and <strong>content<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p><a data-flickr-embed=\"true\" href=\"https:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/ja-reflections\/9294045635\/in\/photolist-fahpY8-awEmqo-2qLPVDg-Vjwh5W-VahZpy-2juEsq6-bjyWEn-bjg5m4-bjg6FH-bjg78R-bjg6YT-bjg4bP-bjg5Ar-bjg4q2-2mFjA8T-2qAjBAx-bjg5Nv-bjg6sK-yZE2fE-bjg6dM-bjg57z-2oK8PNa-bjg62X-8RjsbB-2nP2wb9-2kBubhZ-o3XVG-USDj64-ewiq8-8qnFYy-5txuK9-8zWPJJ-DqGLtf-2gw8WEk-cjEP4q-21zcibV-2qhvjTo-2kzdnwG-oyLufr-6xPp2q-6qE8m6-LgsyT-ozHSBH-6F2NBs-iVWuse-4yNM5V-8aX68B-2hoZRW8-6zq6AT-5KnghW\" title=\"Contentment\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/65535\/9294045635_819bbba4c2_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"Contentment\"\/><\/a><script async src=\"\/\/embedr.flickr.com\/assets\/client-code.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>As an adjective, <strong>content<\/strong> [k\u0259n\u02c8t\u025bnt] means satisfied, pleased or contented, and as a noun, it can mean satisfaction, contentment or pleasure, or that which contents or satisfies. As a verb, <strong>to content<\/strong> means to give contentment or satisfaction to, to satisfy, or to make happy.<\/p>\n<p>It comes from Middle English <em>contenten<\/em> [k\u0254n\u02c8t\u025bnt\u0259n] (to satisfy), from Old French <em>contenter<\/em> (to content, satisfy), from Latin <em>contentus<\/em> (contained, satisfied, enclosed), from <em>contine\u014d<\/em> [k\u0254n\u02c8t\u026a.ne.o\u02d0] (to hold, keep, connect, contain), from <em>con-<\/em> (together) and  <em>tene\u014d<\/em> (to hold) [<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wiktionary.org\/wiki\/content#Etymology_1\">source<\/a>].<\/p>\n<p>A related word is <strong>content<\/strong> [\u02c8k\u0252n.t\u025bnt], which means that which is contained, subject matter, semantic information, or one or more creative works. This comes from the same roots as <strong>content<\/strong>, via Middle English <em>content<\/em> (things contained, contents), from Latin <em>contentus<\/em> etc [<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wiktionary.org\/wiki\/content#Etymology_2\">source<\/a>].<\/p>\n<p>Related words include <strong>contain<\/strong>,  <strong>continent<\/strong>, <strong>continuous<\/strong> and <strong>countenance<\/strong> in English, <strong>contenir<\/strong> (to contain, hold) in French, <strong>contente<\/strong> (happy, content, satisfied) in Portuguese and <strong>continencia<\/strong> (continence, self-control) in Spanish [<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wiktionary.org\/wiki\/contineo#Latin\">source<\/a>].<\/p>\n<p>Incidentally, the word <strong>contend<\/strong> [k\u0259n\u02c8t\u025bnd] (to contest, dispute, quarrel) is not related to <strong>content<\/strong> or <strong>content<\/strong> even though it sounds similar. Instead, it comes from Middle English <em>contenden<\/em> (to engage in rivalry, compete), from Old French <em>contendre<\/em>, from Latin <em>contend\u0113re<\/em> (to stretch out, strive after, contend), from <em>con-<\/em> (together) and <em>tendere<\/em> (to stretch) [<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wiktionary.org\/wiki\/contend#English\">source<\/a>].<\/p>\n<p>Related words include <strong>contention<\/strong> and <strong>contentious<\/strong> in English, <strong>contesa<\/strong> (quarrel, argument, dispute) in Italian, and <strong>cynnen<\/strong> (contention, discord) in Welsh [<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wiktionary.org\/wiki\/contendo#Latin\">source<\/a>].<\/p>\n<p>If you would like to support this podcast, you can make a donation via <a href=\"https:\/\/www.paypal.com\/uk\/cgi-bin\/webscr?cmd=_flow&amp;SESSION=aLjPfXL-vP_1gQ_U23Iz8_hSWLlhzLHPMFZrt32dIEfG8htoNFLYaPoWkv8&amp;dispatch=5885d80a13c0db1f8e263663d3faee8def8934b92a630e40b7fef61ab7e9fe63\">PayPal<\/a> or <a href=\"https:\/\/www.patreon.com\/omniglot\">Patreon<\/a>, or <a href=\"http:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/donations.htm\">contribute to Omniglot in other ways<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Radio Omniglot podcasts are brought to you in association with <a href=\"https:\/\/blubrry.com\/services\/podcast-hosting\/?code=omniglot\">Blubrry Podcast Hosting<\/a>, a great place to host your podcasts. Get your first month free with the promo code <strong>omniglot<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.japanesepod101.com\/member\/go.php?r=759259&amp;i=b0\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/images\/banners\/banner_japanesepod.jpg\" alt=\"The Fastest Way to Learn Japanese Guaranteed with JapanesePod101.com\" width=\"630\" height=\"83\"><\/a><\/p>\n<p>I also write about words, etymology and other language-related topics on the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/bloggle\/\">Omniglot Blog<\/a>, and I explore etymological connections between Celtic languages on the <a href=\"http:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/celtiadur\/\">Celtiadur<\/a> blog.