etymologyhunter

[etymologyhunter]

Etymology of 'unfixable'

un + fix + able

PIE *ne (not) → *n̥- (zero grade form) → Proto-Germanic un- → English un-

+

PIE *dʰeygʷ- (to pierce, dig, set up, fasten) → *dʰéygʷeti → Early Proto-Italic *θeigʷō → Proto-Italic *feigʷō (to insert, to fasten) → Latin fīvō (to fasten) → ¹ fīxī→ fīxus (fixed, stable, steady) → (It gets a little odd with the exact word borrowed here (see ¹) but just know that it passes through Old French as a form of fīxus → fix or fīgō → *fīgicāre → ficher/fichier/fiquier/*fixer) → Middle English fixen → fix

+

PIE *-dʰlom (forms nouns denoting a tool) → *-dʰli- (i-stem from) → Proto-Italic *-ðlis (capacity or worth of being acted upon)→ Latin -bilis + -i- or -a- based on stem → -ābilis/-ibilis (-able) → Old French -able → Middle English -able → English -able

¹ fīvō later becomes fīgō via back formation from fīxī

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[etymologyhunter]

Etymology of 'accessible'

PIE *h₂éd (near, at, to) → Proto-Italic *ad → Latin ad (to, towards) → ad- (to) + cēdō (move, proceed, withdraw, from: Proto-Italic *kedzō which has a unclear/disputed etymology) → accēdō/adcēdō (to approach, to reach, to advance, to accede) → accesus (approached, reached) + -ibilis (-able, from: PIE *-dʰlom (instrumental suffix) → *-dʰlis (i stem form) → Proto-Italic *-ðlis → Latin -bilis → -ibilis) → accessibilis (able to be accessed) → English accessible (can also be reconstructed as access + -able/-ible via the same roots)

When I say “school should be disability accessible”, I don’t just mean we need handicap rails and EAs. Kids should be able to miss a day without failing out of school. You shouldn’t be dismissed from clubs because your attendance record is “spotty” (true story). I once missed an entire week of school because of a terrible, unending migraine. I was expected to keep up with my studies despite the blinding pain that came with working on my computer. When I heard my teachers say that you couldn’t miss exams, I asked what I would have to do to be excused from them. Their response? “Either get a doctor’s note an hour before the exam or death of an immediate family member.”

I cannot express how rigid this expectation was. First of all, with my condition, I wouldn’t have enough warning about my sickness to go to the doctor and request a note. For many people, this is exceptionally difficult, especially with the current shortage of medical professionals. Next, it ignores the fact that my schedule may not line with theirs because of my medical needs. Once, I had to visit a hospital a province away (which I was on the waiting list of for over a year) on the same day as an exam. I begged my mother not to take me because I was so nervous that I would be marked as an automatic fail. I was lucky enough to make it work, but that’s only because of my spectacular support system consisting of family members and wonderful doctors.

Disabilities aren’t always about needing a bus that can accommodate wheelchairs. It’s already difficult enough for many of us to maintain school attendance without the harsh punishments involved for skipping a day. We need to be able to miss school without being punished. Only than can you claim that the school is “accessible”

[etymologyhunter]

Etymology of 'stories'

PIE *weyd- (to see) → *wéydtōr (one who has seen/one who knows) → Ancient Greek ἵστωρ (hístōr, lawspeaker, witness, wise man) → ἱστορέω (historéo, to inquire, to record) → ἱστορία (historíā, inquiry, science, written account of inquiry) → Latin historia (history, account, story) → Anglo-Norman estorie (history, story, tale) → Middle English storie/storye (story, history, myth) → English story + -s (plural marker)

Doublet of history, wit, wite, lait, and guide (all via *weyd- except 'history' which is of course from 'historia')

I love love love etymology because it's like every word has a back story intertwined with so many other words and through that you see ideas and culture and history and people and it's so beautiful okay I love word stories

[etymologyhunter]

