taciturn (TAS′-ə-turn)
Habitually silent and disinclined to conversation; temperamentally untalkative
Forms: taciturnity (n.)
Root: Latin tacere — “to be silent”
CHAPTER 10
How to Talk About Various Speech Habits
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Introduction
Perhaps some of your richest and most satisfying experiences have been with people to whom you can just talk, talk, talk. As you speak, previously untapped springs of ideas and emotions begin to flow; you hear yourself saying things you never thought you knew.
What kinds of people might you find yourself in conversation with? In this chapter we start by examining ten types, discovering the adjective that aptly describes each one.
Session 24: How to Talk About Various Speech Habits
1. saying little
There are some people who just don’t like to talk. It’s not that they prefer to listen. Good listeners hold up their end of the conversation delightfully—with appropriate facial expressions; with empathetic smiles, giggles, squeals, and sighs at just the right time; and with encouraging nods or phrases like “Go on!”, “Fantastic!”, “And then what happened?”
These people like neither to talk nor to listen—they act as if conversation is a bore, even a painful waste of time. Try to engage them, and the best you may expect for your efforts is a vacant stare, a noncommittal grunt, or an impatient silence. Finally, in frustration, you give up, thinking. “Are they self-conscious? Do they hate people? Do they hate me?”
The adjective: taciturn
2. saying little—meaning much
There is a well-known anecdote about Calvin Coolidge, who, when he was President, was often called (though probably not to his face) “Silent Cal”:
A young newspaperwoman was sitting next to him at a banquet, so the story goes, and turned to him mischievously. “Mr. Coolidge,” she said, “I have a bet with my editor that I can get you to say more than two words to me this evening.”
“You lose,” Coolidge rejoined simply.
The adjective: laconic
3. when the words won’t come
Under the pressure of some strong emotion—fear, rage, anger, for example—people may find it difficult, or even impossible, to utter words, to get their feelings unjumbled and untangled enough to form understandable sentences. They undoubtedly have a lot they want to say, but the best they can do is sputter!
The adjective: inarticulate
4. much talk, little sense
Miss Bates, a character in Emma, a novel by Jane Austen:
“So obliging of you! No, we should not have heard, if it had not been for this particular circumstance, of her being able to come here so soon. My mother is so delighted! For she is to be three months with us at least. Three months, she says so, positively, as I am going to have the pleasure of reading to you. The case is, you see, that the Campbells are going to Ireland. Mrs. Dixon has persuaded her father and mother to come over and see her directly. I was going to say, but, however, different countries, and so she wrote a very urgent letter to her mother, or her father, I declare I do not know which it was, but we shall see presently in Jane’s letter …”
The adjective: garrulous
5. unoriginal
Some people are completely lacking in originality and imagination—and their talk shows it. Everything they say is trite, hackneyed, commonplace, humorless—their speech patterns are full of clichés and stereotypes, their phraseology is without sparkle.
The adjective: banal
6. words, words, words!
They talk and talk and talk—it’s not so much the quantity you object to as the repetitiousness. They phrase, rephrase, and re-rephrase their thoughts—using far more words than necessary, overwhelming you with words, drowning you with them, until your only thought is how to escape, or maybe how to die.
The adjective: verbose
7. words in quick succession
They are rapid, fluent talkers, the words seeming to roll off their tongues with such ease and lack of effort, and sometimes with such copiousness, that you listen with amazement.
The adjective: voluble
8. words that convince
They express their ideas persuasively, forcefully, brilliantly, and in a way that calls for wholehearted assent and agreement from an intelligent listener.
The adjective: cogent
9. the sound and the fury
Their talk is loud, noisy, clamorous, vehement. What may be lacking in content is compensated for in force and loudness.
The adjective: vociferous
10. quantity
They talk a lot—a whole lot. They may be voluble, vociferous, garrulous, verbose, but never inarticulate, taciturn, or laconic. No matter. It’s the quantity and continuity that are most conspicuous. “Were you vaccinated with a phonograph needle?” is the question you are tempted to ask as you listen.
The adjective: loquacious
QUALITY / ADJECTIVE
- silence, unresponsiveness — taciturn
- economy, brevity, meaningfulness — laconic
- awkwardness, sputtering, incoherence — inarticulate
- rambling chatter — garrulous
- hackneyed, unoriginal phraseology — banal
- wordiness, repetitiousness — verbose
- fluency, rapidity — voluble
- logic, clarity, persuasiveness — cogent
- noise, vehemence — vociferous
- talkativeness — loquacious
Can you pronounce the words?
- taciturn (TAS′-ə-turn)
- laconic (lə-KON′-ik)
- inarticulate (in′-ahr-TIK′-yə-lət)
- garrulous (GAIR′-ə-ləs)
- banal (BAY′-nəl)
- verbose (vər-BŌS′)
- voluble (VOL′-yə-bəl)
- cogent (KŌ′-jənt)
- vociferous (vō-SIF′-ər-əs)
- loquacious (lō-KWAY′-shəs)
Can you work with the words?
Matched: 0 / 10
Do you understand the words?
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Do taciturn people usually make others feel comfortable and welcome?
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Does a laconic speaker use more words than necessary?
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Does rage make some people inarticulate?
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Is it interesting to listen to garrulous old men?
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Do banal speakers show a great deal of originality?
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Is verbose a complimentary term?
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Is it easy to be voluble when you don’t know the subject you are talking about?
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Do unintelligent people usually make cogent statements?
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Is a vociferous demand ordinarily made by a shy, quiet person?
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Do loquacious people spend more time talking than listening?
Can you recall the words?
Do you know that new nerve patterns are formed by repeated actions? As a very young child, you tied your shoelaces and buttoned your clothing with great concentration—the activity was directed, controlled, purposeful, exciting. As you grew older and more skillful, you tied and buttoned with scarcely a thought of what you were doing. Your fingers flew about their task almost automatically—for the habit had formed a nerve pattern and the action needed little if any conscious attention.
That’s simple enough to understand. If you do not remember your own experiences, you can observe the phenomenon of struggling with a skill, mastering it, and finally making it a self-starting habit by watching any young child. Or you can simply take my word for it.
You need not take my word for the way a mastery of new words is acquired. You can see in yourself, as you work with this book, how adding words to your vocabulary is exactly analogous to a child’s mastery of shoelacing. First you struggle with the concepts; then you eventually master them; finally, by frequent work with the new words (now you see the reason for the great number of exercises, the repetitious writing, saying, thinking) you build up new nerve patterns and you begin to use the new words with scarcely any consciousness of what you are doing.
