# Tell me any word, I show you how it come from Greek roots **URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-any-word-i-show-you-how-it-come-from-greek-roots/125315 **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share **Created:** [August 24, 2002, 12:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-any-word-i-show-you-how-it-come-from-greek-roots/125315 "2002-08-24T00:28:19Z") **Posts on this page:** 20 **Page:** 3
### Author: ![Mushono](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/cdc98d/32.png) [@Mushono](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mushono) #### Post date: [November 17, 2002, 11:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-any-word-i-show-you-how-it-come-from-greek-roots/125315/41 "2002-11-17T23:40:13Z")
salad touch lisp filling ---
### Author: ![Blackeyes](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/f6c823/32.png) [@Blackeyes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blackeyes) #### Post date: [November 17, 2002, 11:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-any-word-i-show-you-how-it-come-from-greek-roots/125315/42 "2002-11-17T23:47:53Z")
> [@](#): > > Actually, If I’m not mistaken, the vast majority of English (not our present day mixing pot American English) comes from latin. I hate latin, so I wont bother to answer where words come from in it. bah. stupid Romans… :eek: Furcifer! Tu es stultior quam asinus, irrumator. :wally Actually, the best part about Latin class is knowing how to say “Soylient Green is people! It’s PEOPLE!” in Latin. ---
### Author: ![Michael\_Ellis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/977dab/32.png) [@Michael\_Ellis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Michael_Ellis) #### Post date: [November 17, 2002, 11:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-any-word-i-show-you-how-it-come-from-greek-roots/125315/43 "2002-11-17T23:58:48Z")
How about Dilbert? ---
### Author: ![Francesca](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/9fc348/32.png) [@Francesca](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Francesca) #### Post date: [November 18, 2002, 12:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-any-word-i-show-you-how-it-come-from-greek-roots/125315/44 "2002-11-18T00:11:51Z")
Pajamas ---
### Author: ![Kilvert\_s\_Pagan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/c37758/32.png) [@Kilvert\_s\_Pagan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kilvert_s_Pagan) #### Post date: [November 18, 2002, 12:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-any-word-i-show-you-how-it-come-from-greek-roots/125315/45 "2002-11-18T00:26:26Z")
taboo ---
### Author: ![Miss\_Magic8ball](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Miss\_Magic8ball](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miss_Magic8ball) #### Post date: [November 18, 2002, 12:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-any-word-i-show-you-how-it-come-from-greek-roots/125315/46 "2002-11-18T00:43:07Z")
Hows about fuck? shit? bitch? what canI say… i’m 15! I’m ever curious… ---
### Author: ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A) #### Post date: [November 18, 2002, 12:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-any-word-i-show-you-how-it-come-from-greek-roots/125315/47 "2002-11-18T00:46:46Z")
**Sauna**. ---
### Author: ![typhoon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ed8c4c/32.png) [@typhoon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/typhoon) #### Post date: [November 18, 2002, 12:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-any-word-i-show-you-how-it-come-from-greek-roots/125315/48 "2002-11-18T00:54:25Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by ThatGuyWithPants \* > \*\*Actually, If I’m not mistaken, the vast majority of English (not our present day mixing pot American English) comes from latin. I hate latin, so I wont bother to answer where words come from in it. bah. stupid Romans… \*\* If you wanna get into it, modern English comes from Old English/Anglo Saxon (which has basically the Latin alphabet with the ash, thorn, and eth and evolved alongside the rest of the Western Germanic languages, from Old Norse) and, thanks to William the Conqueror, Middle French (which comes from Latin, which comes from Greek, which comes from, um, Phaecian, I guess). Anyway, since Latin basically came from Greek–Ancient Greece was known as the birthplace of Western culture and is where the Romans borrowed things like language and architecture, whereas the Romans were known better for building empires and democracy and whatnot–most English words can be traced back to Greek. ---
### Author: ![Kat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/b19c9b/32.png) [@Kat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kat) #### Post date: [November 18, 2002, 2:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-any-word-i-show-you-how-it-come-from-greek-roots/125315/49 "2002-11-18T02:28:08Z")
Schmuck? Chop suey? Curry? Dramliza? Smidgen? Googol? Thermos? Cellophane? ---
