# Obvious word etymologies you realise after the millionth time **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 6, 2015, 9:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obvious-word-etymologies-you-realise-after-the-millionth-time/711958 "2015-02-06T09:00:31Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![BOOM](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/c4cdca/32.png) [@BOOM](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BOOM)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2015, 9:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obvious-word-etymologies-you-realise-after-the-millionth-time/711958/1 "2015-02-06T09:00:31Z")
Prompted by watching Wolf Hall on the BBC (Henry VIII, etc) I suddenly twigged – after 50 years! – that the origin of ‘protestant’ is … wait for it … protest. Can’t believe it. How could I not join those dots up: > [@](#): > > The word ‘Protestant’ derives from the protests made by German princes at the Second Diet of Speyer in 1529. The Diet voted to end the toleration of those who followed the teachings of Martin Luther within Germany, which had previously been granted at the first Diet in 1526. 50 years already! :smack: I had another awakening earlier in the week as well but … that’ll come back to me. Have you got anything? p.s. thanks Annie-Xmas for the thread title inspiration ---
**Author:** ![butterfiles](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/b3f665/32.png) [@butterfiles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/butterfiles)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2015, 10:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obvious-word-etymologies-you-realise-after-the-millionth-time/711958/2 "2015-02-06T10:18:24Z")
Czar and Caesar ---
**Author:** ![Steken](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e274bd/32.png) [@Steken](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steken)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2015, 11:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obvious-word-etymologies-you-realise-after-the-millionth-time/711958/3 "2015-02-06T11:44:36Z")
> [@butterfiles](#): > > Czar and Caesar And Kaiser. ---
**Author:** ![Giles](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/giles/32/60_2.png) [@Giles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Giles)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2015, 11:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obvious-word-etymologies-you-realise-after-the-millionth-time/711958/4 "2015-02-06T11:57:20Z")
> [@Steken](#): > > And Kaiser. And the first part of the name of the Spanish city of Zaragoza (derived from Caesar Augusta). ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2015, 12:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obvious-word-etymologies-you-realise-after-the-millionth-time/711958/5 "2015-02-06T12:01:07Z")
_Atone_ feels like it should be derived from some old Latin word or other, but incredibly it’s just a fusion of the plain English words “at” and “one”! (It used to mean something closer to “agree” – that is, to be “at one” with someone or something – rather than “seek forgiveness through ameliorative action”). ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2015, 12:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obvious-word-etymologies-you-realise-after-the-millionth-time/711958/6 "2015-02-06T12:02:38Z")
> [@Giles](#): > > And the first part of the name of the Spanish city of Zaragoza (derived from Caesar Augusta). And Jersey (Caesaria)…and therefore, New Jersey. ---
**Author:** ![Flywheel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/eb8c5e/32.png) [@Flywheel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Flywheel)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2015, 1:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obvious-word-etymologies-you-realise-after-the-millionth-time/711958/7 "2015-02-06T13:42:58Z")
Painstaking = “pains-taking,” not “pain-staking” ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2015, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obvious-word-etymologies-you-realise-after-the-millionth-time/711958/8 "2015-02-06T15:24:20Z")
“Misled” (mis + led, i.e., led astray), which for years I thought was pronounced “ **mi** -zld” and was closer to “cheated” than “deceived.” ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2015, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obvious-word-etymologies-you-realise-after-the-millionth-time/711958/9 "2015-02-06T15:43:48Z")
Mediterranean = (the sea at the) Middle of the World; similar to Romans referring to it as “Our Sea” Mare Nostrum. Mesopotamia = Between Two Rivers\* I tossed around these words but didn’t break them down until after college… \*as opposed to Mesoacrostichum = Between Two Ferns 😉 ---
**Author:** ![cjepson](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a9adbd/32.png) [@cjepson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cjepson)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2015, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obvious-word-etymologies-you-realise-after-the-millionth-time/711958/10 "2015-02-06T15:56:08Z")
Yeah, this sort of thing happens to me a lot, and I usually forget it pretty quickly. Let’s see… I remember suddenly realizing that they’re called “crackers” because they crack… and that a “sucker” is a person who has no more knowledge of the world than a not-yet-weaned baby… and there were certain words that I had never quite bothered to realize are another common word with a prefix, like re-move and mis-take. (The latter occurred to me only when I heard a German pronounce the word with the accent on the first syllable.) I also seem to have trouble recognizing “baby talk” etymology. It was quite awhile before I figured out that “tummy” is literally the word “stomach” in baby talk, and I never realized until recently that the word “sissy” means “sister”. ---
