quword 趣词
Word Origins Dictionary
- liquorice



[liquorice 词源字典] - liquorice: [13] Liquorice, or licorice as it is usually spelled in American English, has no direct etymological connection with liquor (although liquor has played a significant role in its development). It goes back to Greek glukúrrhiza, which meant literally ‘sweet root’ (it was a compound of glukús ‘sweet’, source of English glycerine, and rhíza ‘root’, source of English rhizome [19]). Under the influence of liquor, this was borrowed into post-classical Latin as liquiritia, which passed into English via Old French licoresse and Anglo-Norman lycorys.
=> glycerine, rhizome[liquorice etymology, liquorice origin, 英语词源] - quorum




- quorum: [15] Quorum began life as the genitive plural of the Latin pronoun quī ‘who’. This appeared in former times in the Latin text of commissions issued to persons who because of some special expertise were required to act as justices of the peace in a particular case (if two JPs were required, for instance, the wording would be quorum vos … duos esse volumnus ‘of whom we wish that you … be two’). In due course the word came to be used as a noun, denoting the ‘number of justices who must be present in order to try the case’, and in the 17th century this was generalized to ‘minimum number of members necessary for a valid meeting’.
- quote




- quote: [14] Latin quot meant ‘how many’. From it was derived the adjective quotus ‘of what number’, whose feminine form quota was used in post-classical times as a noun, denoting literally ‘how great a part’ – whence English quota [17]. Quotus also formed the basis of the medieval Latin verb quotāre ‘number’, which was used specifically for the practice of marking sections of text in manuscripts with numbers, as reference points.
English took the verb over as quote, and by the 16th century was using it for ‘cite’ or ‘refer to’. The derived unquote is first recorded in a letter by e e cummings, dated 1935. Also based on quot was Latin quotiēns ‘how many times’, which has given English quotient [15]; and quotidian ‘daily’ [14] goes back ultimately to a Latin compound formed from quotus and diēs ‘day’.
But the archaic quoth [OE], despite a certain similarity in form and sense, is not related; it comes from cwæth, the past tense of Old English cwethan ‘say’.
=> quota, quotient - quoth




- quoth: see bequeath
- turquoise




- turquoise: [14] Turquoise is etymologically the ‘Turkish’ stone. The word was borrowed from Old French turqueise, short for pierre turqueise ‘Turkish stone’. The stone was so called because it was first found in Turkestan. The present-day form of the word, which dates from the 16th century, is due to the influence of modern French turquoise. It was first used as a colour adjective in the late 16th century.
- Iroquois




- 1660s, from French (c. 1600); not an Iroquoian word, perhaps from an Algonquian language. Related: Iroquoian.
- je ne sais quoi (n.)




- "an inexpressible something," French, literally "I do not know what."
[T]hey are troubled with the je-ne-scay-quoy, that faign themselves sick out of niceness but know not where their own grief lies, or what ayls them. [Thomas Blount, "Glossographia," 1656]
- liquor (n.)




- c. 1200, likur "any matter in a liquid state," from Old French licor "fluid, liquid; sap; oil" (Modern French liqueur), from Latin liquorem (nominative liquor) "liquidity, fluidity," also "a liquid, the sea," from liquere "be fluid, liquid" (see liquid (adj.)). Narrowed sense of "fermented or distilled drink" (especially wine) first recorded c. 1300. To liquor up "get drunk" is from 1845. The form in English has been assimilated to Latin, but the pronunciation has not changed.
- liquorice (n.)




- chiefly British alternative spelling of licorice.
- misquote (v.)




- 1590s; see mis- (1) + quote (v.). First recorded in Shakespeare.
Looke how we can, or sad or merrily, Interpretation will misquote our lookes. ["I Hen. IV," v.ii.13]
Related: Misquoted; misquoting. As a noun from 1855. - Passamaquoddy




- Indian tribe of southeast Maine, from Micmac, literally "place where pollack are plentiful," or else, if it originally is a tribal name, "those of the place of many pollack."
- quid pro quo




- 1560s, from Latin, literally "something for something, one thing for another," from nominative and ablative neuter singulars of relative pronoun qui "who" (see who) + pro "for" (see pro-) + quo, ablative of quid.
- quo warranto




- Medieval Latin, literally "by what warrant," from quo "from, with, or by whom or what?," ablative of interrogative pronoun quis "who?" (see who).
- quod




- "prison," c. 1700, a cant slang word of unknown origin; perhaps a variant of quad in the "building quadrangle" sense.
- quodlibet (n.)




