prehension

Pronounced: pree-HEN(t)-shun, noun

Notes: I didn’t know this word, but I do know a related word

Yesterday’s word

The word white-livered means “cowardly”

First usage

Our word came into English in the mid-1500s

Background / Comments

I didn’t plan to have two words in a row that both means “cowardly”; it’s just how the words happened to show up. Our word is also known as “lily-livered” and I do know that form of the word, even though I have not run across our word. It comes from the idea that a lack of courage was caused by a deficiency of bile which showed in a light-colored liver.

white-livered

Pronounced: white-LIVE-uhrd, adj

Notes: You may know this word; I found the origin interesting

Yesterday’s word

The word pusillanimous means “lacking courage and resolution; marked by contemptible timidity”

First usage

Our word came into English in the late 1500s

Background / Comments

I must have been thinking of ‘pugilism’ when I though of boxing. Our word came from the Latin word pusillus (very small) and animus (spirit). The combination thus means “a very small spirit”, which is a very accurate description of someone who is cowardly. In the 1970s, Spiro Agnew, when he was the Vice President of the United States used our word in the phrase “pusillanimous pussyfooting”.

pusillanimous

Pronounced: pyou-suh-LAH-nuh-muss, adj

Notes: I thought this word had to do with boxing, but I was wrong

Yesterday’s word

The word plutonian means

  • relating to the dwarf planet Pluto
  • relating to Pluto, the god of the underworld in Greek mythology
  • relating to the underworld
First usage

Our word came into English in the early 1600s

Background / Comments

All of the definitions make sense, but I couldn’t list all of them. Our word came from Latin, which came from the Greek word Plouton (Pluto, the god of the underworld).

plutonian

Pronounced: ploo-TOE-nee-uhn, adj

Notes: I didn’t know all of the meanings of this word, but each was logical

Yesterday’s word

The word mansuetude is “the quality of state of being gentle; meekness; tameness”

First usage

Our word came into English in the middle to late 1300s

Background / Comments

Of the definitions above, I find “gentle” and “meekness” to be praiseworthy traits; I am not so sure about “tameness”. Nevertheless, this word is a good one to know. Our word came from the Latin verb mansuescere (to tame), which came from the noun manus (hand) and the verb suescere (to accustom; to become accustomed).

mansuetude

Pronounced: MAN(T)-swih-tood, noun

Notes: This word sounds familiar, but I don’t remember running across it

Yesterday’s word

The word double-dome means “an intellectual”

First usage

Our word came into English in the 1930s

Background / Comments

It’s nice to have an alternative word for “intellectual”. Our word was merely a combination of double (two) and dome (slang for head). I guess it means that a person is so smart he has twice the brains of normal people.

double-dome

Pronounced: (duh) double-dome, noun

Notes: I have not heard this term – have you?

Yesterday’s word

The word schadenfreude is “enjoyment obtained from the troubles of others”

First usage

Our word came into English in the late 1800s

Background / Comments

Our word came (as you probably guessed) from the German word Schadenfreude, which is composed of the words Schaden (damage; harm) and Freude (joy). (I think I have previously mentioned that nouns in German are capitalized). An archbishop, Richard Trench, once commented – before the word came into English – “What a fearful thing is it that any language should have a word expressive of the pleasure which men feel at the calamities of others”. Of course some “calamities” are described for comic effect, begging for laughter. I remember watching sitcoms long ago that often would use comedic calamities. So, perhaps I was guilty of shadenfreude?

schadenfreude

Pronounced: SHAW-d(uh)n-froy-duh, noun

Notes: The word is familiar, but I was not sure of the definition

Yesterday’s word

The word blackleg means

  • one who works while other workers are on strike
  • a swindler, especially in games such as gambling
  • one of various diseases of plants or cattle
First usage

Our word came into English in the early 1700s

Background / Comments

I was a bit curious about the first definition; I thought such a person was called a “scan”; it turns out that our word is more commonly used in the UK. The origin of the first two terms above is unclear; the diseases were called that because the legs may look black on cattle or sheep; on plants, the stem has black spots.

blackleg

Pronounced: BLACK-leg, noun

Notes: I have no memory of this word

Yesterday’s word

The word meed is “a fitting return or recompense”

First usage

Our word goes back a long way; it was in use before 900

Background / Comments

People aren’t sure how old our word is; an Old English form appeared in Beowulf. It has relatives in Old High German,Old Swedish, and ancient Greek.

meed

Pronounced: meed, noun

Notes: Such a short word, yet I did not know it

Yesterday’s word

The word longhair is

  • an intellectual
  • one having a deep interest in the arts, especially in classical music
  • a male with long hair; especially a hippie
  • a cat having long hair
First usage

Our word came into English in the late 1800s

Background / Comments

The second definition is the only one I really knew; I have heard classical music referred to as “longhair” music, but I never really understood why until I saw the list above. Presumably, it grew out of the idea that classical music is attractive to intellectuals (our word’s first definition). Since it was music they liked, our word came to refer to those who liked classical music. The third and fourth definition are a bit of a cheat to my way of thinking. I’ve heard hippies described as having “long hair”, but I’ve never heard our word used instead of “hippie”. Likewise, I’ve heard people talk about longhair cats (where our word is an adjective), but not as a noun to refer to them.