**Author:** ![Nuveena](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/a587f6/32.png) [@Nuveena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nuveena)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2015, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obvious-word-etymologies-you-realise-after-the-millionth-time/711958/11 "2015-02-06T17:25:55Z")
It took me an embarrassingly long time to realize the frozen potato brand Ore-Ida is short for Oregon and Idaho. ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2015, 6:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obvious-word-etymologies-you-realise-after-the-millionth-time/711958/12 "2015-02-06T18:08:30Z")
> [@cjepson](#): > > … and that a “sucker” is a person who has no more knowledge of the world than a not-yet-weaned baby… :smack: ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Angel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/d26b3c/32.png) [@Johnny\_Angel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Angel)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2015, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obvious-word-etymologies-you-realise-after-the-millionth-time/711958/13 "2015-02-06T18:20:09Z")
In English we say ‘concrete’ when we mean cement mixed with gravel. It occurred to me that _concrētum_ in Latin would mean ‘with chalk’. Interesting. I looked it up and it turns out I was quite wrong. _Concrētum_ comes from _concrēscere_, to grow together, i.e., congeal. ---
**Author:** ![Nom\_de\_Plume](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/85f322/32.png) [@Nom\_de\_Plume](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nom_de_Plume)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2015, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obvious-word-etymologies-you-realise-after-the-millionth-time/711958/14 "2015-02-06T18:41:26Z")
When I was learning Italian, I thought the word for lawyer, avvocato, was such a weird word. I immediately thought of the fruit, avocado. I was talking to my cousin, a lawyer, saying what a weird word Italians have for lawyer. Of course, he knew it meant an advocate. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2015, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obvious-word-etymologies-you-realise-after-the-millionth-time/711958/15 "2015-02-06T18:45:48Z")
“Pizza” and “Pita” are basically the same word, describing basically the same thing - a round piece of flat bread. ---
**Author:** ![Sherrerd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sherrerd/32/8_2.png) [@Sherrerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sherrerd)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2015, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obvious-word-etymologies-you-realise-after-the-millionth-time/711958/16 "2015-02-06T18:48:51Z")
I remember being interested to learn that the Romans called their head god Jupiter as a derivation of “Zeus Pater” (via “Deus Pater”)…father Zeus. Those Romans weren’t shy about taking the best from ancient and classical Greek culture. ---
**Author:** ![Chimera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Chimera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chimera)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2015, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obvious-word-etymologies-you-realise-after-the-millionth-time/711958/17 "2015-02-06T19:32:15Z")
Before After Be Fore Aft er Fore, Aft. How nautical. ---
**Author:** ![BOOM](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/c4cdca/32.png) [@BOOM](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BOOM)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2015, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obvious-word-etymologies-you-realise-after-the-millionth-time/711958/18 "2015-02-06T19:37:18Z")
I think you just won the Internet for this period. ---
**Author:** ![Novelty\_Bobble](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Novelty\_Bobble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Novelty_Bobble)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2015, 7:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obvious-word-etymologies-you-realise-after-the-millionth-time/711958/19 "2015-02-06T19:39:57Z")
> [@Steken](#): > > And Kaiser. And Shah for that matter (and Checkmate) ---
**Author:** ![Springtime\_for\_Spacers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Springtime\_for\_Spacers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Springtime_for_Spacers)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2015, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obvious-word-etymologies-you-realise-after-the-millionth-time/711958/20 "2015-02-06T19:42:55Z")
> [@Steken](#): > > And Kaiser. Well, not quite on topic, I was going to post that the title Shah is also derived from Caesar, but, on checking it doesn’t. So the “obvious” etymology is wrong 🙂 > [@](#): > > [What’s the source for the Persian shah being derived from Caesar? From everything I can find (in sources both offline and on), it comes from the Old Persian xšāyaθiya and is in now way related to Caesar. I’ve never even heard that theory before. --Patrick T. Wynne 09:20, 21 November 2005 (UTC) > > You’re right. Shah has been used since the days of Cyrus the Great, centuries before Ceasar. --Countakeshi 01:55, 13 December 2005 (UTC)]([Talk:Etymology of the name of Julius Caesar - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talk%3AEtymology_of_the_name_of_Julius_Caesar#Shah.3F)) Simulpost with **Novelty Bobble**. Sorry about that 🙂 [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obvious-word-etymologies-you-realise-after-the-millionth-time/711958.md?page=2)