Everyday Words Lesson 1
Base: Examples:
1. BENE - well; good benefit, benediction
2. FAC, FIC, FACT, FECT, FY - to do; to make factory, facile
3. LOQUI, LOCUT - to speak colloquial, elocution
4. MAGN - great magnitude, magnify, magnanimous
5. MULT - many multinational, multitude
6. PLIC, PLICIT, PLEX, PLY - to fold; to tangle complex, implicate, explicit
7. RECT(I) - right; straight direct, rector
8. SACR, SECR, ECR - sacred; holy sacrament, sacrilegious
9. SPEC, SPIC, SPECT - to look spectacle, circumspect, spectator
10. TURB - to disturb turbulent, imperturbable
11. UND, OUND - to wave abound, undulate, abundant
12. VOL - to wish; will voluntary, volition, volunteer
Word of Interest:
MUSCLE The word MUSCLE is made from the Latin base MUS, which means "mouse" in Latin. Muscle is so named because the ancients thought that flexing a bicep looked like a mouse running up and down the arm.
Everyday Words List 2
Base: Example:
1. AQU(A) - water aquarium, aqueous 2. ART, ERT - art; skill, craft artist, artful, artifact, inert 3. DIC(T) - to say dictation, dictionary, contradict, predict, edict 4. DUC(T) - to lead duke, produce, introduction, seduce 5. EQU - equal; even equation, inequity, equitable 6. NUL(L) - nothing annul, nullify, nulliparous 7. POT - power potential, potent, omnipotent, impotent 8. PUNG, PUNCT, POIGN, PUG - to prick; to point punch, puncture, poignant, pungent, punctilio 9. SEQU(I), SECUT - to follow second, consecutive, sequence, sequel, pursue, sect, obsequious, obsequies
10. SIMIL, SIMUL - like; same simultaneous, similar, facsimile, assimilate 11. TEMPOR - time temporary, temporal, extemporaneous, contemporary
12. VERB - word; verb proverb, verbatim, adverb, verbose, verbiage
Word of Interest
LUNATIC The ancients believed that heavenly bodies played a major role in shaping the lives of human beings. Strange things happened when people became too preoccupied with the moon. They began to act strange or "moonstruck." The word lunatic stems from this strange behavior. The base LUN means "moon," so lunatic literally means "moonstruck."
Everyday Words List 3
Base: Example:
1. ANIM – life; mind; feeling animal, animated, animosity 2. CAPIT, CIPIT (CEPS) – head capital, decapitate, bicep, captain, cap, cape 3. GRAND – big; great grandiose, aggrandizement, grand 4. GREG – flock; herd congregate, gregarious, segregation, egregious 5. JUR – law; to swear jury, injury, abjure, jurisdiction 6. LEG (LIG), LECT (LIT) – to choose; to gather collect, eligible, election, select 7. MUT – to change mutate, mutant, immutable 8. PED – foot pedal, impediment, pedestrian, centipede 9. PURG – to clear purge, purgatory 10. SENT, SENS – to feel; to think sense, sensory, resent, consent, sentimental, sensible 11. TENU – stretched out; thin tense, tension, extenuating, pretend, attend, tendon 12. VI – way; road via, deviate, deviant, obvious
Word of Interest
CABBAGE Is it any surprise that the word CABBAGE comes from the Latin word caput, which means “head”…
Everyday Words List 4
Base: Example:
1. UNI – one unity, universe, unite, unique, union, unilateral, 2. BI(N) - two; twice bicycle, biangular, bilateral, bicameral, biannual, billion 3. TRI – three triplet, trinity, triune, triangle, triathlon, trimester, trillion 4. QUADR(U) – four quartet, quadruple, quadrilateral, quadriceps, quadrillion 5. QUINQUE – five quinquennial 6. SEX(T) - six; sixth sextet, sextuple, sexagenarian, sexagesimal 7. SEPT, SEPTEM – seven September, septangle, septillion, septet, septennial 8. OCT – eight October, octagon, octopus, octant, octogenarian, octane 9. NOVEM – nine November 10. DECEM – ten December, decennial 11. CENT – hundred century, centennial, centipede, cent, percent, centimeter 12. MIL(L) – thousand mile, million, millennium, millimeter, millipede
13. DU – twice duo, dual, duplicate, double, 14. TERTI – third tertiary 15. QUART – fourth quart, quarter, quartet 16. QUINT – fifth quintet, quintuplet, quintessential 17. SEPTIM – seventh ------18. OCTAV – eighth octave, octant 19. NON – ninth noon, nonagon, nonagenarian 20. DECI, DECIM – tenth decimal, decimeter, decennial, decimate
Word of Interest
DECIMATE The word decimate includes the Latin base DECIM meaning “tenth.” However, the definition of the word decimate is “to destroy a large part of.” It was a common practice of the ancient Roman army to kill one of every ten men if the men rebelled against their commander. Thus over time, decimate has come to mean “to destroy a great number or to cause heavy losses.”