<\/p>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-5001128073855040\"\n   crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script><br \/>\n<!-- Blog horizontal --><br \/>\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\n   style=\"display:block\"\n   data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-5001128073855040\"\n   data-ad-slot=\"1685480124\"\n   data-ad-format=\"auto\"\n   data-full-width-responsive=\"true\"><\/ins><br \/>\n<script>\n   (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\n<\/script><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<div itemscope itemtype=\"http:\/\/schema.org\/AudioObject\"><meta itemprop=\"name\" content=\"Adventures in Etymology &amp;#8211; Holding It Together\" \/><meta itemprop=\"uploadDate\" content=\"2026-03-21T15:39:09+00:00\" \/><meta itemprop=\"encodingFormat\" content=\"audio\/mpeg\" \/><meta itemprop=\"duration\" content=\"PT2M32S\" \/><meta itemprop=\"description\" content=\"In this Adventure in Etymology, we're holding it together as we uncover the origins of the words content and content.\n\n\n\nAs an adjective, content [k\u0259n\u02c8t\u025bnt] means satisfied, pleased or contented, and as a noun, it can mean satisfaction, contentment o...\" \/><meta itemprop=\"contentUrl\" content=\"https:\/\/media.blubrry.com\/radio_omniglot\/www.omniglot.com\/soundfiles\/etymology\/holdingittogether.mp3\" \/><meta itemprop=\"contentSize\" content=\"2.4\" \/><div class=\"powerpress_player\" id=\"powerpress_player_4565\"><audio class=\"wp-audio-shortcode\" id=\"audio-4389-2\" preload=\"none\" style=\"width: 100%;\" controls=\"controls\"><source type=\"audio\/mpeg\" src=\"https:\/\/media.blubrry.com\/radio_omniglot\/www.omniglot.com\/soundfiles\/etymology\/holdingittogether.mp3?_=2\" \/><a href=\"https:\/\/media.blubrry.com\/radio_omniglot\/www.omniglot.com\/soundfiles\/etymology\/holdingittogether.mp3\">https:\/\/media.blubrry.com\/radio_omniglot\/www.omniglot.com\/soundfiles\/etymology\/holdingittogether.mp3<\/a><\/audio><\/div><\/div><p class=\"powerpress_links powerpress_links_mp3\" style=\"margin-bottom: 1px !important;\">Podcast: <a href=\"https:\/\/media.blubrry.com\/radio_omniglot\/www.omniglot.com\/soundfiles\/etymology\/holdingittogether.mp3\" class=\"powerpress_link_pinw\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"Play in new window\" onclick=\"return powerpress_pinw('https:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/radio\/?powerpress_pinw=4389-podcast');\" rel=\"nofollow\">Play in new window<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/media.blubrry.com\/radio_omniglot\/www.omniglot.com\/soundfiles\/etymology\/holdingittogether.mp3\" class=\"powerpress_link_d\" title=\"Download\" rel=\"nofollow\" download=\"holdingittogether.mp3\">Download<\/a><\/p><p>In this Adventure in Etymology, we&#8217;re holding it together as we uncover the origins of the words content and content. As an adjective, content [k\u0259n\u02c8t\u025bnt] means satisfied, pleased or contented, and as a noun, it can mean satisfaction, contentment or pleasure, or that which contents or satisfies. As a verb, to content means to give [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[98,20,56,23,12,4,50,58,11,109,1,27,28,7],"tags":[403,402,399,401,400,404,405,90,9,167,15,88,8,103],"class_list":["post-4389","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-adventures-in-etymology","category-english","category-etymology","category-french","category-italian","category-language","category-latin","category-middle-english","category-music","category-old-french-franceis","category-podcast","category-portuguese","category-spanish","category-welsh","tag-contain","tag-contend","tag-content","tag-contentious","tag-contentment","tag-continent","tag-continuous","tag-etymology","tag-language","tag-linguistics","tag-music","tag-omniglot","tag-podcast","tag-words"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/radio\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4389","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/radio\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/radio\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/radio\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/radio\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=4389"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/radio\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4389\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4392,"href":"https:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/radio\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4389\/revisions\/4392"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/radio\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=4389"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/radio\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=4389"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/radio\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=4389"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}