Yes, I am a Logophile.
“A lover of Words”…
Why not? – They area all around us, every day…
Spoken, written, implied…
So many of them…
Some are able spell these various words, without thinking twice, but for some of us, the older generation, remember being forced to look words up in a physical dictionary.
Being dyslexic, some form of dictionary lay by my side when ever I was writing something.
Yes, I would find the word in question, without issue, because of the alphabetization of all those words, but every now a then, my eye would wander, and I would be caught up in just browsing…
Flipping the page, eyes running down the columns searching for something to stand out…
Never know what it was, until it was “found”…
A new knowledge nugget implanted into the neurons…
Only to start again!
Anyhow, during my morning newsfeed/wall reading, I came across “Letter of Recommendation: The Oxford English Dictionary” by Maria Bustillos of the New York Times Magazine, in which she expresses her ‘hidden’ desire to find the words within words, or Etymology.
Another cord was struck.
Having a degree in Physics, generally forces one to learn many ‘roots’ for various words, or studies.
No problem there, especially with my dictionary by my side.
My dictionaries also provided security.
During my early days on the internet, I used the words on the spines of my dictionaries, as Passwords…
I never had to write them down, but they were always available.
My favorite, zymurgy.
Over the past couple of years, I have really begun to start listening to more books, then actually ‘reading’, and for me, it has opened a whole new world! (60+ books in 3 years)
But I still, every now and then, have to return to my trusty Dictionary!
One of my favorites, especially as it pertains to this post, “The Meaning of Everything: The Story of the Oxford English Dictionary” by Simon Winchester.
In this book, the author introduces us to the complexity of creating the Oxford English Dictionary (OED), and one is left with nothing by amazement that such at task could have been done!
So as you go about your day, and use your words…
Remember to choose your words carefully…
They have been around since then early days of humanity, and may carry ideas that you are not aware of…
So have some fun and just look it up!
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