Watch this common but important phenomenon closely as you do the next exercise. Your total absorption of the material so far has given you complete mastery of our ten basic words. Prove that you are beginning to form new nerve patterns in relation to these words by writing the one that fits each brief definition. The more quickly you think of the word that applies, the surer you can be that using these words will soon be as automatic and unself-conscious as putting on your shoes or buttoning/zipping yourself up in the morning.
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1. talkative: L__________________
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2. noisy, vehement, clamorous: V__________________
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3. incoherent; sputtering: I__________________
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4. gabbing ceaselessly and with little meaning: G__________________
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5. disinclined to conversation: T__________________
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6. talking in hackneyed phraseology: B__________________
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7. showing a fine economy in the use of words: L__________________
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8. forceful and convincing: C__________________
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9. talking rapidly and fluently: V__________________
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10. using more words than necessary: V__________________
Session 25: Origins and Related Words
1. about keeping one’s mouth shut
If you let your mind play over some of the taciturn people you know, you will realize that their abnormal disinclination to conversation makes them seem morose, sullen, and unfriendly. Cal Coolidge’s taciturnity was world-famous, and no one, I am sure, ever conceived of him as cheerful, overfriendly, or particularly sociable. There are doubtless many possible causes of such verbal rejection of the world: perhaps lack of self-assurance, feelings of inadequacy or hostility, excessive seriousness or introspection, or just plain having nothing to say. Maybe, in Coolidge’s case, he was saving up his words—after he did not “choose to run” in 1928, he wrote a daily column for the New York Herald Tribune at a rumored price of two dollars a word—and, according to most critics (probably all Democrats), he had seemed wiser when he kept silent. Coolidge hailed from New England, and taciturnity (tas-ə-TURN′-ə-tee) in that part of the country, so some people say, is considered a virtue. Who knows, the cause may be geographical and climatic, rather than psychological.
Taciturn is from a Latin verb taceo, to be silent, and is one of those words whose full meaning cannot be expressed by any other combination of syllables. It has many synonyms, among them silent, uncommunicative, reticent, reserved, secretive, close-lipped, and close-mouthed; but no other word indicates the permanent, habitual, and temperamental disinclination to talk implied by taciturn.
2. better left unsaid
Tacit (TAS′-it) derives also from taceo.
Here is a man dying of cancer. He suspects what his disease is, and everyone else, of course, knows. Yet he never mentions the dread word, and no one who visits him ever breathes a syllable of it in his hearing. It is tacitly understood by all concerned that the word will remain forever unspoken.
(Such a situation today, however, may or may not be typical—there appears to be a growing tendency among physicians and family to be open and honest with people who are dying.)
Consider another situation:
An executive is engaging in extracurricular activities with her secretary. Yet during office time they are as formal and distant as any two human beings can well be. Neither of them ever said to the other, “Now, look here, we may be lovers after five o’clock, but between nine and five we must preserve the utmost decorum, okay?” Such speech, such a verbal arrangement, is considered unnecessary—so we may say that the two have a tacit agreement (i.e., nothing was ever actually said) to maintain a complete employer-employee relationship during office hours.
Anything tacit, then, is unspoken, unsaid, not verbalized. We speak of a tacit agreement, arrangement, acceptance, rejection, assent, refusal, etc. A person is never called tacit.
The noun is tacitness (TAS′-ət-nəs). (Bear in mind that you can transform any adjective into a noun by adding -ness, though in many cases there may be a more sophisticated, or more common, noun form.)
Changing the a of the root taceo to i, and adding the prefix re-, again, and the adjective suffix -ent, we can construct the English word reticent (RET′-ə-sənt).
Someone is reticent who prefers to keep silent, whether out of shyness, embarrassment, or fear of revealing what should not be revealed. (The idea of “againness” in the prefix has been lost in the current meaning of the word.)
We have frequently made nouns out of -ent adjectives. Write two possible noun forms of reticent: reticence, or, less commonly, reticency.
3. talk, talk, talk!
Loquacious people love to talk. This adjective is not necessarily a put-down, but the implication, when you so characterize such people, is that you wish they would pause for breath once in a while so that you can get your licks in. The noun is loquacity (lō-KWAS′-ə-tee), or, of course, loquaciousness.
The word derives from Latin loquor, to speak, a root found also in:
1. soliloquy (sə-LIL′-ə-kwee)—a speech to oneself (loquor plus solus, alone), or, etymologically, a speech when alone.
We often talk to ourselves, but usually silently, the words going through our minds but not actually passing our lips. The term soliloquy is commonly applied to utterances made in a play by characters who are speaking their thoughts aloud so the audience won’t have to guess. The soliloquist (sə-LIL′-ə-kwist) may be alone; or other members of the cast may be present on stage, but of course they don’t hear what’s being said, because they’re not supposed to know. Eugene O’Neill made novel uses of soliloquies in Mourning Becomes Electra—the characters made honest disclosures of their feelings and thoughts to the audience, but kept the other players in the dark.
The verb is to soliloquize (sə-LIL′-ə-kwīz′).
2. A ventriloquist (ven-TRIL′-ə-kwist) is one who can throw his voice. A listener thinks the sound is coming from some source other than the person speaking. The combining root is Latin venter, ventris, belly; etymologically, ventriloquism (ven-TRIL′-ə-kwiz-əm) is the art of “speaking from the belly.” The adjective is ventriloquistic (ven-tril′-ə-KWIS′-tik). Can you figure out how the verb will end? The verb is to ventriloquize.
3. Colloquial (kə-LŌ′-kwee-əl) combines loquor, to speak, with the prefix con-. (Con- is spelled col- before a root starting with l; cor- before a root starting with r; com- before a root starting with m, p, or b.) When people speak together they are engaging in conversation—and their language is usually more informal and less rigidly grammatical than what you might expect in writing or in public addresses. Colloquial patterns are perfectly correct—they are simply informal, and suitable to everyday conversation.
A colloquialism (kə-LŌ′-kwee-ə-liz-əm), therefore, is a conversational-style expression, like “He hasn’t got any” or “Who are you going with?” as contrasted to the formal or literary “He has none” or “With whom are you going?” Colloquial English is the English you and I talk on everyday occasions—it is not slangy, vulgar, or illiterate.
4. A circumlocution (sur′-kəm-lō-KYōō′-shən) is, etymologically, a “talking around” (circum-, around). Any way of expressing an idea that is roundabout or indirect is circumlocutory (sur′-kəm-LOK′-yə-tawr′-ee)—you are now familiar with the common adjective suffix -ory.
