J.P. in Temecula, California, is a high schooler studying French and Spanish. He notes that the Spanish word con means “with” and English has some linguistically related words, such as congress, which suggests “coming together” and compress, literally “pressing together.” All these words go back to the Latin word cum meaning “with,” which appears in some English phrases, such as cum laude, or “with praise.” The roots of French avec go back to the Latin words apud hoc, literally “near by that.” The English word with once meant “against,” or “in opposition to,” a sense still seen in the word withstand, or “stand against.” The Old English word mid meant “with” as in midwife and midst, but was eventually replaced by with. This is part of a complete episode.
What makes a great first line of a book? How do the best authors put together an initial sentence that draws you in and makes you want to read more? We’re talking about the openings of such novels as George Orwell’s 1984...
To slip someone a mickey means to doctor a drink and give it to an unwitting recipient. The phrase goes back to Mickey Finn of the Lone Star Saloon in Chicago, who in the late 19th century was notorious for drugging certain customers and relieving...
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