### Author: ![iampunha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/74df32/32.png) [@iampunha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iampunha) #### Post date: [November 18, 2002, 2:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-any-word-i-show-you-how-it-come-from-greek-roots/125315/50 "2002-11-18T02:52:33Z")
yacht pal sandusky fart felch yogurt whoosh;) ---
### Author: ![Fiendish\_Astronaut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fiendish_astronaut/32/3295_2.png) [@Fiendish\_Astronaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiendish_Astronaut) #### Post date: [November 18, 2002, 3:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-any-word-i-show-you-how-it-come-from-greek-roots/125315/51 "2002-11-18T03:32:54Z")
okay then, what about canoe? ---
### Author: ![Super\_Gnat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e274bd/32.png) [@Super\_Gnat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Super_Gnat) #### Post date: [November 18, 2002, 3:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-any-word-i-show-you-how-it-come-from-greek-roots/125315/52 "2002-11-18T03:37:11Z")
zombie wigwam Luthien 🙂 ---
### Author: ![Scuba\_Ben](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/278dde/32.png) [@Scuba\_Ben](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scuba_Ben) #### Post date: [November 18, 2002, 2:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-any-word-i-show-you-how-it-come-from-greek-roots/125315/53 "2002-11-18T14:41:54Z")
camel chutzpah nothosonomia osculation epeolatry ---
### Author: ![vanilla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/f19dbf/32.png) [@vanilla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vanilla) #### Post date: [November 18, 2002, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-any-word-i-show-you-how-it-come-from-greek-roots/125315/54 "2002-11-18T14:53:25Z")
the ---
### Author: ![nashiitashii](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/7c8e57/32.png) [@nashiitashii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nashiitashii) #### Post date: [November 18, 2002, 4:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-any-word-i-show-you-how-it-come-from-greek-roots/125315/55 "2002-11-18T16:29:31Z")
ásatru fjörd ---
### Author: ![Olentzero](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/90ced4/32.png) [@Olentzero](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Olentzero) #### Post date: [November 18, 2002, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-any-word-i-show-you-how-it-come-from-greek-roots/125315/56 "2002-11-18T16:52:36Z")
I really hate to kill all the fun, but this thread cries out for a link to [Edo Nyland](http://www.islandnet.com/~edonon/homepage.htm). But while we’re at it, how about “molasses”? ---
### Author: ![etv78](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/d78d45/32.png) [@etv78](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/etv78) #### Post date: [November 18, 2002, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-any-word-i-show-you-how-it-come-from-greek-roots/125315/57 "2002-11-18T19:00:36Z")
Spina ---
### Author: ![etv78](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/d78d45/32.png) [@etv78](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/etv78) #### Post date: [November 18, 2002, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-any-word-i-show-you-how-it-come-from-greek-roots/125315/58 "2002-11-18T19:03:24Z")
What about Bifida? BTW, I meant this one in the 1st place. ---
### Author: ![Lucki\_Chaarms](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/9de0a6/32.png) [@Lucki\_Chaarms](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucki_Chaarms) #### Post date: [November 18, 2002, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-any-word-i-show-you-how-it-come-from-greek-roots/125315/59 "2002-11-18T19:16:49Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Blackeyes \* > \*\*:eek: Furcifer! Tu es stultior quam asinus, irrumator. :wally > > \*\* Dude, exclaiming “Furcifer!” in a group of Latin-literate people is somehow so damned funny. It’s weird, I tell ya. I get “Scoundrel! You are more stupid than a donkey, ???”. What does irrumator mean? And is there a decent online Latin dictionary, or am I going to have to haul out my Cassell’s? LC ---
### Author: ![Lucki\_Chaarms](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/9de0a6/32.png) [@Lucki\_Chaarms](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucki_Chaarms) #### Post date: [November 18, 2002, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-any-word-i-show-you-how-it-come-from-greek-roots/125315/60 "2002-11-18T19:21:54Z")
Oh, and wouldn’t it be “quam asinum”? LC [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-any-word-i-show-you-how-it-come-from-greek-roots/125315.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-any-word-i-show-you-how-it-come-from-greek-roots/125315.md?page=4)