by Dwane | Apr 25, 2015 | English, Latin, Vocabulary
There a several Latin words for circle. Orbis, circulus, and circlus. Sometimes the Romans would even use the word, circus. Usually, though, the word circus referred to a race course, or a celebration of games performed in a round arena. Related to circulus,...
by Dwane | Apr 17, 2015 | English, Latin, Visual Latin, Vocabulary
Pedicure: care for the feet. From the Latin words pes, (the genitive is pedis), and the verb curare, which means, to care for. Some time ago, one of my high school students held her hands out in front of herself for a long time. She was clearly not paying attention in...
by Dwane | Apr 16, 2015 | Education, English, Greek, Vocabulary
Isopod: a crustacean with seven pairs of legs. They use the legs to crawl. Most isopods live in the water, though you can find some isopods living under logs, or in dark places. The name Isopoda comes from the Greek ἴσος (iso), the same, and the Greek word for foot,...
by Dwane | Apr 16, 2015 | English, Latin, Vocabulary
Pedigree: Lineage; line of ancestors from which a person or tribe descends; genealogy. Pedigree comes from the French phrase, pie de grue, meaning: the crane’s foot. Some thought that the spreading lines of a genealogical chart resembled the foot of a crane. The...
by Dwane | Apr 15, 2015 | Education, Latin, Vocabulary
Pawn: Something given as security for the payment of borrowed money; a pledge. This first definition has nothing to do with the Latin word for foot. Instead, it comes from an Old French word meaning pledge, or security. The pawn on the chess board, however, does from...