Everyday Words List 5
Base: Example:
1. ANN(U), ENN(I) – year annual, perennial, biennial, annuity, anniversary, superannuated
2. CED, CESS - to go; to yield process, exceed, precede, necessary, intercede, antecedent, succeed
3. CORD – heart accord, discord, record, cordially, core, cardio, cardiac
4. FLOR – flower florist, florid, Florida, floral, florid, effloresce
5. FUND, FUS (FOUND) - to pour; to melt confuse, infuse, confound, transfusion, fusible, refund,
6. GRAD, GRESS - to step; to go progress, regress, congress, digress, graduate, grade, centigrade degrade, aggressive, degree
7. MAL(E), MALIGN – bad malice, malicious, malediction, malaria, malevolent, maleficent
8. SANCT - holy, sacred sanctity, sanctuary, sanctimonious, sacrosanct, saint
9. SOL – alone sole, solo, solitary, solitude, desolate, soliloquy, solitaire
10. TEN (TIN), TENT (TAIN) - to hold retain, container, maintain, detain, sustain, obtain, attain, abstain, entertain, tenant, tenable
11. VID, VIS - to see visual, video, vista, revise, provide, provision, evident, supervise
12. VOC - to call vocal, vocation, revoke, convocation, provoke, advocate, invoke, equivocal
Word of Interest
CEREAL The English word cereal comes from Ceres, the Roman goddess of the harvest. The Latin base CER means “grain.”
Everyday Words List 6
Base: Example:
1. CLAM (CLAIM) - to cry out proclaim, clamorous, exclaim, reclaim, acclamation
2. FER - to carry; to bear transfer, fertile, aquifer, vociferous, prefer, different, refer, offer, suffer, circumference, conifer
3. LEV - to lift, light (in weight) elevate, alleviate, lever, levity, relieve, levee
4. LUD, LUS - to play; to mock ludicrous, illusion, collusion, allude, delude, elusive, prelude
5. MISC - to mix miscellaneous, miscellany, miscible
6. MORT – death mortal, immortal, mortician, mortality, mortgage
7. OMNI(I) – all omnipotent, omnipresent, omniscient, omnivore, omnibus
8. SEMI - half; partly semicircle, semicentennial, semifinal, semicolon, semiannual
9. SEN – old senior, senate, senile, senescent
10. STRING, STRICT (STRAIN) - to tie, bind, fasten string, strict, strain, restrict, restrain, constrain, astringent, stress
11. TORQU, TORT - to twist contortionist, torque, extortion, tortuous, distort, torture
12. VERT, VERS - to turn invert, convert, pervert, revert, divert, introvert, extrovert, universe, vertebra, adverse, advertise, avert, versus
Words of Interest:
LUCIFER You may have only heard the name Lucifer as the name for the leader of the devils, who, according to Christian mythology, was an angel cast from heaven into hell because he rebelled against God. In English Lucifer is usually identified with Satan. The name Lucifer comes from the Latin bases LUX (light) and FER (to carry) and means “bearer of light” or “morning star,” which refers to his former splendor as the greatest of the angels. However, the Latin word was never used only in this way and was applied to others also, including John the Baptist and Jesus. It has also been used to refer to the planet Venus as the first “star” in the morning sky. As an adjective, the Latin word lucifer meant "light-bringing" and was applied to the moon. As a noun, it meant "morning star", or, in Roman mythology, the son of Aurora. In Greek mythology it was used in the story of Eos, the Venus, the Morning Star, stands out very goddess of dawn, who gave birth to the morning star Phosphorus. well in the eastern sky before sunrise. Venus reaches its maximum luminosity on September 22.