Can you pronounce the words?
- taciturnity (tas-ə-TURN′-ə-tee)
- tacit (TAS′-it)
- tacitness (TAS′-ət-nəs)
- reticent (RET′-ə-sənt)
- reticence (RET′-ə-səns)
- reticency (RET′-ə-sən-see)
- loquaciousness (lō-KWAY′-shəs-nəs)
- loquacity (lō-KWAS′-ə-tee)
- soliloquy (sə-LIL′-ə-kwee)
- soliloquist (sə-LIL′-ə-kwist)
- soliloquize (sə-LIL′-ə-kwīz′)
- ventriloquist (ven-TRIL′-ə-kwist)
- ventriloquism (ven-TRIL′-ə-kwiz-əm)
- ventriloquistic (ven-tril′-ə-KWIS′-tik)
- ventriloquize (ven-TRIL′-ə-kwīz′)
- colloquial (kə-LŌ′-kwee-əl)
- colloquialism (kə-LŌ′-kwee-ə-liz-əm)
- circumlocution (sur′-kəm-lō-KYōō′-shən)
- circumlocutory (sur′-kəm-LOK′-yə-tawr′-ee)
Can you work with the words?
Matched: 0 / 8
Do you understand the words?
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A tacit understanding is put into words.
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Inhibited people are seldom reticent about expressing anger.
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A soliloquist expresses his thoughts aloud.
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A ventriloquistic performance on stage involves a dummy who appears to be talking.
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A colloquial style of writing is ungrammatical.
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Circumlocutory speech is direct and forthright.
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Inarticulate people are generally given to loquaciousness.
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A soliloquy is a dialogue.
Can you recall the words?
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1. to speak to oneself: S__________________
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2. to throw one’s voice: V__________________
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3. unwillingness to engage in conversation: T__________________
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4. unspoken: T__________________
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5. referring to an indirect, roundabout style of expression (adj.): C__________________
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6. suitable for informal conversation: C__________________
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7. talkativeness: L__________________ or L__________________
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8. reluctance to express one’s feelings or thoughts: R__________________ or R__________________
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9. a speech to oneself, especially in a play: S__________________
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10. an indirect, roundabout expression: C__________________
Review of Etymology (Session 25)
Write the English word that uses the given prefix, root, or suffix.
Score: 0 / 0 out of 16
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1. taceo — to be silent
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2. -ity — noun suffix
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3. -ness — noun suffix
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4. -ent — adjective suffix
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5. -ence, -ency — noun suffix
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6. re- — again
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7. loquor — to speak
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8. solus — alone
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9. -ist — one who
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10. -ize — verb suffix
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11. venter, ventris — belly
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12. -ic — adjective suffix
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13. -ous — adjective suffix
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14. con-, col-, com-, cor- — with, together
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15. -al — adjective suffix
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16. -ism — noun suffix
Session 26: Origins and Related Words
1. a Spartan virtue
In ancient Sparta, originally known as Laconia, the citizens were long-suffering, hard-bitten, stoical, and military-minded, and were even more noted for their economy of speech than Vermonters, if that is possible. Legend has it that when Philip of Macedonia was storming the gates of Sparta (or Laconia), he sent a message to the besieged king saying, “If we capture your city we will burn it to the ground.” A one-word answer came back: “If.” It was now probably Philip’s turn to be speechless, though history does not record his reaction.
It is from the name Laconia that we derive our word laconic—pithy, concise, economical in the use of words almost to the point of curtness; precisely the opposite of verbose.
Like the man who was waiting at a lunch counter for a ham sandwich. When it was ready, the clerk inquired politely, “Will you eat it here, or take it with you?”
“Both,” was the laconic reply.
Or like the woman who was watching a lush imbibing dry martinis at a Third Avenue bar in New York City. The drunk downed the contents of each cocktail glass at one gulp, daintily nibbled and swallowed the bowl, then finally turned the glass over and ate the base. The stem he threw into a corner. This amazing gustatory feat went on for half an hour, until a dozen stems were lying shattered in the corner, and the drunk had chewed and swallowed enough bowls and bases to start a glass factory. He suddenly turned to the lady and asked belligerently, “I suppose you think I’m cuckoo, don’t you?” “Sure—the stem is the best part,” was the laconic answer.
(It was doubtless this same gentleman, in his accustomed state of intoxication, who found himself painfully weaving his way along Wilshire Boulevard in Beverly Hills, California—he had somehow gotten on a TWA jetliner instead of the subway—when he realized, almost too late, that he was going to bump into a smartly dressed young woman who had just stepped out of her Mercedes-Benz to go window-shopping along the avenue. He quickly veered left, but by some unexplainable magnetic attraction the woman veered in the same direction, again making collision apparently inevitable. With an adroit maneuver, the drunk swung to the right—the lady, by now thoroughly disoriented, did the same. Finally both jammed on the brakes and came to a dead stop, face to face, and not six inches apart; and as the alcoholic fumes assailed the young lady’s nostrils, she sneered at the reeking, swaying man, as much in frustration as in contempt: “Oh! How gauche!” “Fine!” was his happy response. “How goesh with you?” This answer, however, is not laconic, merely confused.)
We have learned that -ness, -ity, and -ism are suffixes that transform adjectives into nouns—and all three can be used with laconic:
…with characteristic laconicness (lə-KON′-ək-nəs)
…her usual laconicity (lak′-ə-NIS′-ə-tee)
…his habitual laconism (LAK′-ə-niz-əm)
…with, for him, unusual laconicism (lə-KON′-ə-siz-əm)
A laconism is also the expression itself that is pithy and concise, as the famous report from a naval commander in World War II: “Saw sub, sank same.”
2. brilliant
Cogent is a term of admiration. A cogent argument is well put, convincing, hardly short of brilliant. Cogency (KŌ′-jən-see) shows a keen mind, an ability to think clearly and logically. The word derives from the Latin verb cogo, to drive together, compel, force. A cogent argument compels acceptance because of its logic, its persuasiveness, its appeal to one’s sense of reason.
3. back to talk
You will recall that loquor, to speak, is the source of loquacity, soliloquy, ventriloquism, colloquialism, circumlocution. This root is also the base on which eloquent (EL′-ə-kwənt), magniloquent (mag-NIL′-ə-kwənt), and grandiloquent (gran-DIL′-ə-kwənt) are built.
