And in the beginning there were words...

I promised myself I would begin blogging this year on a regular basis. I’ve done it in the past for a short period when we were on a trip to Italy (http://mamarosascucina.blogspot.com/ if you’d like to take a look), but that had a very specific life. Now I want to write about writing, the creative process, reading, theatre, and whatever else wanders through my brain. I also need to teach myself the discipline of writing much more regularly. So where to begin?

The basis of all writing is words. I love words, so I thought I’d begin with some interesting words. Every day in my email I receive a message from wordsmith.org called A.Word.A.Day. You can go to their site and sign up for this service. Some people have their morning coffee. I have my morning word. It’s like a little gift waiting to be opened each day, usually teaching me something new, sometimes reminding me of a story or happening, always delighting me. But I divagate. (verb intr.: To wander or digress.) AWAD not only gives you a definition, but a veritable plethora of other engaging information as well.

I have a particular fascination for words about language, so let’s take a look at some recent words from A.Word.A.Day and all that comes with each word. I will try to avoid periphrasis (noun: A roundabout way of saying something, using more words than necessary) in my writing today, although I’ll admit that is not in my nature.  In December, I was gifted with several words about language called “what to avoid when using words.”  Let’s take a look at an entry.

paralipsis

PRONUNCIATION:

(par-uh-LIP-sis)

MEANING:

noun: Drawing attention to something while claiming to be passing over it.

ETYMOLOGY:

From Latin paralipsis, from Greek paraleipsis (an omission), from paraleipein (to leave on one side), from para- (side) + leipein (to leave). First recorded use: 1550.

NOTES:

Paralipsis is especially handy in politics to point out an opponent's faults. It typically involves these phrases:
"not to mention"
"to say nothing of"
"I won't speak of"
"leaving aside"

USAGE:

"Political correctness has breathed new life into the paralipsis, the rhetorical device whereby we make a statement by first announcing that we are not going to make it. When pundits write 'No one is suggesting...' the American eye reads 'I'm suggesting.'"
Florence King; If 'Words Mean Things', Then All is Lost; Times-Dispatch (Richmond, Virginia); Feb 19, 1995.

Now, that is a word for today. If we could only convince our politicians to rein in their paralipsis (and their periphrasis as well, for that matter).

Now here is a beauty of a word: sesquipedality

PRONUNCIATION:

(ses-kwi-pi-DAL-i-tee)

MEANING:

noun: The practice of using long words.

ETYMOLOGY:

From Latin sesqui- (one and a half) + ped- (foot). First recorded use: 1759.

I just love the etymology! Can you imagine a more perfect word than one that means a foot-and-a-half long to describe the language used by that hubristic English professor you suffered with in college? Hah! You could put him in his place with that one.

Before I fall into pleonasm (noun: The use of more words than those necessary to express an idea), I will close for the day, lest this become an exercise in scatology.