And It's Seabiscuit By Three Lengths!
Did you know that "gun" derives from 11th-century Scandinavian raiders who affectionately gave their biggest catapult a woman's name -- "Gunnhildr"?
Am I pulling your leg? Hmmm ...
Now see whether you can select the true origin of each word below:
No. 1: biscuit -- A. from the Latin "bis coctus" (twice-cooked) B. from the French "bisque" (tasty) C. a blend of "bi" (two) and "scuit" (scone) D. a variant of "bishop" because bishops gave out baked communion wafers
No. 2: budget -- A. from "budge," because its constraints can't be budged B. a variant of "gadget" (device or structure) C. a variant of "fudge it," because budgets are often estimates D. from the Latin "bulga" (bag)
No. 3: carburetor -- A. from the French engineer Gerard Carburateur B. from "carbon" C. from "car" D. from "carbine," because its shape resembles this short-barreled firearm.
No. 4: nostril -- A. from the Latin "nos" (our) and "tril" (high-pitched sound made by sneezing) B. a combination of the Old English "nosu" (nose) and "thyrel" (hole) C. From "no" and "stril," a variant of "gill" D. from the French "nostrelle," a deep hole in a branch or tree
No. 5: bugle -- A. a blend of "beautiful" and "call" B. from the German "flugelhorn" C. from the Latin "buculus" (ox) D. from the Hindu "bugu" (horn)
No. 6: lens -- A. From Heinrich Lens, inventor of the first glass lens B. from the Dutch village of Leens, where the glass lens was invented C. from the Latin "lentil" (lentil seed) D. From the nickname of Leonard Scofield, who invented the microscope
Answers:
No. 1: A. Thin cakes of baked, unleavened bread were reheated to remove moisture so they wouldn't grow moldy on long sea voyages.
No. 2: D. The Romans kept money for household and business expenditures in a little leather bag ("bulga"), which became "bougette" in French and "budget" in English.
No. 3: B. This device is designed to mix various forms of the element carbon with liquids or gases.
No. 4: B. The Old English "nosthyrl" (nose hole) became "nosethirl" in Middle English and "nostril" in modern English.
No. 5: C. The first horns used for hunting or music were made from the horns of oxen.
No. 6: C. The first glass lenses were shaped very much like lentil seeds.
And, believe it or not, that's the true origin of "gun"!
========
Rob Kyff, a teacher and writer in West Hartford, Conn., invites your language sightings. His book, "Mark My Words," is available for $9.99 on Amazon.com. Send your reports of misuse and abuse, as well as examples of good writing, via e-mail to Wordguy@aol.com or by regular mail to Rob Kyff, Creators Syndicate, 737 3rd Street, Hermosa Beach, CA 90254.
Copyright 2026 Creators Syndicate Inc.
Comments