12.TALK ABOUT A VARIETY OF PERSONAL CHARACTERISTICS
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Hello, everyone, and welcome back to "Word Wonders: Your Etymology Journey"! I’m Chris.
And I’m Rachel! We’re thrilled to have you join us again as we explore the fascinating world of English words through their origins and roots. Today, we're diving deep into a very common, but often overlooked, Latin suffix: -ous.
That’s right, Rachel. There are thousands of English words that end in -ous. And the central theme uniting them all is the idea of “fullness”. This Latin suffix literally means “full of”. So, when you see a word ending in -ous, you can often think of it as describing something or someone “full of” a particular quality.
Oh, that’s such a great starting point! So, it’s not just about a sound, but about a meaning. That makes it much easier to remember. What kind of things can one be "full of" then, Chris?
Well, Rachel, you can be full of compliance and servility; full of complaints; full of snobbery; full of noise; full of no money; full of horsemanship; full of harmlessness; full of liquor; full of deathly pallor; and full of sorrows. And for each of these ideas, English has a precise word. Understanding these words gives you a really rich vocabulary to describe the world around you.
Wow, that's a wide range! From money to horses to sorrow. Let’s jump right into our first category then, shall we?
Absolutely. Let’s start with being full of compliance. The Latin root here is sequor, which means to follow. Think about it: those who follow rather than lead are often in a menial, subordinate, or inferior position.
Like waiters, clerks, or servants. They often have to act excessively courteous, pleasant, and obliging, sometimes even subservient or humble, even if it’s against their natural temperament. They bend their will to their customers or employers.
Exactly! So, etymologically, they are full of following after. And the word we use to describe someone like that is obsequious.
Ah, obsequious! I’ve heard that word before, usually with a slightly negative connotation, implying someone is perhaps too eager to please. It makes sense now. For our Chinese listeners, you might think of some shop assistants who are incredibly polite and accommodating, almost to a fault, to ensure a sale.
That’s a perfect example, Rachel. And speaking of sequor, there are a few related words. For instance, obsequies are burial ceremonies, or funeral rites, because mourners follow after the corpse.
Oh, that's a bit of a somber turn. But it makes sense visually.
Then there's subsequent, which refers to something that follows another, like a subsequent letter or event. And a sequel is a literary work or occurrence that follows another, continuing the same subject or growing out of a previous event.
So, if you say, “Just wait until you hear the sequel to the story!” it means you’re waiting for what happens next.
Precisely! And sequence means one item following another in order. Any word with the root sequ- is likely related to the idea of following.
That’s super helpful for building a vocabulary. Now, what about our second category, being full of complaints?
For this, the Latin root is queror, which means to complain. So, someone who is full of complaints, constantly nagging, fretful, petulant, whining, and never satisfied, is called querulous.
Querulous. I can picture someone like that right now, maybe a fussy elder who finds fault with everything. It's not a very pleasant quality, is it?
Not at all. Moving on to our third idea: full of snobbery. This one involves a part of our face: the eyebrow. The Latin root cilium means eyelid, and super means above. As anyone can plainly see, the eyebrow is above the eyelid.
Aha! I see where this is going! Raising one's eyebrows in contempt.
Exactly! There are certain obnoxious people who go around raising their eyebrows in contempt, disdain, and sneering arrogance at ordinary mortals. Such contemptuous, sneering, overbearingly conceited people are called supercilious.
Supercilious. That's a perfect description for someone who looks down on others, isn't it? In China, we might say someone is "横眉冷对" (héng méi lěng duì), meaning "frowning with cold disdain". It perfectly captures that sense of arrogant dismissal.
It truly does. Now, let’s get a bit noisy with our fourth idea: full of noise. The Latin root strepo means to make a noise.
So, someone who is making a lot of noise?
More than just noisy, Rachel. Someone who is unruly, boisterous, resistant to authority, unmanageable—and in a noisy, troublesome manner—is obstreperous.
Obstreperous. So, it’s not just loud, but loud and defiant. Like a group of unruly children refusing to listen, causing a ruckus in a public place. Or maybe a bustling Chinese market, though that noise is usually more energetic than unruly.
That's a great distinction. It implies a noisy resistance. Next, we have an interesting one: full of no money.
Uh oh, that sounds like a common predicament.
Indeed. The Latin root pecus means cattle. And at one time in human history, a person’s wealth was measured by their stock of domestic animals, not by stocks and bonds.
That makes a lot of sense! Cattle give you milk, leather, and meat – true wealth, unlike a volatile stock market. In ancient China, livestock like cattle, sheep, and horses were also significant indicators of a family's prosperity.
Exactly. So, someone who had lots of pecus was rich. Someone without pecus was indigent, destitute, or “broke”. Today, we call someone who is habitually without funds, who seems generally to be full of a complete lack of money, impecunious.
Impecunious. This isn’t necessarily someone living in extreme poverty, but rather someone who just seems to always be short of cash, habitually?
Precisely. It doesn't imply reduced circumstances or want, but simply being short of cash. A related word is pecuniary, which pertains to money, as in pecuniary considerations or affairs.
Fascinating how cattle became linked to money. Our sixth category is quite noble: full of horses.
This brings us to the French word cheval, meaning horse. In medieval times, only gentlemen and knights rode horses; common people walked. Traditionally, knights were courteous to women, attentive to female desires, and self-sacrificing.
Ah, the ideal knight. For our listeners, think of the romanticized image of a chivalrous hero, like those found in wuxia novels, always ready to protect the weak and uphold justice, especially for women.
