Yeah, a four syllable word when almost every word I’ve done
here has been one. Do you know how hard it is to find a word beginning with U
that isn’t an un- word?
Ubiquitous, which basically means something that’s everywhere,
showed up fairly recently, in the early nineteenth century (in etymological terms, that’s like last week). The reason it’s so recent is
because another word, ubiquity, was used then (and I just found out that
ubiquity is a real word! Wow!). Ubiquity showed up in
the late sixteenth century,
coming from the Middle French ubiquité and the classical Latin ubique. In Latin, ubi means where, and que…well, it has tons of meanings, including giving “universal meaning”
when used as a suffix. So it’s like saying “all across the universe”, but in
three letters and in suffix form.
I don’t pretend to understand Latin. Or any languages for
that matter. They’re weird.
Sources
I used to use this word all the time. I need to put it back in my vocabulary.
ReplyDeleteThey're weird - that made me chuckle!
ReplyDeleteI can't say that word five times fast for some reason ... :)
ReplyDeleteIt's a word I wouldn't be using that often!
ReplyDeleteI was a Latin genius in high school but do I remember any of it now? Of course not!
ReplyDeleteUbiquitous is a good word.
ReplyDeleteI took a semester of Latin in high school. I remember none of it now. I find it interesting how new ubiquitous is and where it came from.
ReplyDeleteI love this word. It's so hard to say, but looks so cool written down. There's something about 'q's in the middle of words.....
ReplyDeleteEver read Ubik by Phillip K. Dick? My advice is don't. He's an acquired taste. But that's how I encountered the word ubiquitous -- trying to figure out the title.
ReplyDeleteGreat word today! Four syllables and all :) I love this word, actually, no matter how 'young' it is. It has a great sound.
ReplyDeleteI love throwing big words out to students. They look at me weird. I like to pull out this one and penultimate.
ReplyDeleteIf U was difficult, I can't wait to see what you came up for for Z.