Etymology of 'blood'

Unclear PIE origin likely some form of *bʰel- (to swell) or *bʰleh₃- (to bloom) → Proto-Germanic *blōþą (blood) → Proto-West Germanic *blōd → Old English blōd → Middle and Modern English blood

Bumping My Head Into U So Cutely Until Blood

[etymologyhunter]

Etymology of 'girl'

Proto-Germanic *gaurā (young child) + *-ilā → Proto-West Germanic *gurilā → Old English gyrele → Middle English girle/gerle → English girl

Note that many pieces of this etymology are debated and may be incomplete and incorrect such as the lack of a clear PIE origin for this word (possibly *ǵʰer- (short/less)).

shadow the hedgehog is the quintessential tumblr girl

[etymologyhunter]

It’s funny how many people can get mad at you for “I don’t accept or respect arbitrary social norms” disorders. Like hey. Fuck ypu and fuck that. And especially fuck you for folks who want/expect me to not be fucking weird?? Idk if I have autism or not. I do know that I have aspd. But the fact remains that people treat both as “bad people disorder“ and it fucking shows.

What? I didn’t stroke off your ego? I didn’t publicly suck you off? Wow, shocking I didn’t get the promotion. Idiot world. I really hate neurotypicals.

[etymologyhunter]

Etymology of 'touch'

Proto-Indo-European *dewk- (to pull) → Proto-Germanic *tukkōną (to tug/grab) → Frankish *tukkōn (to knock/strike/touch) → Vulgar Latin *tuccāre → Old French tochier (to touch) → Middle English touchen → English touch

Out of Touch

[etymologyhunter]

Etymology of 'year'

Proto-Indo-European *yóh₁r̥ (year, spring) → *yéh₁r-o-m → Proto-Germanic *jērą (year) → Proto-West Germanic *jār → Old English ġēar → Middle English yeer/yere → English year

2018 was five years ago let that sink in

[etymologyhunter]

Etymology of 'vanilla extract'

Vanilla + extract

Latin vāgīna (sheath) → Spanish vaina (pod) + illa (diminutive) → vainilla (vanilla) → English vanilla

Latin Ex- (out of) + trahō (I drag) → extractum (extract) → English extract

[etymologyhunter]

Etymology of 'frantically'

Ancient Greek φρήν (phrḗn, the brain) → φρενῖτις (phrenîtis, inflammation of the brain) → φρενιτικός (phrenitikós, suffering from phrenîtis/insane) → Late Latin phreneticus → Old French frenetique → Old English frenetik/frentik/frantike (deranged) → English frantic + ly (forms adjectives into nouns) → franticly/frantickly often changed into frantically

You're in her dms. I'm frantically annotating the margins of a manuscript she will discover 457 years after my death. We are NOT the same.

[etymologyhunter]

Etymology of 'microbes'

Ancient Greek μικρός (mikrós, small) + βίος (bíos, life) → French microbe → English microbe + -s (plural)

[etymologyhunter]

Etymology of 'smilodon':

Ancient Greek σμίλη (smílē, tool for cutting or carving, more specifically knife) + ὀδούς¹ (odoús, tooth)

¹Proto-Indo-European *h₃dónts > Proto-Hellenic *odónts > Ancient Greek odoús > Greek δόντι (dónti)

Smilodon 🐱

[etymologyhunter]

Etymology of 'stealing':

Proto-Germanic *stelaną > Proto-West Germanic *stelan > Old English stelan > Middle English stelen > English steal + ing

Proto-Germanic *-ungō/-ingō > Proto-West Germanic *-ungu/-ingu > Old English -ung/-ing > English -ing

my armenian father getting angry at a squirrel

[etymologyhunter]

Etymology of 'lower':

From Proto-Indo-European legʰ (to lie down) → Proto Germanic lēgaz (low) → Old Norse lágr → English low + er (comparative)

Lower Reputation with the English faction.