Everyday Words List 7
Base: Example:
1. CID, CIS – to cut; to kill scissors, pesticide, herbicide, patricide, matricide, regicide, homicide, decide, incision, concise, precise, incisor
2. FID, FIDEL – faith; faithful fidelity, infidelity, bona fide, affidavit, perfidy, diffident
3. FIN – end; limit; boundary final, finish, finale, define, confinement, infinity
4. LINE – line linear, lineage, curvilinear, rectilinear
5. LITER – letter; literature literal, obliterate, letter, alliteration, literature, transliteration
6. LUMIN – light; to shine illuminate, luminous, luminary
7. PART (PORT) – part; divide; share particle, portion, impart, partner, participate, partial, compartment, depart, department, partition
8. PREC – prayer precarious, deprecate, imprecation
9. SUI – self suicide, suicidal, sui generis
10. TERMIN – end; boundary term, terminal, terminally, termination, terminator, determine
11. VER – true very, verify, verdict, aver, verity, verisimilitude
12. VEST – garment vest, invest, transvestite, vestment, vesture, divest, travesty
Word of Interest:
FIDO
People sometimes choose the strangest names for their pets. Some names have obvious origins such as Blackie, Buddy, Spot, and Old Yeller. But what about Fido? Does the name Fido make more sense now that you’ve learned that FID in Latin means “faithful”?
Everyday Words List 8
Base: Example:
1. BEL(L) – war rebel, ante bellum, belligerent, bellicose, bellipotent
2. DOC, DOCT – to teach doctor, docile, document, docent, doctrine
3. FERV – to boil; to bubble fervor, fervent, fervid, effervescent, ferment
4. FRATR, FRATERN – brother fraternal, fraternity, fraternize
5. GER, GEST – to carry; to produce ingest, digest, suggest, gesture, register, exaggerate, congeries
6. GRAV – heavy grave, gravity, gravid, gravitate, aggravation, gravitas
7. HOM, HOMO – man homicide, Homo sapiens, hominoid, hominine
8. MATR, MATERN – mother maternal, maternity, alma mater, matriarch, matrilocal, matrilateral
9. MOLL – soft mollusk, emollient, mollify, mollification
10. PATR, PATERN – father paternal, paternity, patron, patriot, expatriate, patronym
11. PEND, PENS – to hang; to weigh; to pay pensive, pendulum, recompense, compendium, impending, depend, dispense, compensate, stipend, pension, suspend, suspense, pendant
12. SOROR – sister sorority, sororal,
Word of Interest:
IGNORAMUS
Have you ever called someone an ignoramus? Ignoramus literally means "we do not know." It is an old legal term that a grand jury used when there wasn’t enough evidence to bring someone to trial. Using it in the sense of "ignorant person" came from the title role of George Ruggle's 1615 play satirizing the ignorance of common lawyers.
