Fun with Words

There are so many words in the English language which we don’t question and have no idea how we acquired them. Our common American English traces its roots back through middle English, old English, Germanic (or old French), and finally Latin.

Looking up words and their etymology (language roots) is pretty rad.

Here’s a fun one.

Convince

Latin – con (with), vincere (victory)

Convince, Convict, Convicted, Conviction

Here’s another…

Deuteronomy

Latin – Deut (has become duet, two), Nomy (law).

A literal sense would be two, or second, law(s). This doesn’t mean Deuteronomy, the fifth book of the Bible, is a second law, but “deut” was used to explain repetition. Deuteronomy was a repetition, or reiteration, of the law of Moses.

Here’s another one.

Sheriff

Latin – Sher (old English, shire), riff (or reve, law)

The sheriff is the law of the shire (American, county or rural).