The eloquent person speaks out (e-, from ex-, out), is vividly expressive, fluent, forceful, or persuasive in language (“the prosecutor’s eloquent plea to the jury”). The word is partially synonymous with cogent, but cogent implies irresistible logical reasoning and intellectual keenness, while eloquent suggests artistic expression, strong emotional appeal, the skillful use of language to move and arouse a listener.
Magniloquent (magnus, large) and grandiloquent (grandis, grand) are virtually identical in meaning. Magniloquence or grandiloquence is the use of high-flown, grandiose, even pompous language; of large and impressive words; of lofty, flowery, or over-elegant phraseology. Home is a place of residence; wife is helpmate, helpmeet, or better half; women are the fair sex; children are offspring or progeny; a doctor is a member of the medical fraternity; people are the species Homo sapiens, etc., etc.
Loquacious, verbose, voluble, and garrulous people are all talkative; but each type, you will recall, has a special quality.
If you are loquacious, you talk a lot because you like to talk and doubtless have a lot to say.
If you are verbose, you smother your ideas with excess words, with such an overabundance of words that your listener either drops into a state of helpless confusion or falls asleep.
If you are voluble, you speak rapidly, fluently, glibly, without hesitation, stutter, or stammer; you are vocal, verbal, and highly articulate.
If you are garrulous, you talk constantly, and usually aimlessly and meaninglessly, about trifles. We often hear the word used in “a garrulous old man” or “a garrulous old woman,” since in very advanced age the mind may wander and lose the ability to discriminate between the important and the unimportant, between the interesting and the dull.
Verbose is from Latin verbum, word—the verbose person is wordy.
Voluble comes from Latin volvo, volutus, to roll—words effortlessly roll off the voluble speaker’s tongue.
And garrulous derives from Latin garrio, to chatter—a garrulous talker chatters away like a monkey.
The suffix -ness can be added to all these adjectives to form nouns. Alternate noun forms end in -ity:
verbosity (vər-BOS′-ə-tee)
volubility (vol′-yə-BIL′-ə-tee)
garrulity (gə-Rōō′L′-ə-tee)
4. at large
We discovered magnus, large, big, great, in Chapter 9, in discussing Magnavox (etymologically, “big voice”), and find it again in magniloquent (etymologically, “talking big”). The root occurs in a number of other words:
1. Magnanimous (mag-NAN′-ə-məs)—big-hearted, generous, forgiving (etymologically, “great-minded”). (Magnus plus animus, mind.) We’ll discuss this word in depth in Chapter 12.
2. Magnate (MAG′-nayt)—a person of great power or influence, a big wheel, as a business magnate.
3. Magnify—to make larger, or make seem larger (magnus plus -fy from facio, to make), as in “magnify your problems.”
4. Magnificent—magnus plus fic-, from facio.
5. Magnitude—magnus plus the common noun suffix -tude, as in fortitude, multitude, gratitude, etc.
6. Magnum (as of champagne or wine)—a large bottle, generally two fifths of a gallon.
7. Magnum opus (MAG′-nəm Ō′-pəs)—etymologically, a “big work”; actually, the greatest work, or masterpiece, of an artist, writer, or composer. Opus is the Latin word for work; the plural of opus is used in the English word opera, etymologically, “a number of works,” actually a musical drama containing overture, singing, and other forms of music, i.e., many musical works. The verb form opero, to work, occurs in operate, co-operate, operator, etc.
5. words, words, words!
Latin verbum is word. A verb is the important word in a sentence; verbatim (vər-BAY′-tim) is word-for-word (a verbatim report).
Verbal (VUR′-bəl), ending in the adjective suffix -al, may refer either to a verb, or to words in general (a verbal fight); or it may mean, loosely, oral or spoken, rather than written (verbal agreement or contract); or, describing people (“she is quite verbal”), it may refer to a ready ability to put feelings or thoughts into words.
Working from verbal, can you add a common verb suffix to form a word meaning to put into words? Verbalize (VUR′-bə-līz′).
Verbiage (VUR′-bee-əj) has two meanings: an excess of words (“Such verbiage!”); or a style or manner of using words (medical verbiage, military verbiage).
6. roll on, and on!
Volvo, volutus, to roll, the source of voluble, is the root on which many important English words are based.
Revolve (rə-VOLV′)—roll again (and again), or keep turning round. Wheels revolve, the earth revolves around the sun, the cylinder of a revolver revolves. (The prefix is re-, back or again.)
The noun is revolution (rev′-ə-Lōō′-shən), which can be one such complete rolling, or, by logical extension, a radical change of any sort (TV was responsible for a revolution in the entertainment industry), especially political (the American, or French, Revolution).
The adjective revolutionary (rev′-ə-Lōō′-shə-nair′-ee) introduces us to a new adjective suffix, -ary, as in contrary, disciplinary, stationary, imaginary, etc. (But -ary is sometimes also a noun suffix, as in dictionary, commentary, etc.)
Add different prefixes to volvo to construct two more English words:
1. involve—etymologically, “roll in” (“I didn’t want to get involved!”). Noun: involvement.
2. evolve (ə-VOLV′)—etymologically, “roll out” (e-, out); hence to unfold, or gradually develop (“The final plan evolved from some informal discussions”; “The political party evolved from a group of interested citizens who met frequently to protest government actions”).
By analogy with the forms derived from revolve, can you construct the noun and adjective of evolve? Noun: evolution. Adjective: evolutionary.
Can you pronounce the words? (I)
- laconicity (lak′-ə-NIS′-ə-tee)
- laconism (LAK′-ə-niz-əm)
- laconicism (lə-KON′-ə-siz-əm)
- eloquent (EL′-ə-kwənt)
- eloquence (EL′-ə-kwəns)
- magniloquent (mag-NIL′-ə-kwənt)
- magniloquence (mag-NIL′-ə-kwəns)
- grandiloquent (gran-DIL′-ə-kwənt)
- grandiloquence (gran-DIL′-ə-kwəns)
- verbosity (vər-BOS′-ə-tee)
- volubility (vol′-yə-BIL′-ə-tee)
- garrulity (gə-Rōō′-lə-tee)
- cogency (KŌ′-jən-see)
Can you pronounce the words? (II)
- magnanimous (mag-NAN′-ə-məs)
- magnate (MAG′-nayt)
- magnum opus (MAG′-nəm Ō′-pəs)
- verbatim (vər-BAY′-tim)
- verbal (VUR′-bəl)
- verbalize (VUR′-bə-līz′)
- verbiage (VUR′-bee-əj)
- revolve (rə-VOLV′)
- revolution (rev′-ə-Lōō′-shən)
- revolutionary (rev′-ə-Lōō′-shə-nair′-ee)
- evolve (ə-VOLV′)
- evolution (ev′-ə-Lōō′-shən)
- evolutionary (ev′-ə-Lōō′-shə-nair′-ee)
Can you work with the words? (I)
Matched: 0 / 11
Can you work with the words? (II)
Matched: 0 / 10
Do you understand the words?