Everyday Words List 9
Base: Example:
1. AMB(I) – both ambiguous, ambivalent, ambidextrous, ambisinister, ambivert
2. AUD, AUDIT – to hear audio, auditorium, audition, audience
3. CORP, CORPOR (CORPUS) – body corpse, corporation, corporal, incorporate, corpulent
4. FLU, FLUX – to flow fluid, influx, reflux, fluent, influence, affluent
5. FORM – form; shape formulate, reform, deform, platform, transform
6. GEN, GENER, GENIT – race; kind; to produce gene, generate, generation, regenerate, genesis, genealogy
7. JAC, JECT – to throw eject, reject, inject, subject, project, interjection, conjecture, trajectory, object
8. MAN(U), (MAIN) – hand manual, manage, manicure, manufacture, manuscript, manipulate, maintain, maneuver
9. PORT – to carry; port portable, transport, import, export, report, deport, support, airport, opportunity, portfolio, deportment
10. REX, REG – king; royal regal, regicide, regalia
11. VAL (VAIL) – strong; worthy value, valid, valor, prevail, equivalent, avail, valiant
12. VICT (VANQU), VINC – to conquer victory, victor, vanquish, invincible, convince
Words of Interest:
DISASTER
The word disaster comes from the Greek prefix dis- meaning “bad,” and
aster meaning “star”. The root of the word disaster ("bad star" in Greek)
comes from the ancient belief that misfortune was caused by the
position of planets.
Everyday Words List 10
Base: Example:
1. ACT(IG), AG – to do; to drive act, agent, agenda, agility, navigation, fumigation, agitate, cogent, ambiguity
2. AM – to love amour, amity, amigo, enamor, enemy, amorous, amiable, paramour
3. ERR – to wander error, erratic, aberration, inerrant, aberrant, errant
4. FIRM - firm; strong confirm, affirm, infirm, firmament
5. FLECT, FLEX – to bend flexible, deflect, circumflex, inflection, reflection, retroflex
6. LING(U) – language; tongue language, linguist, lingo, multilingual
7. MIT(T), MIS(S) – to send transmit, emit, admit, omit, permit, submit, remit, commit, promise, surmise, demise, intermission, missile, mission
8. ODOR – smell odor, odoriferous, deodorize, odorous
9. PLAC – to please; to appease placate, complacence, placid
10. PRIM – first prime, primer, primary, primitive, primate, primogenitor, primacy
11. SANGUIN (SANG) – blood sanguine, consanguinity, sanguinary
12. TANG (TING), TACT (TAG) – to touch tactile, intact, tact, tangent, contingent, tangible, contaminate, contact
Words of Interest:
SANGUINE
The word sanguine includes the Latin base SANGUIN meaning “blood”; however, the meaning of sanguine is optimistic. How do you suppose that blood and optimism could be related? It happened like this: Ancient people believed that there were four humors in every person. These humors were thought to influence a person’s health and behavior. Sanguine means “cheerful, hopeful, confident” because these qualities were thought to spring from an excess of blood as one of the four humors.
Everyday Words List 11
Base: Example:
1. CLUD, CLUS (CLOS) – to close include, exclude, conclusion, reclusive, seclude, foreclosure, seclusion, malocclusion
2. CRUC – cross cruise, crucial, crucifix, excruciating, crucify
3. CUR(E) – care cure-all, pedicure, curator, accurate
4. MILIT – soldier militia, military
5. NAV - ship; boat navy, naval, navigate, navicular
6. NOMEN, NOMIN (NOM) – name; noun nominate, binomial, anonymous, ignominy
7. PON, POSIT (POSE) (POUND) – to place; to put pose, position, posture, positive, imposter, opponent, suppose, impose, dispose, compose, transpose, propound, expound
8. PROL – offspring prolific, proliferate, proletariat, prolicide
9. SPIR (SPRIT) – to breathe spirit, sprite, esprit, respire, respiration, spirometer, aspiration, perspire, conspire, expire, transpire, inspire
10. STRU, STRUCT – to build structure, construction, instruction, obstruction, industry, destroy
11. TRUD, TRUS – to push; to thrust protrude, intrude, extrude, obtrusive, abstruse
12. VULG – common vulgar, vulgarity, divulge, vulgus
Words of Interest:
VILLIAN, NICE
The meaning of a word often undergoes change. Sometimes the meaning degenerates (goes from good to bad), and sometimes the meaning ameliorates (goes from bad to good). Villain and nice are examples. “Villain” used to mean a servant, “one who works at a villa”. The word has degenerated to its present meaning “scoundrel, criminal”. In contrast, the word “nice” has ameliorated from its previous meaning “ignorant, unknowing” to its current definition “kind, agreeable”.
