There are lots of parents out there that have said "sleep tight" when they put their kids to bed. But have you ever wondered where the phrase came from?

Very few: Italian, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Romanian, and Romansch (and possibly Walloon). These are called Romance languages because they …

It is described as pandemonium, which comes from the greek "pan-" meaning everything or "all of", and 'demonium'. So it was a place filled with all of the demons. Now it means a fracas or a chaotic situation. edit: thanks for all the responses clarifying the etymology.

Yeah, most of them are germanic in origin, but not all. As you noted: use is of Latin origin (by way of French) and replaced the O.E. verb brucan (which survives as the verb brook "to tolerate, put up with something unpleasant") because is of direct Latin …

26/09/2018 · Eric Partridge, a famous etymologist, said that the German word was related to the Latin words for pugilist, puncture, and prick. One folk etymology claims that it derives from “for unlawful carnal knowledge,” but this has been debunked by etymologists. The word became rarer in print in the 18th century when it came to be regarded as vulgar.

03/10/2014 · Some ideas on its origin. Ben Zimmer, a U.S. language commentator, lexicographer, and linguist, has alleged that the word was first used by Irish Americans. Zimmer then went on to cite Michael Quinion, a British writer, etymologist, and the author of World Wide Words, in his claim that the word’s origin is still unknown.

It may be true that OK is the most spoken word on the planet, but hello is a good candidate for the English word that most people learn first. The word is so ubiquitous that it’s surprising how new it is: hello has only been in use for about the last 150 years of the 1000-year history of English.

The only other theory with at least a degree of plausibility is that the term originated among Black slaves of West African origin, and represents a word meaning 'all right, yes indeed' in various West African languages.

First Known Use: 1976 Etymology: An evolutionary biologist blended the ancient Greek word mimeme—meaning something imitated—with the English word gene, to set the stage for LOLcats, Success Kid, Rickrolling, and so, so much more. A Bite-Sized Piece Of Culture “Most of what is unusual about man can be summed up in one word,” writes the evolutionary biologist Richard …