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Is laconicism characteristic of a verbose speaker?
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Does a magniloquent speaker use short, simple words?
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Does a frog evolve from a tadpole?
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Is an eloquent speaker interesting to listen to?
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Do verbose people use a lot of verbiage?
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Is volubility characteristic of an inarticulate person?
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Does verbosity show a careful and economical use of words?
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Is a verbal person usually inarticulate?
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Is a magnum opus one of the lesser works of a writer, artist, or composer?
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Is a magnanimous person selfish and petty-minded?
Can you recall the words?
-
1. gradually unfolding, resulting, or developing (adj.): E__________________
-
2. causing, or resulting from, radical change (adj.): R__________________
-
3. quality of conciseness and economy in the use of words: L__________________
-
4. expressiveness in the use of words: E__________________
-
5. turn round and round: R__________________
-
6. important person, as in the commercial world: M__________________
-
7. unselfish; generous; noble in motive; big-hearted; forgiving: M__________________
-
8. using words easily; vocal; articulate; referring to, or involving, words; oral, rather than written: V__________________
-
9. style of word usage; type of words; overabundance of words: V__________________
-
10. wordiness; quality of using excess words: V__________________
-
11. elegance in word usage: M__________________ or G__________________
-
12. quality of chattering on and on about trivia, or with little meaning: G__________________
-
13. fluency and ease in speech: V__________________
-
14. word for word: V__________________
-
15. masterpiece; great artistic work: M__________________ O__________________
-
16. persuasiveness and forcefulness in speech or writing through closely reasoned logic: C__________________
Review of Etymology (Session 26)
Write the English word that uses the given prefix, root, or suffix.
Score: 0 / 0 out of 22
-
1. Laconia — Sparta
-
2. -ness — noun suffix
-
3. -ism — noun suffix
-
4. -ity — noun suffix
-
5. e- (ex-) — out
-
6. -ent — adjective suffix
-
7. -ence — noun suffix
-
8. magnus — big
-
9. grandis — grand
-
10. verbum — word
-
11. volvo, volutus — to roll
-
12. garrio — to chatter
-
13. animus — mind
-
14. -fy — to make
-
15. -tude — noun suffix
-
16. opus — work
-
17. opero — to work
-
18. -al — adjective suffix
-
19. -ize — verb suffix
-
20. re- — again, back
-
21. -ary — adjective suffix
-
22. in- — in
Session 27: Origins and Related Words
1. front and back—and uncles
The ventriloquist appears to talk from the belly (venter, ventris plus loquor) rather than through the lips (or such was the strange perception of the person who first used the word).
Venter, ventris, belly, is the root on which ventral (VEN′-trəl) and ventricle are built.
The ventral side of an animal, for example, is the front or anterior side—the belly side.
A ventricle (VEN′-trə-kəl) is a hollow organ or cavity, or, logically enough, belly, as one of the two chambers of the heart, or one of the four chambers of the brain. The ventricles of the heart are the lower chambers, and receive blood from the auricles, or upper chambers.
The auricle (AWR′-ə-kəl), so named because it is somewhat ear-shaped (Latin auris, ear), receives blood from the veins; the auricles send the blood into the ventricles, which in turn pump the blood into the arteries. (It’s all very complicated, but fortunately it works.)
The adjective form of ventricle is ventricular (ven-TRIK′-yə-lər), which may refer to a ventricle, or may mean having a belly-like bulge.
Now that you see how ventricular is formed from ventricle, can you figure out the adjective of auricle?
Adjective of auricle:
Adjective of vehicle:
Adjective of circle:
No doubt you wrote auricular (aw-RIK′-yə-lər), vehicular, and circular, and have discovered that nouns ending in -cle form adjectives ending in -cular.
So you can now be the first person on your block to figure out the adjective derived from:
clavicle:
cuticle:
vesicle:
testicle:
uncle:
The answers of course are clavicular, cuticular, vesicular, testicular—and for uncle you have every right to shout “No fair!” (But where is it written that life is fair?)
The Latin word for uncle (actually, uncle on the mother’s side) is avunculus, from which we get avuncular (ə-VUNG′-kyə-lər), referring to an uncle.
Now what about an uncle? Well, traditional or stereotypical uncles are generally kindly, permissive, indulgent, protective—and often give helpful advice. So anyone who exhibits one or more of such traits to another (usually younger) person is avuncular or acts in an avuncular capacity.
So, at long last, to get back to ventral. If there’s a front or belly side, anatomically, there must be a reverse—a back side. This is the dorsal (DAWR′-səl) side, from Latin dorsum, the root on which the verb endorse (en-DAWRS′) is built.
If you endorse a check, you sign it on the back side; if you endorse a plan, an idea, etc., you back it, you express your approval or support. The noun is endorsement (en-DAWRS′-mənt).
2. the noise and the fury
Vociferous derives from Latin vox, vocis, voice (a root you met in Chapter 9), plus fero, to bear or carry. A vociferous rejoinder carries a lot of voice—i.e., it is vehement, loud, noisy, clamorous, shouting.
The noun is vociferousness (vō-SIF′-ər-əs-nəs); the verb is to vociferate (vō-SIF′-ə-rayt′).
Can you form the noun derived from the verb?
3. to sleep or not to sleep—that is the question
The root fero is found also in somniferous (som-NIF′-ər-əs), carrying, bearing, or bringing sleep. So a somniferous lecture is so dull and boring that it is sleep-inducing.
Fero is combined with somnus, sleep, in somniferous.
(The suffix -ous indicates what part of speech?)
Tack on the negative prefix in- to somnus to construct insomnia (in-SOM′-nee-ə), the abnormal inability to fall asleep when sleep is required or desired. The unfortunate victim of this disability is an insomniac (in-SOM′-nee-ak), the adjective is insomnious (in-SOM′-nee-əs). (So -ous, in case you could not answer the question in the preceding paragraph, is an adjective suffix.)
Add a different adjective suffix to somnus to derive somnolent (SOM′-nə-lənt), sleepy, drowsy.
Can you construct the noun form of somnolent?