- "a nicety, subtlety," late 14c., Latin, literally "what you will, what you please," from quod "what," neuter of qui (see who) + libet "it pleases" (see love (n.)).
- quoin (n.)




- 1530s, "a cornerstone," variant spelling of coin (n.); in early use also in other senses of that word, including "a wedge."
- quoit (n.)




- late 14c., "curling stone," of uncertain origin, perhaps from Old French coite "flat stone" (with which the game was originally played), literally "cushion," variant of coilte (see quilt (n.)). Quoits were among the games prohibited by Edward III and Richard II to encourage archery. In reference to a heavy flat iron ring (and the tossing game played with it) it is recorded from mid-15c.
- quoits (n.)




- late 14c., coytes, "game played by throwing quoits;" see quoit.
- quondam (adj.)




- "one-time, former," 1580s, from earlier use as an adverb ("formerly") and a noun ("former holder" of some office or position), both 1530s, from Latin quondam (adv.) "formerly, at some time, at one time; once in a while," from quom, cum "when, as" (see who) + demonstrative ending -dam.
- Quonset hut




- 1942, from Quonset Point Naval Air Station, Rhode Island, where this type of structure was first built, 1941. The place name is from a southern New England Algonquian language and perhaps means "small, long place."
- quorate (adj.)




- "attended by a quorum," 1969, from quorum + -ate (1).
- quorum (n.)




- early 15c., in reference to certain eminent justices of the peace, from Latin quorum "of whom," genitive plural (masc. and neuter; fem. quarum) of qui "who" (see who). The traditional wording of the commission appointing justices of the peace translates as, "We have also assigned you, and every two or more of you (of whom [quoram vos] any one of you the aforesaid A, B, C, D, etc. we will shall be one) our justices to inquire the truth more fully." The justices so-named usually were called the justices of the quorum. Meaning "fixed number of members whose presence is necessary to transact business" is first recorded 1610s.
- quota (n.)




- 1660s, from Medieval Latin quota, from Latin quota pars "how large a part," from quota, fem. singular of quotus "which, what number (in sequence);" see quote (v.). Earliest reference is to contributions of soldiers or supplies levied from a town or district; immigration sense is from 1921.
- quotable (adj.)




- 1804, from quote (v.) + -able. Related: Quotably.
- quotation (n.)




- mid-15c., "numbering," later (1530s) "marginal notation," noun of action from quote (v.) or else from Medieval Latin quotationem (nominative quotatio), noun of action from past participle stem of quotare "to number." Meaning "an act of quoting" is from 1640s; that of "passage quoted" is from 1680s. Quotation marks attested by 1777.
- quote (v.)




- late 14c., coten, "to mark (a book) with chapter numbers or marginal references," from Old French coter, from Medieval Latin quotare "distinguish by numbers, number chapters," from Latin quotus "which in order? what number (in sequence)?," from quot "how many," from PIE *kwo-ti-, from pronominal root *kwo- (see who).
The sense development is via "to give as a reference, to cite as an authority" (1570s) to "to copy out or repeat exact words" (1670s). Modern spelling with qu- is from early 15c. The business sense of "to state the price of a commodity" (1866) revives the etymological meaning. Related: Quoted; quoting. - quote (n.)




- "a quotation," 1885, from quote (v.). From c. 1600 as "a marginal reference." Quotes for "quotation marks" is from 1869.
- quoth (v.)




- Old English cwæð, third person singular past tense of cweðan "to say, speak; name, call; declare, proclaim" (Middle English quethan), from Proto-Germanic *kwithan (cognates: Old Saxon quethan, Old Norse kveða, Old Frisian quetha, Old High German quedan, Gothic qiþan), from PIE root *gwet- "to say, speak" (see bequeath). Compare also archaic quotha "said he" (1510s) for Old English cwæðe ge "think you?"
- quotidian (adj.)




- mid-14c., "everyday, daily," from Old French cotidian (Modern French quotidien), from Latin quotidianus "daily," from Latin quotus "how many? which in order or number?" (see quote (v.)) + dies "day" (see diurnal). Meaning "ordinary, commonplace, trivial" is from mid-15c.
- quotient (n.)