Perfect analogy, Rachel. So, a modern man who has a knightly attitude to women is called chivalrous.
Chivalrous. That’s a lovely word. And I understand cheval comes from the Latin caballus, which meant an inferior horse, but it's found in English words as caval-.
That’s right. This gives us words like cavalcade, which is a procession of persons on horseback, like in a parade.
Like a grand parade of mounted soldiers.
Then there's cavalier. As a noun, a cavalier was a mounted soldier. But as an adjective, cavalier describes actions or attitudes that are haughty, unmindful of others’ feelings, or too offhand. These attributes were often associated with people in power, like the military.
So, if someone answered in a cavalier manner, it means they were arrogant, as if the questioner was taking too much privilege? Or if you received cavalier treatment, you were made to feel unimportant?
Exactly. And a cavalier refusal would be curt, offhand, without apology or courtesy.
That’s an important nuance – chivalrous is positive, but cavalier (as an adjective) is quite negative.
Indeed. Other related words include cavalry, the mounted part of an army, and chivalry, the noun form of chivalrous. We also have chivalric, which is a less common adjective meaning the same as chivalrous. And let's not forget the Latin root for horse, equus, which gives us equestrian (a horseman), equestrienne (a horsewoman), and equine (horselike).
So many words just from "horse"! What's next?
Our seventh idea is full of no harm done. The Latin root noceo means to injure. So, someone who needs to cause you no fear, so harmless is that person, so unable to interfere, so unlikely to get you into trouble, is called innocuous.
Innocuous. Like an innocuous remark that truly means no offense. Or an innocuous substance that won't cause any harm. It's a reassuring word.
It is. And from the same root, we get innocent, meaning not guilty of crime or injury. On the flip side, noxious means harmful, poisonous, or unwholesome.
So innocuous and noxious are opposites?
Essentially, yes. Now for our eighth idea: full of alcohol. This one is usually used humorously. The Latin root bibo means to drink.
Ah, bibo. I think I can guess this one.
One who is generally found with one foot up on the brass rail, who likes to tipple beyond the point of sobriety—who, in short, has an overfondness for drinks with a pronounced alcoholic content, is called bibulous.
Bibulous! That’s a wonderfully descriptive word. I can almost picture someone in a traditional Chinese jiuguan (酒馆) or pub, enjoying one too many glasses of baijiu.
A perfect image. A related word is imbibe, meaning to drink in, soak up, or absorb. If we just say "He likes to imbibe," the implication is usually liquor. But you can also imbibe learning or respect.
Like “In early infancy she imbibed a respect for her parents”. That’s a lovely way to use it. And a bib for a child, which prevents spills, is also related, isn't it?
It is. It prevents what is drunk or eaten from spilling onto clothes. Moving on to our ninth idea: full of death itself. This one is a bit more serious. The Latin root cado means to fall.
And one’s final fall, of course, is always in death.
Exactly. So, someone who looks like a corpse, figuratively speaking—pale, gaunt, thin, haggard, with deep-sunk eyes and wasted limbs—the extreme opposite of glowing health, is called cadaverous.
Cadaverous. That paints a very stark picture. You might describe someone who's been very ill for a long time as having a cadaverous appearance.
Precisely. The related word cadaver literally means a corpse, especially one used for surgical dissection. Another interesting related word is decadent. Etymologically, it means "falling down" (de- is a prefix meaning down, like in descend or decline).
So, if something is in a decadent state, it’s deteriorating?
Yes, becoming corrupt or demoralized. Decadence is a state of decay. Generally, decadent and decadence are used figuratively, referring not to physical decay, but to moral or spiritual decay.
Ah, so you’d talk about a decadent society, not necessarily a cadaverous one. That’s a clear distinction. And finally, for our tenth idea: full of pain and misery.
The Latin root doleo means to suffer or grieve. So, one who is mournful and sad, whose melancholy comes from physical pain or mental distress, who seems to be suffering or grieving, is called dolorous.
Dolorous. That evokes a strong sense of sorrow. Like a mournful piece of music or a scene in a sad movie.
Indeed. Dolor is a poetic synonym for grief. And doleful refers somewhat humorously to exaggerated dismalness, sadness, or dreariness.
So, doleful is a bit lighter than dolorous?
Yes, often with a touch of irony or humor. And then there’s condole. Etymologically, it means "to suffer or grieve with" (con- means "with, together"). While condole is less common as a verb, the noun condolence is very frequently heard.
Ah, like "Let me offer you my condolences," usually said to someone mourning a death. Or condolence cards.
Precisely. When you condole with someone, you are, in effect, saying, "I am suffering or grieving with you". It's a beautiful expression of empathy.
Wow, Chris, that was an incredible journey through ten different kinds of "fullness"! From being obsequious to dolorous, and all the fascinating words in between. It really shows how powerful understanding these Latin roots and suffixes can be.
It truly does, Rachel. Each of these words, with its -ous ending, paints a vivid picture of being full of a particular quality, state, or characteristic. And knowing the root helps unlock so much meaning.
Absolutely. This has been so insightful and fun. Thank you, Chris, for guiding us through these wonderful words.
My pleasure, Rachel. And thank you, dear listeners, for joining us on "Word Wonders". Keep an ear out for those -ous words in your daily life, and you'll start to see a whole new layer of meaning.
Yes, you'll be full of new vocabulary! Join us next time for more word adventures. Bye for now!
Goodbye!
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