Everyday Words List 12
Base Examples:
1. AC(U), ACR - sharp acid, acrid, acumen, acrimony, acute, acuity
2. CAP (CIP), CAPT (CEPT) - to take; to seize capture, captivate, intercept, capacious, participate, reception
3. CRED, CREDIT - to believe; to trust credit, credible, incredulous, credo, credentials
4. CUR(R), CURS, (COURS)- to run; to go course, cursory, cursive, concourse, occur, courier
5. DE, DIV - a god divine, deity, divinity
6. NUNCI (NOUNCE) - to report announce, pronounce, denounce, renounce, enunciate
7. PLEN - full plenty, plentitude, plenary, replenish
8. PRESS - to press impress, depress, suppress, repress, express, compress, oppress
9. SCRIB, SCRIPT - to write subscribe, describe, transcribe, ascribe, circumscribe, postscript, transcript, scripture, inscription, superscript, conscription, prescription, scribble, scribe
10. SOLV, SOLUT - to loosen; free solve, solvent, solution, dissolute, resolve, dissolve
11. SON - sound sonar, resonant, consonant, dissonance, assonance, sonorous, sonogram
12. VOR - to devour; to swallow devour, voracity, voracious, carnivore, herbivore
Word of Interest:
The word LOCAVORE contains the Latin bases LOCUS (place) and VOR (devour; swallow). It is defined as a person interested in eating food produced locally (within 100 miles of its point of purchase). The word was coined in 2005 by Jessica Prentice, Local Foods Wheel co- creator, to launch a movement encouraging residents of San Francisco to eat locally produced foods for the month of August. The movement spread to the point that locavore was the Oxford American Dictionary's Word of the Year in 2007, more evidence that our language is still evolving right in front of us.
Everyday Words List 13
Base: Example:
1. CULP – blame; fault culprit, culpable, exculpate, mea culpa
2. EVAL – ages medieval, coeval, primeval,
3. FA, FAT – talk; to speak fate, infant, affable, preface, fame, defame, defamation, infamous, nefarious, bifarious
4. FORT – strong fortify, fortitude, comfort, forte
5. GRAT – grateful; pleasing gratify, gratitude, gratis, congratulate, ingrate, gratuity, gratuitous, agree, grace,
6. LATER – side lateral, collateral, bilateral
7. MESN (MEST) – month trimester, semester
8. MINOR, MINUS, MINUT – small minority, minutia, miniscule, minute, diminish
9. PROB (PROV) – good; to test probe, probation, improve, probable, approve, reprobate
10. SED (SID) (SE), – to sit; to settle reside, inside, preside, sedentary, séance, sedate, sediment, SESS (SIEGE) subside, supersede, possess, obsess, session, sedative
11. TRACTO (TREAT) – to drag; to pull tractor, traction, retreat, distract, subtract, extract, contract, attract, protractor, abstract, entreat, treaty, trace
12. VEN, VENT – to come adventure, prevent, souvenir, advent, convene, contravene, circumvent, venue, avenue, intervene, revenue, event, invent
Word of Interest:
INFANT
You would probably expect the Latin base of the word infant to mean something like “young” or “small.” Instead, its base is FA, meaning “to speak.” Thus, a young child has come to be called an infant (in = no + fant = speak) because infant means “one who cannot speak.”
