{"id":619,"date":"2012-03-29T09:00:50","date_gmt":"2012-03-29T13:00:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/english\/?p=619"},"modified":"2012-01-25T22:08:42","modified_gmt":"2012-01-26T03:08:42","slug":"foreign-words-in-english-part-ii","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/english\/foreign-words-in-english-part-ii\/","title":{"rendered":"Foreign Words in English (Part II)"},"content":{"rendered":"

Earlier this month<\/a> I started a series of posts that will look at a number of different foreign words that are commonly used in English. \u00a0Here is a funny quote that speaks to how the English language is often borrowing or taking<\/em> words and grammar from other languages.<\/p>\n

“English doesn’t borrow from other languages. English follows other languages down dark alleys, knocks them over, and goes through their pockets for loose grammar.” -James D. Nicoll<\/p>\n

Here are some more \u201cloose words\u201d that English has take from other languages.\u00a0 Below I have written the foreign word(s) in English in bold; given the language of origin in parentheses, given a definition of the word(s) as they are used in English, and finally I give an example of how the word(s) are used in a sentence.<\/p>\n

a la mode<\/strong> (French) \u2013 In the United states the phrase means \u201cwith ice cream.\u201d
\nFor example: I think I will have pie a la mode<\/em><\/strong> for dessert.<\/p>\n

berserk<\/strong> (Old Norse) \u2013 Dangerously violent or<\/em> mild angry outbursts of any kind; unrestrained behavior. \u00a0In the ninth century the Vikings used this word to describe their ferocious warriors, who wore bearskins instead of armor. \u00a0Berserkers were warriors who worked themselves into a frenzy before battle.
\nFor example: Fred went berserk<\/em><\/strong> at work yesterday after his boss told him he was being demoted.<\/p>\n

chop-chop<\/strong> (Chinese) \u2013 be quick or hurry up (Sometimes people clap their hands together when they say this to underscore the urgency.) \u00a0This phrase originated in the South China Sea as a Pidgin English version of the Chinese term k’w\u00e2i-k’w\u00e2i.
\nFor example: Chop-chop<\/em><\/strong>! \u00a0We are late and need to be out of the house in less than 5 minutes!<\/p>\n

curriculum vitae<\/strong> (Latin) \u2013 This is a summary of everything a person has achieved educationally and professionally in his\/her life, up to the present \u00a0day.
\nFor example: When I applied for my new teaching job they asked for my curriculum vitae<\/strong><\/em> and three letters of references.<\/p>\n

debacle<\/strong> (French) \u2013 A sudden and certain failure.
\nFor example: The party was a debacle<\/strong><\/em>; too many people showed up and there was not enough food or space for everyone.<\/p>\n

smorgasbord<\/strong> (Swedish) \u2013 A buffet with meats, salads, desserts and other foods. \u00a0also generally a wide range of something or a variety.
\nFor example: There is a smorgasbord<\/strong><\/em> of shops to choose from at the new mall.<\/p>\n

juggernaut<\/strong> (Sanskrit) \u2013 A huge, powerful, and overwhelming force or institution.
\nFor example: The globalization juggernaut<\/strong><\/em> will continue to flatten all indigenous cultures in its path.<\/p>\n

trek<\/strong> (Afrikaans) \u2013 A long sometimes difficult journey, often made on foot.
\nFor example: We are planning on taking a trek<\/strong><\/em> across Spain with friends to see the historic pilgrimage route.<\/p>\n

Utopia<\/strong> (Greek) \u2013 An imagined place or state of things in which everything is perfect. This word was first used in English in the book entitled Utopia<\/em> by Sir Thomas More in 1516.
\nFor example: A world where there is no war and enough food to feed everyone is a Utopian<\/strong><\/em> ideal.<\/p>\n

verbatim<\/strong> (Latin) \u2013 A quote in exactly the same words as the originally text or speech.
\nFor example: My English teacher asked me to recite the passage verbatim<\/em><\/strong>, so I had to memorize it.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Earlier this month I started a series of posts that will look at a number of different foreign words that are commonly used in English. \u00a0Here is a funny quote that speaks to how the English language is often borrowing or taking words and grammar from other languages. “English doesn’t borrow from other languages. English…<\/p>\n

Continue Reading<\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"author":85,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"content-type":""},"categories":[135139],"tags":[24408,184039,184247,8375,184596,181518,184866,8117,185146,185323,185440],"class_list":["post-619","post","type-post","status-publish","hentry","category-english-language","tag-a-la-mode","tag-berserk","tag-chop-chop","tag-curriculum-vitae","tag-debacle","tag-foreign-words-in-english","tag-juggernaut","tag-smorgasbord","tag-trek","tag-utopia","tag-verbatim"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/619","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/85"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=619"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/619\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":621,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/619\/revisions\/621"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=619"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=619"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=619"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}