"If the English language made any sense, would have something to do with a shortage
AS ANYONE WHO'S sat through English 101 can tell you, our national language is baffling. And yet, somehow, the average American has man aged to learn 42,000 words. Granted, many are of the a, the, and but variety.
Still, few of us know how the words we utter were derived or what they really mean. What follows is a hodgepodge (there's a good word!) of fun facts about the language that gave us Shakespeare, Hemingway, Angelou, and those dolts on Twitter.
THE STORY BEHIND THE WORD
Did you know that the word muscle comes from the Latin musculus, which means "little mouse"? Apparently, the ancient Romans thought that the movement of a muscle, especially a flexed bicep, looked as if a mouse were running under the skin. Now there's a fun visual. And that's not even the weirdest example of a word with odd, ancient origins creeping-like mice under our skin-into modern English.
Here are a few of our favorites.
QUARANTINE The first quarantine was in Venice, Italy, while bubonic plague was ravaging the mainland. To help curb the spread of infection, visiting ships had to spend 40 days at anchor before entering the city. (Worst.Cruise. Ever!!!) The word quarantine comes from the Italian phrase quaranta giorni: literally, "40 days."
GALAXY Thousands of years ago, ancient Greek stargazers looked up at the sky and saw a white river of light arcing overhead. Their reaction? "I could really go for some cookies right now." The Greeks named that broad band of stars galaxias-which stems from the word gála, meaning "milk." To this day, we call our galaxy the Milky Way.
Denne historien er fra September 2022-utgaven av Reader's Digest US.
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Denne historien er fra September 2022-utgaven av Reader's Digest US.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
Do You Kiss Your Dog? - Find out how gross your questionable habits really are, according to health experts
I admit it, when it comes to food, I have some eeew-inducing practices, like skimming mold off old cheddar and feeding the rest to my unsuspecting family. We're still alive, so how bad can it be? Because our gross human habits fall somewhere along the spectrum from mildly cringeworthy to full-on repulsive, I reached out to experts to find out where some common behaviors land on the gross-o-meter.
What's Ailing Our Doctors? - Today's physicians are burned out and battered by spreadsheets. We patients suffer too.
Today’s physicians are burned out and battered by spreadsheets. We patients suffer too. America's doctors are in crisis. Six in 10 physicians say they're burned out, with burnout rates for some specialties, such as primary care, reaching 70%. When polled by the American Medical Association, 40% of doctors said they were considering leaving their practices in the next two years. Another study, conducted by health-care industry publisher Elsevier, revealed concerns about mental health and burnout: 63% of med students in the United States reported that they had no intention of practicing clinical medicine after graduation and will instead work as lab researchers or academics. This is despite a predicted shortage of 124,000 physicians over the next 10 years.
Now Hear This
Losing your hearing suddenly, even if there is no pain, is always urgent
Go for the Gumbo
The soulful stew synonymous with Louisiana is delicious anywhere you eat it
BETWEEN A ROCK AND A HARD PLACE
Pinned by a giant boulder, a hiker had two choices: panic or gut it out. He did both.
Fathers of the Bride
A young woman finds a unique way to honor the many men who helped her survive her childhood
MY SMART PET
These clever critters are some smart C-O-O-K-I-E-S
How Hobbies Help Us
Far from a waste of time, pastimes are good for body, brain and spirit
1+1 = MORE (or LESS)
A math whiz encourages you to play with your numbers
That Kind of Time
A dressing-room encounter made me get real about aging