Word of the Day
shammes
noun
the candle used to kindle the candles in the Hanukkah menorah.
More about shammes
Shammes, “the candle used to kindle the candles in the Hanukkah menorah,” is a borrowing of Yiddish shames, which comes from Hebrew shammāsh, “server, attendant.” As we learned from the Word of the Day cherubic, many Hebrew nouns add -im to become plural, which is why one shammāsh in Hebrew becomes multiple shammāshim and one shammes in English becomes multiple shammosim. Though Hebrew shammāsh is easily confused with Shamash, an Assyrian and Babylonian sun god, the two are not related; while Shamash comes from a Semitic root meaning “sun,” shammāsh appears to come from Egyptian šmsw, “follower, servant.” Shammes was first recorded in English in the late 1940s.
EXAMPLE OF SHAMMES USED IN A SENTENCE
She had the honor of lighting the shammes and the first candle on the first night of Hanukkah.
More about hauteur
Hauteur “arrogance” is a direct borrowing from French, in which it means “height.” Though hauteur and height resemble each other, they are not related; hauteur, from the French adjective haut “high,” comes from Latin altus, while height is equivalent to high plus -th (as in birth and warmth) in Old English. A close relative of English high in Frankish, another Germanic language, is hōh, and because of the influence of Frankish on the French language, the h from Frankish hōh influenced the spelling of French haut. Hauteur was first recorded in English in the 1620s.
EXAMPLE OF HAUTEUR USED IN A SENTENCE
When around larger canines, miniature dogs often display aggression and hauteur far beyond what their small stature would suggest is possible—or wise.
deglutition
noun
the act or process of swallowing.
Why the Museum of Science chose deglutition
How many times do you think you swallow in a day? To find out, watch this video about deglutition from science communicator, Alex Dainis, PhD.
Learn more fun facts at the Museum of Science.
More about deglutition
Deglutition comes by way of French from the Latin verb glūtīre, “to swallow.” Of a similar origin is glutton, “a person who eats excessively,” while the related Latin noun gula, “throat,” is the source of gullet and perhaps beagle—yes, the breed of dog. Despite the similar spelling, deglutition is not related to gluteus (a muscle), which comes from Greek rather than Latin, or to gluten, which comes from the Latin word for “glue.” Deglutition was first recorded in English in the 1640s.
EXAMPLE OF DEGLUTITION USED IN A SENTENCE
If you don’t drink some water before eating peanut butter, its sticky consistency may make deglutition rather challenging.