Combine somnus with ambulo, to walk, and you have somnambulism (som-NAM′-byə-liz-əm), walking in one’s sleep. With your increasing skill in using etymology to form words, write the term for the person who is a sleepwalker:
The sleepwalker:
Now add a two-letter adjective suffix to form the adjective:
4. a walkaway
An ambulatory (AM′-byə-lə-tawr′-ee) patient, as in a hospital or convalescent home, is finally well enough to get out of bed and walk around. A perambulator (pə-RAM′-byə-lay′-tər), a word used more in England than in the United States, and often shortened to pram, is a baby carriage, a vehicle for walking an infant through the streets (per-, through). To perambulate (pə-RAM′-byə-layt′) is, etymologically, “to walk through”; hence, to stroll around.
Can you write the noun form of this verb?
To amble (AM′-bəl) is to walk aimlessly; an ambulance is so called because originally it was composed of two stretcher-bearers who walked off the battlefield with a wounded soldier; and a preamble (PREE′-am-bəl) is, by etymology, something that “walks before” (pre-, before, beforehand), hence an introduction or introductory statement, as the preamble to the U.S. Constitution (“We the people …”), a preamble to the speech, etc; or any event that is introductory or preliminary to another, as in “An increase in inflationary factors in the economy is often a preamble to a drop in the stock market.”
5. back to sleep
Somnus is one Latin word for sleep—sopor is another. A soporific (sop′-ə-RIF′-ik) lecture, speaker, style of delivery, etc. will put the audience to sleep (fic- from facio, to make), and a soporific is a sleeping pill.
6. noun suffixes
You know that -ness can be added to any adjective to construct the noun form.
Write the noun derived from inarticulate:
Inarticulate is a combination of the negative prefix in- and Latin articulus, a joint. The inarticulate person has trouble joining words together coherently. If you are quite articulate (ahr-TIK′-yə-lət), on the other hand, you join your words together easily, you are verbal, vocal, possibly even voluble. The verb to articulate (ahr-TIK′-yə-layt′) is to join (words), i.e., to express your vocal sounds—as in “Please articulate more clearly.”
Can you write the noun derived from the verb articulate?
Another, and very common, noun suffix attached to adjectives is, as you have discovered, -ity. So the noun form of banal is either banalness, or, more commonly, banality (bə-NAL′-ə-tee).
Bear in mind, then, that -ness and -ity are common noun suffixes attached to adjectives, and -ion (or -ation) is a noun suffix frequently affixed to verbs (to articulate—articulation; to vocalize—vocalization; to perambulate—perambulation).
Can you pronounce the words? (I)
- ventral (VEN′-trəl)
- ventricle (VEN′-trə-kəl)
- auricle (AWR′-ə-kəl)
- ventricular (ven-TRIK′-yə-lər)
- auricular (aw-RIK′-yə-lər)
- avuncular (ə-VUNG′-kyə-lər)
- dorsal (DAWR′-səl)
- endorse (en-DAWRS′)
- endorsement (en-DAWRS′-mənt)
- vociferousness (vō-SIF′-ər-əs-nəs)
- vociferate (vō-SIF′-ə-rayt′)
- vociferation (vō-sif′-ə-RAY′-shən)
Can you pronounce the words? (II)
- somniferous (som-NIF′-ər-əs)
- insomnia (in-SOM′-nee-ə)
- insomniac (in-SOM′-nee-ak′)
- insomnious (in-SOM′-nee-əs)
- somnolent (SOM′-nə-lənt)
- somnolence (SOM′-nə-ləns)
- somnolency (SOM′-nə-lən-see)
- somnambulism (som-NAM′-byə-liz-əm)
- somnambulist (som-NAM′-byə-list)
- somnambulistic (som-nam′-byə-LIST′-ik)
Can you pronounce the words? (III)
- ambulatory (AM′-byə-lə-tawr′-ee)
- perambulator (pə-RAM′-byə-lay′-tər)
- perambulate (pə-RAM′-byə-layt′)
- perambulation (pə-ram′-byə-LAY′-shən)
- amble (AM′-bəl)
- preamble (PREE′-am-bəl)
- soporific (sop′-ə-RIF′-ik)
- inarticulateness (in′-ahr-TIK′-yə-lət-nəs)
- articulate (ahr-TIK′-yə-lət)
- banality (bə-NAL′-ə-tee)
Can you work with the words? (I)
Matched: 0 / 10
Can you work with the words? (II)
Matched: 0 / 11
Can you work with the words? (III)
Matched: 0 / 9
Do you understand the words?
-
Does an insomniac often need a soporific?
-
Does a somnambulist always stay in bed when asleep?
-
Are ambulatory patients bedridden?
-
Does a preamble come after another event?
-
Are articulate people verbal?
-
Does banality show creativeness?
-
Does an avuncular attitude indicate affection and protectiveness?
-
Is vociferation habitual with quiet, shy people?
-
Is a somnolent person wide awake?
-
Is a somniferous speaker stimulating and exciting?
Can you recall the words?
-
1. lack of imagination or originality in speech; hackneyed or trite phraseology: B__________________
-
2. sleep-inducing: S__________________ or S__________________
-
3. unable to fall asleep (adj.): I__________________
-
4. verbal, vocal, speaking fluently: A__________________
-
5. acting like an uncle: A__________________
-
6. referring to the front; anterior: V__________________
-
7. referring to the back; posterior: D__________________
-
8. approve of; support; sign on the back of: E__________________
-
9. shout vehemently: V__________________
-
10. one who cannot fall asleep: I__________________
-
11. drowsy; sleepy: S__________________
-
12. sleepwalker: S__________________
-
13. now able to walk, though previously bedridden: A__________________
-
14. walk aimlessly: A__________________
-
15. introduction; introductory event: P__________________
-
16. incoherence: I__________________
Review of Etymology (Session 27)
Write the English word that uses the given prefix, root, or suffix.
