The editors of the Oxford English Dictionary recently added several Irish English terms. One of them is segotia, which means “friend.” There’s an entry for this word, also spelled segocia, in Grant’s own book, The Official Dictionary of Unofficial English (Amazon). James Joyce used another version of this word in Finnegans Wake(Bookshop|Amazon): skeowsha. The etymology of segotia is unclear, although some have suggested that it derives from Irish Seo Dhuitse, meaning “here you are.” Another Irish word, ciotóg, means “left-handed.” Originally it carried a far more negative connotation, as do several words in various languages alluding to the “left hand.” Our word sinister, for example, is from Latin for “left.” This is part of a complete episode.
When you’re talking about the location of an inanimate object, is it okay to say that it lives there, as in The peanut butter lives in that cabinet or The flashlight lives on that shelf? Strictly speaking, of course, that object isn’t...
Sean in Oneonta, New York, says that when he was growing up in New Jersey, his family would pile in the car and set off on a surprise adventure, whether a short distance or long, and the kids would be told only that they were going on Buxtehude...
Subscribe to the fantastic A Way with Words newsletter!
Martha and Grant send occasional messages with language headlines, event announcements, linguistic tidbits, and episode reminders. It’s a great way to stay in touch with what’s happening with the show.