- "number of times one quantity is contained in another," mid-15c., from Latin quotiens "how often? how many times?; as often as," pronominal adverb of time, from quot "how many?" (see quote (v.)). The Latin adverb quotiens was mistaken in Middle English for a present participle in -ens.
- rastaquouere (n.)




- 1883, from French rastaquouère, rastacouère (19c.) "social intruder, upstart" (especially one of exaggerated manners and dress, from a Mediterranean or South American country), thus "dashing but untrustworthy foreigner." Short form rasta attested from 1905. According to French sources, the word is from South American Spanish rastacuero "upstart," from arrastrar "to drag, pull, tow, trail along the ground" + cuero "leather." Arrastrar is said to be from Spanish rastro "rake," from Latin rastrum (see raster), while cuero is from Latin corium (see corium).
- sequoia (n.)




- large American coniferous tree, 1857, from Modern Latin tree genus name given 1847 by Austrian botanist Stephan Endlicher (1804-1849), originally to a different tree, the coast redwood, apparently in honor of Sequoya (a.k.a. George Guess, 1760-1843), Cherokee man who invented a system of writing for his people's language, whose name is from Cherokee (Iroquoian) Sikwayi, a word of unknown etymology.
Endlicher was a specialist in conifers, and he also was a philologist. But he never gave an etymology of this name and a search of his papers discovered no mention of Sequoya or the Cherokee writing system, and the connection is an assumption that some botanists have challenged, though no better candidate for a source has yet been found.
The giant sequoia was unseen by Europeans until 1833 and unknown to scientists until 1852. In May 1855, a pair of American botanists named it Taxodium giganteum, but that name was deemed inappropriate for several scientific reasons. Meanwhile, English botanist John Lindley, who had never been to California, in 1853 named it Wellingtonia in honor of the Duke of Wellington. "As high as Wellington towers above his contemporaries, as high towers this California tree above the forest surrounding it. Therefore, it shall bear for all time to come the name Wellingtonia gigantea." This sat poorly with the Americans, and much ink was spilled until a French botanist provided the solution by transferring Endlicher's name. In Britain still popularly called Wellingtonia. - status quo (n.)




- "unaltered condition," 1833, from Latin status quo "the state in which," hence "existing state of affairs." Also status quo ante "the state in which before, state of affairs previous" (1877). Related: Status-quoism.
- tu quoque




- Latin, literally "thou also" (or, in modern vernacular, "so are you!"); an argument which consists in retorting accusations.
- turquoise (n.)




- greenish-blue precious stone, 1560s, from Middle French, replacing Middle English turkeis, turtogis (late 14c.), from Old French fem. adjective turqueise "Turkish," in pierre turqueise "Turkish stone," so called because it was first brought to Europe from Turkestan or some other Turkish dominion. Cognate with Spanish turquesa, Medieval Latin (lapis) turchesius, Middle Dutch turcoys, German türkis, Swedish turkos. As an adjective, 1570s. As a color name, attested from 1853. "Chemically it is a hydrated phosphate of aluminum and copper" [Flood].
- unquote (v.)




- 1915, in telegraphs, where punctuation had to be spelled out and quote and unquote were used in place of the quotation marks; from un- (2) "reverse, opposite of" + quote (v.). Quote unquote together to indicate quotation of the word or phrase to follow (often with ironic intent) is from 1942.
- aliquot




- "A portion of a larger whole, especially a sample taken for chemical analysis or other treatment", Late 16th century: from French aliquote, from Latin aliquot 'some, so many', from alius 'one of two' + quot 'how many'.
- Quorn




- "A type of protein-rich food made from an edible fungus and used as a meat substitute", 1980s: the name of a former company in the Leicestershire village of Quorndon.
- quoter




- "A person who quotes or uses quotations, especially habitually", Late 16th cent. From quote + -er.
- quot homines tot sententiae




- "‘There are as many opinions as there are men’: expressing the fact that there is considerable diversity of opinion, and the difficulty of bringing about agreement", Mid 16th cent.; earliest use found in Richard Taverner (?1505–1575), translator and evangelical reformer. From classical Latin quot hominēs tot sententiae there are as many opinions as there are men from quot how many + hominēs, plural of homō man + tot so many + sententiae, plural of sententia.