Score: 0 / 0 out of 21
-
1. venter, ventris — belly
-
2. loquor — to speak
-
3. auris — ear
-
4. avunculus — uncle
-
5. dorsum — back
-
6. vox, vocis — voice
-
7. fero — to carry, bear
-
8. somnus — sleep
-
9. -ous — adjective suffix
-
10. in- — negative prefix
-
11. ambulo — to walk
-
12. -ory — adjective suffix
-
13. per- — through
-
14. pre- — before, beforehand
-
15. sopor — sleep
-
16. fic- (facio) — to make or do
-
17. -ness — noun suffix
-
18. -ity — noun suffix
-
19. -ion (-ation) — noun suffix attached to verbs
-
20. -ent — adjective suffix
-
21. -ence, -ency — noun suffix
Chapter Review
A. Do you recognize the words?
-
1. Disinclined to conversation:
-
2. Trite:
-
3. Rapid and fluent:
-
4. Forceful and compelling:
-
5. Unspoken:
-
6. Using elegant and impressive words:
-
7. Back:
-
8. Sleep-inducing:
-
9. Inability to fall asleep:
-
10. Talkativeness:
-
11. Expressing indirectly or in a roundabout way:
-
12. Elegance in expression:
-
13. Wordiness:
-
14. Big-hearted, generous, unselfish:
-
15. Causing radical changes:
-
16. To shout vehemently:
-
17. Like an uncle:
-
18. Drowsy:
-
19. Sleepwalking:
-
20. Introduction:
B. Can you recognize roots?
For each root, write its meaning and one English word derived from it.
- taceo — to be silent — Example: taciturn
- loquor — to speak — Example: loquacity
- solus — alone — Example: soliloquize
- venter, ventris — belly — Example: ventral
- magnus — big, large, great — Example: magniloquent
- grandis — grand — Example: grandiloquent
- verbum — word — Example: verbatim
- volvo, volutus — to roll — Example: revolution
- garrio — to chatter — Example: garrulous
- animus — mind — Example: magnanimous
- opus — work — Example: magnum opus
- opero — to work — Example: operator
- auris — ear — Example: auricle
- avunculus — uncle — Example: avuncular
- dorsum — back — Example: dorsal
- vox, vocis — voice — Example: vociferate
- fero — to carry or bear — Example: somniferous
- ambulo — to walk — Example: preamble
- sopor — sleep — Example: soporific
- somnus — sleep — Example: somnolency
Teaser Questions for the Amateur Etymologist
Becoming Alert to New Ideas
Since words are symbols of ideas, one of the most effective means of building your vocabulary is to read books that deal with new ideas. Here are highly readable books in a variety of subjects—all of them will increase your familiarity with the world of ideas and help you build a superior vocabulary.
Semantics
- Language in Thought and Action, by S. I. Hayakawa
- People in Quandaries, by Wendell Johnson
Education and Learning
- How to Survive in Your Native Land, by James Herndon
- How Children Fail and What Do I Do Monday?, by John Holt
- Education and Ecstasy, by George B. Leonard
- Human Teaching for Human Learning, by George Isaac Brown
Sex, Love, Marriage
- Your Fear of Love, by Marshall Bryant Hodge
- How to Live with Another Person, by David Viscott, M.D.
- The Intimate Enemy, by George R. Bach and Peter Wyden
- Sex in Human Loving, by Eric Berne, M.D.
Women, Feminism
- Rebirth of Feminism, by Judith Hole and Ellen Levine
- Our Bodies, Our Selves, by The Boston Women’s Health Book Collective
Children, Child-Raising
- Between Parent and Child and Between Parent and Teenager, by Dr. Haim Ginott
- Parent Effectiveness Training, by Dr. Thomas Gordon
- Escape from Childhood, by John Holt
Health
- Folk Medicine, by D. C. Jarvis, M.D.
- Let’s Eat Right to Keep Fit, by Adelle Davis
Philosophy
- The Way of Zen, by Alan W. Watts
Business, Economics, Finance
- The Affluent Society, by John Kenneth Galbraith
- Parkinson’s Law, by C. Northcote Parkinson
- The Peter Principle, by Laurence J. Peter
Sociology
- Passages, by Gail Sheehy
- Future Shock, by Alvin Toffler
- Roots, by Alex Haley
Death and Dying
- Life After Life, by Raymond A. Moody, Jr., M.D.
- On Death and Dying, by Elizabeth Kubler Ross
All but one or two of these stimulating and informative books are available in inexpensive paperback editions. Any one of them will provide an evening of entertainment and excitement far more rewarding than watching TV, will possibly open for you new areas of knowledge and understanding, and will undoubtedly contain many of the words you have learned in this book—giving you again and again that delicious shock of recognition.
Word List
All primary words and derived forms from Chapter 10, Sessions 24–27.
laconic (lə-KON′-ik)
Sparing of words; brief and to the point, almost to the point of curtness
Forms: laconically (adv.) laconism (n.) laconicity (n.) laconicism (n.)
Root: Greek Lakōnikós — “of Laconia (Sparta)”
inarticulate (in′-ahr-TIK′-yə-lət)
Unable to express oneself clearly or coherently; incoherent; unable to get words out
Forms: inarticulateness (n.) articulately (adv.)
Root: Latin in- + articulatus — “jointed, distinct”
garrulous (GAIR′-ə-ləs)
Excessively talkative, especially about trivial things; rambling and chattering meaninglessly
Forms: garrulity (n.) garrulously (adv.)
Root: Latin garrulus — “chattering, prattling”
banal (BAY′-nəl)
Trite, hackneyed, and unoriginal; lacking in freshness or originality; commonplace
Forms: banality (n.) banally (adv.)
Root: Old French banal — “common, belonging to all”
verbose (vər-BŌS′)
Using or containing more words than necessary; wordy
Forms: verbosity (n.) verbosely (adv.)
Root: Latin verbum — “word”
voluble (VOL′-yə-bəl)
Characterized by a ready and continuous flow of words; fluent and glib in speech
Forms: volubility (n.) volubly (adv.)
Root: Latin volubilis — “rolling, fluent”
cogent (KŌ′-jənt)
Powerfully convincing; forcefully persuasive through logic and evidence
Forms: cogency (n.) cogently (adv.)
Root: Latin cogere — “to drive together, compel”
vociferous (vō-SIF′-ər-əs)
Loud, noisy, and clamorous; vehemently and noisily insistent
Forms: vociferousness (n.) vociferously (adv.) vociferate (v.) vociferation (n.)
Root: Latin vox, vocis (voice) + ferre (to carry)
loquacious (lō-KWAY′-shəs)
Talkative; given to talking a great deal; fond of talking
Forms: loquacity (n.) loquaciousness (n.) loquaciously (adv.)
Root: Latin loquax — “talkative” (from loqui — “to speak”)
tacit (TAS′-it)
Unspoken; understood without being stated; implied but not verbalized
Forms: tacitly (adv.) tacitness (n.)
Root: Latin tacere — “to be silent”
reticent (RET′-ə-sənt)
Reluctant to talk; inclined to be silent or reserved; not revealing feelings or thoughts readily
Forms: reticence (n.) reticency (n.)
