Language and etymology

Bravo for taking on a tough recipe.
karadekoolaid said:
The Spanish verb is "moler"and yes, "molido"(ground) is from Spanish, and originally from Latin (molere).
The nahuatl word is "molli", which means "sauce".
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I'm a big fan of lingustics and etymology. Obviously you are as well. Molar is the English word for the teeth at the back of the mouth. In Spanish the word muela. I can't speak a word of nahuatl sadly. Well, one word. ;)
 
blades said:
I'm a big fan of lingustics and etymology. Obviously you are as well.
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I've been teaching English as a foreign language for over 50 years, so knowing where words come from is essential.
Yep - molar comes, I imagine, from Latin.
If you know guacamole, then you know 2 words of nahuatl. :D :D
The dozen or so words I learned in nahuatl were as a result of being a hot pepper fanatic. Chile is a hot pepper; chilpotle is a smoked, hot pepper; chil-tepin is a flea pepper (for it's size); chil-huacle is an old pepper (it's been grown for over 6,000 years) . A bitter drink made from cacao seeds was called "xocolatl" - the predecessor, probably, of the word chocolate.
 
Foreign languages are funny.
Don't laugh, English is a foreign language to me :)
Dutch is my native language, but I can't remember or maybe never knew all the grammar. I just know what it should be...
Then every know and again, I realise I know more of the English grammar than a lot of native speakers.
Makes sense, as they just know, and I had to learn ;)
 
karadekoolaid said:
I've been teaching English as a foreign language for over 50 years, so knowing where words come from is essential.
Yep - molar comes, I imagine, from Latin.
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Yup, sure does. Latin is the universal language of medical terminology (among many other things), which I studied when I obtained my medical transcription degree.
 
badjak said:
Foreign languages are funny.
Don't laugh, English is a foreign language to me :)
Dutch is my native language, but I can't remember or maybe never knew all the grammar. I just know what it should be...
Then every know and again, I realise I know more of the English grammar than a lot of native speakers.
Makes sense, as they just know, and I had to learn ;)
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I don't know why anyone would laugh, other than the English language is a little annoying at times. Too many borrowed words from other languages that make it difficult to learn, I believe. I know that the people I have met in Mexico and here in the states who are from Mexico get a bit confused, and I can't blame them. Some stuff just doesn't make sense.
 
The thing about the English language, in particular, is that it's very fluid. There are no National Linguistic Academies that frown on new words. In English, we just take them on.
English is made up of Latin, Greek, French and Anglo-Saxon, in (very) general terms. Again, in very (very) general terms, longer words are usually Latin or Greek; shorter words are Anglo-Saxon. "Conglomerate" vs get together. "Empowerment" vs make it happen. Medical and scientific terminology is generally from Latin or Greek.
Julius Caesar came over to Britain in 55BC, and then there was a full invasion in 43AD. We adapted to Roman customs, laws and standards for several hundred years and the language,I imagine, eventually brushed off on us. The Germanic tribes took over in about 490AD (hence the Angles, Jutes and Saxons) and then the Vikings arrived at the end of the 8th century.
The French conquest (1066) brought another few hundred years of foreign domination and the imposition of French cuisine. That's why we eat pork (porc) not pig; mutton (mouton) not sheep, and beef (boeuf) not cow. Our culinary vocabulary is mostly French; we have gravy (gravé) on our meat, make puddings (boudin) and eat mousse, blancmange and dessert. Fish and chips are both olde English.
We do, however, have an élite (French) who frequent hotels (French), have private yachts (Dutch), drink tea (Chinese), go to bazaars for lemons (Persian), wear cashmere pyjamas (Hindi) and enjoy la dolce vita (Italian).
 
karadekoolaid said:
The thing about the English language, in particular, is that it's very fluid. There are no National Linguistic Academies that frown on new words. In English, we just take them on.
English is made up of Latin, Greek, French and Anglo-Saxon, in (very) general terms. Again, in very (very) general terms, longer words are usually Latin or Greek; shorter words are Anglo-Saxon. "Conglomerate" vs get together. "Empowerment" vs make it happen. Medical and scientific terminology is generally from Latin or Greek.
Julius Caesar came over to Britain in 55BC, and then there was a full invasion in 43AD. We adapted to Roman customs, laws and standards for several hundred years and the language,I imagine, eventually brushed off on us. The Germanic tribes took over in about 490AD (hence the Angles, Jutes and Saxons) and then the Vikings arrived at the end of the 8th century.
The French conquest (1066) brought another few hundred years of foreign domination and the imposition of French cuisine. That's why we eat pork (porc) not pig; mutton (mouton) not sheep, and beef (boeuf) not cow. Our culinary vocabulary is mostly French; we have gravy (gravé) on our meat, make puddings (boudin) and eat mousse, blancmange and dessert. Fish and chips are both olde English.
We do, however, have an élite (French) who frequent hotels (French), have private yachts (Dutch), drink tea (Chinese), go to bazaars for lemons (Persian), wear cashmere pyjamas (Hindi) and enjoy la dolce vita (Italian).
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Who drinks the beer???
 
karadekoolaid said:
The thing about the English language, in particular, is that it's very fluid. There are no National Linguistic Academies that frown on new words. In English, we just take them on.
English is made up of Latin, Greek, French and Anglo-Saxon, in (very) general terms. Again, in very (very) general terms, longer words are usually Latin or Greek; shorter words are Anglo-Saxon. "Conglomerate" vs get together. "Empowerment" vs make it happen. Medical and scientific terminology is generally from Latin or Greek.
Julius Caesar came over to Britain in 55BC, and then there was a full invasion in 43AD. We adapted to Roman customs, laws and standards for several hundred years and the language,I imagine, eventually brushed off on us. The Germanic tribes took over in about 490AD (hence the Angles, Jutes and Saxons) and then the Vikings arrived at the end of the 8th century.
The French conquest (1066) brought another few hundred years of foreign domination and the imposition of French cuisine. That's why we eat pork (porc) not pig; mutton (mouton) not sheep, and beef (boeuf) not cow. Our culinary vocabulary is mostly French; we have gravy (gravé) on our meat, make puddings (boudin) and eat mousse, blancmange and dessert. Fish and chips are both olde English.
We do, however, have an élite (French) who frequent hotels (French), have private yachts (Dutch), drink tea (Chinese), go to bazaars for lemons (Persian), wear cashmere pyjamas (Hindi) and enjoy la dolce vita (Italian).
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You forgot to mention how the Americans bastardized it even more.
 
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