To Be or not to Besmirch

I have been giving this a lot of thought. You see, Besmirch and Smirch are synonyms, yet smirch is a transitive verb. So that means that you can besmirch someone, but not smirch them. Of course, after you besmirch them they can say they have been smirched, or even besmirched.

Makes perfect sense, right?! (stop smirking!)

To besmirch or not to smirch

Smirch not, lest you be besmirched!

Also, no desmirching, and for that matter, no smirking either!

I received an inquiry by email regarding the difference between smirch and besmirch, so let me explain. They are indeed synonyms.

Besmirch is a verb meaning to soil, to tarnish, to dishonor. There is not etymology listed, but there are other words from Middle English which start with "be-" and it seems the "be-" just emphasizes the word following it, making it seem more active and making it sound like something out of the Bible.

Smirch is a verb meaning to soil or dirty, or to smear, as well as to dishonor or defame. It comes from Middle English.

Smirk also comes from Middle English. It means to smile in a knowing or silly way. LOOK it up in here!

Super!

There are many synonyms for the word, OLD.

Superannuated is one. It means obsolete, antiquated, or retired because of being old or ineffective. From Latin. Super means above or beyond and annum means year.

Antiquated has a negative implication, it means out-of-date, obsolete, or old-fashioned. From Latin.

Antique has a positive implication. It means ancient, made in an earlier period or old-fashioned, but means more valuable because of age. From Latin, thru French.

I will be examining more of these words as I continue to become more knowledgeable about anti-aging techniques.

Preposterous Infamy

Nefarious and preposterous.
Nefarious. Is that the same as infamous? Preposterous!

Infamous- adj. characterized by negative celebrity; having a reputation of the worst kind. From in- which is not or negative, and famous which is well-known. Antonym: illustrious. From Latin.
Infamy - n. evil reputation brought about by something criminal or shocking. (Latin)
Nefarious - adj. flagrantly wicked or impious. Synonym: vicious. From Latin.
Preposterous - adj. contrary to nature or reason, absurd.

So it is not preposterous to state that nefarious is synonymous with infamous, but it would not be accurate. Infamous means being famous for being nefarious. They are related, but not synonymous.

I do like that word, "illustrious." Yes. You may refer to me as the Illustrious Philolog.

Salubrious Continuation

Salubrious means wholesome, healthful, beneficial. Maybe that's why we say, Salute! To your health! Yes, both are from the same Latin root.

Continuation means state of or act of continuing, progressing. It comes from the verb continue, which means to exist over a long period of time, to last, to carry forward, to persist, from Latin.

I'm looking for a better term for aging. And for old. Why do we say, How old are you? In other languages they say, how many years do you have? We could say that, too!

Melliflous Words

I admit it. I was wrong.

Yes, even the philolog is fallible.

I was wrong about the origin of the word "luscious." Luscious did not come to us from Latin by way of French. My dictionary says that it comes from Old English, from the word "delicious." I was disappointed by this etymology, until I figured it out. Just try to say delicious with your mouth full of a peanut butter sandwich!

Quash that attitude!

Quash is a verb. It comes to us via Middle English, via Middle French, via Latin. It means to nullify, suppress, or extinguish.

So if you want to be happy, then quash the positive attitude. Read Quash Those Dreams on musinglog.blogspot.com. Some people are just not happy unless they are miserable!

Miserable is an adjective related to the noun, miser. A miser is a mean grasping person, especially one who lives miserably in order to hoard his wealth. From Latin, through the same route as quash.

Luscious

Another melliflous word that I'd like to add to the previous article is...

Luscious.

I would have to guess it is from Latin, maybe by way of French.