Everyday Words List 14
Base: Example:
1.ALIEN – from another; strange alienate, inalienable
2.CELER – swift accelerate, deaccelerate, celerity
3.CUMB, CUB – to lie down cubicle, succumb, recumbent, incumbent, incubation
4.FIX – to fasten fixture, fixate, crucifix, affix, suffix, prefix, transfix
5.FRANGE (FRINGE), FRACT – to break fracture, fractious, infraction, refraction, fragment, fragile
6.HERB – grass; herb herbivore, herbicide, herbal, herbaceous
7.MEDI - middle medium, median, medieval, mediate, intermediate, mediocre
8.PECUNI – money pecuniary, impecunious
9.SATI(S) – enough satisfaction, satiate, insatiable, satiety
10.SEC (SEG), SECT – to cut segment, section, dissect, transect, intersect, sector
11.VIR – poison virus, virulent, viral, antivirus, rhinovirus, rotavirus, virology
12.VOLV, VOLUM, VOLUT – to roll involve, revolve, devolve, evolve, evolution, volume, voluminous, convoluted, circumvolve
Word of Interest
INSECT The word insect includes the Latin base SECT meaning “cut.” The literal meaning of insect is “that which is cut into.” An insect was so named because the ancients believed that the bodies of the bugs they examined appeared to have been divided by slicing.
Everyday Words Lesson 15
Base: Example:
1. CARN – flesh carnivore, carnage, carnal, carnality, incarnate, reincarnation, carcass
2. MON, MONIT – to warn; to remind monitor, monument, admonish, summon, monster, premonition, remonstrate
3. MOV, MOT (MOB) – to move mobile, remove, motif, automobile, motion, emotion, promotion, motility, commotion, mobilize
4. OC – eye monocle, ocular, binoculars, dextrocular, circumocular, extraocular
5. ORD, ORDIN – order ordinary, extraordinary, primordial, ordinal, ordain, exordium
6. PER(L), PULS – to drive; to push pulse, impulse, repulse, compulsive, expel, compel, repel, dispel
7. PROPRI – one's own; suitable proper, improper, property, propriety, appropriate
8. SAL (SIL), SALT (SULT) (SAIL) – to leap insult, salient, salacious, assailant, resilient, assault, somersault, exultation
9. SCI – to know science, conscience, omniscient, conscious, unconscionable, prescience
10. TERR – earth; ground terracotta, subterranean, Mediterranean, extraterrestrial, terrain
11. TRIT (TRI) – to rub; to wear trite, detriment, contrite, contrition, attrition
12. VIV, VIT – to live vital, vitality, vitamin, vivacious, vivacity, revive, revitalize
Word of Interest
CARNIVAL Carnival is a festive season that occurs before the Christian season of Lent. The term is traditionally used in areas with a large Catholic presence. Carnival season typically involves a public celebration and/or parade combining some elements of a circus, masks, and public street party. Carnival has historically referred to the often raucous festivities culminating in the day before Lent begins. Since the Lenten season involves giving up meat, it's easy to see the connection to the Latin word for meat or flesh: caro. One popular explanation has been that carnival time is when one says "farewell to flesh," or carne vale, with vale representing a Latin good-bye (literally "be strong" or "be well"). But "farewell to flesh" is actually a folk etymology with no historical basis. Etymologists believe that the term actually grew out of the Latin phrase carnem levare, or "the taking away of meat." It is believed that the 1893 Chicago World's Fair was the catalyst that brought about the modern traveling carnival. The current meaning of carnival as "a circus or fair" evolved by 1931 in North America.