Root: Latin reticere — “to keep silent”
soliloquy (sə-LIL′-ə-kwee)
A speech to oneself; in drama, a monologue spoken alone on stage revealing inner thoughts
Forms: soliloquist (n.) soliloquize (v.)
Root: Latin solus (alone) + loqui (to speak)
ventriloquist (ven-TRIL′-ə-kwist)
One who can “throw” the voice so it seems to come from elsewhere, as from a dummy
Forms: ventriloquism (n.) ventriloquize (v.) ventriloquistic (adj.)
Root: Latin venter, ventris (belly) + loqui (to speak)
colloquial (kə-LŌ′-kwee-əl)
Belonging to ordinary or familiar conversation; informal and conversational; not formal or literary
Forms: colloquialism (n.) colloquially (adv.)
Root: Latin com- (together) + loqui (to speak)
circumlocution (sur′-kəm-lō-KYŌŌ′-shən)
The use of many words where fewer would do; a roundabout or indirect way of speaking
Forms: circumlocutory (adj.)
Root: Latin circum (around) + loqui (to speak)
eloquent (EL′-ə-kwənt)
Fluent, vivid, and forceful in speech or writing; moving and persuasive
Forms: eloquence (n.) eloquently (adv.)
Root: Latin ex- (out) + loqui (to speak)
magniloquent (mag-NIL′-ə-kwənt)
Speaking in an inflated, pompous, or grandiose style; high-flown in language
Forms: magniloquence (n.)
Root: Latin magnus (great) + loqui (to speak)
grandiloquent (gran-DIL′-ə-kwənt)
Pompously eloquent; using high-flown, bombastic language; pretentiously impressive
Forms: grandiloquence (n.)
Root: Latin grandis (grand) + loqui (to speak)
magnanimous (mag-NAN′-ə-məs)
Generous, noble, and forgiving, especially toward a rival or enemy; big-hearted; above pettiness
Forms: magnanimity (n.) magnanimously (adv.)
Root: Latin magnus (great) + animus (mind, spirit)
magnate (MAG′-nayt)
A person of great power, importance, or influence, especially in business or industry
Root: Latin magnus — “great”
magnum opus (MAG′-nəm Ō′-pəs)
The greatest work of an artist, composer, or writer; a masterpiece; one’s chief life work
Root: Latin magnus (great) + opus (work)
verbatim (vər-BAY′-tim)
Word for word; in exactly the same words as the original; corresponding word for word
Root: Latin verbum — “word”
verbal (VUR′-bəl)
Of or relating to words; spoken rather than written; of or relating to verbs
Forms: verbally (adv.)
Root: Latin verbum — “word”
verbalize (VUR′-bə-līz′)
To put into spoken or written words; to express in language; to be wordy
Forms: verbalization (n.)
Root: Latin verbum — “word”
verbiage (VUR′-bee-əj)
An overabundance of words; excess verbiage; also: style or manner of using words
Root: Latin verbum — “word”
revolve (rə-VOLV′)
To move in a circular or curving course; to turn round and round; to recur in cycles
Forms: revolution (n.) revolutionary (adj., n.)
Root: Latin re- (again) + volvere — “to roll”
evolve (ə-VOLV′)
To develop gradually; to unfold or work out by a process of growth or differentiation
Forms: evolution (n.) evolutionary (adj.)
Root: Latin e- (out) + volvere — “to roll”
ventral (VEN′-trəl)
Of or relating to the belly or front surface; on or near the abdomen; anterior
Root: Latin venter, ventris — “belly”
ventricle (VEN′-trə-kəl)
A small cavity or chamber, especially one of the lower chambers of the heart or cavities of the brain
Forms: ventricular (adj.)
Root: Latin ventriculus — “small belly, little stomach”
auricle (AWR′-ə-kəl)
The outer ear; an ear-shaped appendage; the upper chamber of the heart (atrium)
Forms: auricular (adj.)
Root: Latin auricula — “little ear” (from auris — “ear”)
avuncular (ə-VUNG′-kyə-lər)
Of or resembling an uncle; kindly, indulgent, and protective in manner toward younger people
Root: Latin avunculus — “maternal uncle”
dorsal (DAWR′-səl)
Of or relating to the back or upper surface; posterior; on the back side
Root: Latin dorsum — “back”
endorse (en-DAWRS′)
To sign on the back (of a check); to give official approval or support to; to sanction
Forms: endorsement (n.)
Root: Latin in- + dorsum — “back” (to write on the back)
somniferous (som-NIF′-ər-əs)
Causing or inducing sleep; soporific; sleep-bearing
Root: Latin somnus (sleep) + ferre — “to carry, bring”
insomnia (in-SOM′-nee-ə)
Chronic inability to sleep; habitual wakefulness; inability to obtain adequate sleep
Forms: insomniac (n., adj.) insomnious (adj.)
Root: Latin in- (not) + somnus — “sleep”
somnolent (SOM′-nə-lənt)
Drowsy; inclined to sleep; half-asleep; tending to induce drowsiness
Forms: somnolence (n.) somnolency (n.)
Root: Latin somnus — “sleep”
somnambulism (som-NAM′-byə-liz-əm)
The act or habit of walking and sometimes performing acts while asleep; sleepwalking
Forms: somnambulist (n.) somnambulistic (adj.)
Root: Latin somnus (sleep) + ambulare — “to walk”
ambulatory (AM′-byə-lə-tawr′-ee)
Capable of walking; not confined to bed; of or relating to walking; able to move around
Root: Latin ambulare — “to walk”
perambulator (pə-RAM′-byə-lay′-tər)
A baby carriage (British “pram”); one who perambulates or walks about an area
Forms: perambulate (v.) perambulation (n.)
Root: Latin per- (through) + ambulare — “to walk”
amble (AM′-bəl)
To walk at a slow, easy, leisurely pace; to stroll; to walk aimlessly
Root: Latin ambulare — “to walk”
preamble (PREE′-am-bəl)
An introductory statement; a preface explaining the purpose and intent of a formal document
Root: Latin prae- (before) + ambulare — “to walk”
soporific (sop′-ə-RIF′-ik)
Causing or tending to cause sleep; inducing drowsiness; also: a sleep-inducing drug or agent
Root: Latin sopor (deep sleep) + facere — “to make”
articulate (ahr-TIK′-yə-lət)
Able to express oneself clearly and fluently (adj.); to express or state clearly; to join (v.)
Forms: articulation (n.) articulately (adv.)
Root: Latin articulare — “to divide into joints, to utter distinctly”