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etymology

(Encyclopedia) etymologyetymologyĕtĭmŏlˈəjē [key], branch of linguistics that investigates the history, development, and origin of words. It was this study that chiefly revealed the regular relations…

The Etymology of "Trivia"

The Question: What is the etymology of the word "trivia"? The Answer: "Trivia" is a fairly recent (1920) noun form of the word "trivial" which…

Etymology of "Third World"

The Question: What is the definition of a third world country and where did it come from? Are there first, second, and fourth world countries? The…

Vespulaphobia

The Question: Hello there. I have used your almanac page to try and find the meaning of the word vespulaphobia but cannot find it. Can you? The Answer:…

Partridge, Eric Honeybrook

(Encyclopedia) Partridge, Eric Honeybrook, 1894–1979, British lexicographer; b. New Zealand. He studied in Australia and at Oxford, taught briefly in England, and founded a small publishing company.…

Armageddon

(Encyclopedia) ArmageddonArmageddonärˌməgedˈən [key], in the New Testament, great battlefield where, at the end of the world, the powers of evil will fight the powers of good. If the usual etymology…

Onions, C. T.

(Encyclopedia) Onions, C. T. (Charles Talbut Onions), 1873–1965, English philologist, lexicographer, author, and editor. After a post with British Naval Intelligence in World War I, he held a…

lexicography

(Encyclopedia) lexicography, the applied study of the meaning, evolution, and function of the vocabulary units of a language for the purpose of compilation in book form—in short, the process of…