Everyday Words Lesson 16
Base: Examples:
1. AGOG; AGOGUE - to bring; to lead pedagogue, synagogue, demagogue
2. ARCH(E), ARCHA(E) - ancient; chief; archaeology, monarch, archaic, oligarchy, archbishop, architect, to rule archetype; archenemy; archrival
3. COSM - universe; order; beauty cosmic, cosmetic, cosmetology, microcosm, cosmopolitan, 1. cosmonaut
4. DEM - people democracy, demagogue, pandemic, epidemic, endemic, demography
5. HELI - sun helium, heliograph, heliotrope, heliocentric
6. HOM, HOME, HOMAL - same; regular homophone, homograph, homonym, homogeneous, homologous
7. LOG, LOGY, LOGUE - speech; study of; logic, biology, phonology, dialogue, eulogy, prologue, reasoning geology, trilogy, theology, paleontology, dermatology
8. MANIA - passion for maniac, pyromania, maniacal, egomania, kleptomania, bibliomaniac, megalomania
9. MIM - to imitate mime, mimic, mimesis, pantomime
10. PHON - sound; voice phonetic, telephone, megaphone, euphony, symphony, xylophone
11. TOM(E) - to cut tonsillectomy, appendectomy, epitome, anatomy, atom
12. TYP - stamp; model type, typical, typology, stereotype, prototype
Word of Interest:
HERCULEAN
Many English words are derived from the names of Greek gods and heroes. Herculean is one such word. Hercules is the Roman name for the Greek god Heracles, who was the son of Zeus and the strongest of all heroes in Greek mythology. Hence, the word “herculean” has come to mean “very powerful” and “very difficult”.
Everyday Words Lesson 17
Base: Examples:
1. AST(ER) – star asterisk, asteroid, astrology, disaster
2. BALL, BOL, BLE – to throw ball, ballistic, anabolic, metabolism, emblem, symbol, hyperbole, parable, problem
3. CAU, CAUS – to burn caustic, cauterize, holocaust
4. GEN, GON – race; to produce gene, general, generic, generate, degenerate, genius, congenital, congenial, congener, indigenous, genocide, progeny, cosmogony, autogenous, homogenous, theogony
5. GRAPH, GRAM – writing; written program, paragraph, phonograph, graphologist, choreography, graphite, autograph, calligraphy, graffiti, diagram
6. HEM, HEMAT(EM) – blood hemoglobin, hemorrhage, hemophilia, hematology, leukemia
7. LITH, LITE – stone monolith, lithograph, lithotomy, Neolithic
8. MNE – to remember mnemonic, amnesia
9. POD – foot podium, podiatrist, arthropod, tripod
10. POL, POLIS – city; state politics, cosmopolitan, policy, police, metropolis
11. TACT, TAX – arrangement syntax, tactic, homotaxis, taxidermy, taxonomy
12. TELE – distant telephone, telegram, telegraph, teleport, telecommute, telekinesis, telescope, telepathy
Word of Interest: POLIS
Polis means “city” in Greek. Many common place names contain the base POL. Naples was originally Neapolis or “new city”. Constantinople was “Constantine’s city,” and the more recently name Annapolis is the city named for Queen Anne. Comic book fans will recognize the city named Metropolis. These cities are found in the U.S.:
Copperopolis, California Coraopolis, Pennsylvania Gallipolis, Ohio Indianapolis, Indiana Kannapolis, North Carolina Lithopolis, Ohio Minneapolis, Minnesota Opolis, Kansas Teutopolis, Illinois Uniopolis, Ohio Thermopolis, Wyoming
A number of words end in -polis. Most refer to a special kind of city and/or state. For example: Astropolis – a star-scaled city/industry area; a complex space station; a European star-related festival Cosmopolis – a large urban center with a population of many different cultural backgrounds Ecumenopolis – a city that covers an entire planet, usually seen in science fiction Megalopolis – created by the merging of several cities and their suburbs Metropolis – the mother city of a colony; a metropolitan area (major urban population center) Necropolis ("city of the dead") – a graveyard Technopolis – a city with high-tech industry; a room of computers; the Internet