Word of the Day
preternatural
adjective
out of the ordinary course of nature; exceptional or abnormal.
More about preternatural
Preternatural, “out of the ordinary course of nature,” comes from Medieval Latin praeternātūrālis, of the same meaning, which is based on the Latin phrase praeter nātūram, “beyond nature.” Praeter, “beyond,” is the comparative of prae, “before,” giving praeter the literal sense of “more before,” and it appears in English as the element preter- in words such as preterit (“gone beyond”). Nātūram is the direct object of nātūra, “nature, conditions of birth, quality,” which is based on the verb nāscī (stem nāt-), “to be born.” Nāscī, in turn, is the source of cognate, innate, nascent, native, prenatal, puny, renaissance, and the name Natalie. Preternatural was first recorded in English in the 1570s.
EXAMPLE OF PRETERNATURAL USED IN A SENTENCE
The artist had a preternatural knack for using color, texture, and shading to create haunting images.
More about pishogue
Pishogue, “an evil spell,” is adapted from Irish Gaelic piseog, “charm, spell,” from Middle Irish piseóc or pisóc. Though these words are of uncertain origin, some linguists have suggested a derivation from Latin pyxis (stem pyxid-), “box, medicine box.” Pyxis is a borrowing from Ancient Greek pyxís, “box,” which is also the source of English box as well as its French synonym boîte. The linguistic community is divided over the source of pyxís, with some advocating for an origin in Asia Minor (modern-day Turkey) and others suggesting an origin in the ancient Italian peninsula, specifically from a lost language that must predate Latin. Pishogue was first recorded in English in the 1820s.
how is pishogue used?
In 1992, Cavan business man Sean Quinn’s lost his multibillion-euro fortune and it was believed that the reason was down to a fairy curse known as a pishogue.
‘Are you asking for a pishogue? … It’s a curse and the worst one,’ the old man said. ‘You can be cursed by a fairy or a saint.’
shaman
noun
a person who acts as intermediary between the natural and supernatural worlds, using magic to cure illness, foretell the future, control spiritual forces, etc.
More about shaman
Shaman, “a person who acts as intermediary between the natural and supernatural worlds,” comes via German Schamane and Russian shamán from Evenki šamān. Evenki is an endangered language spoken in Siberia that belongs to the Tungusic family, another member of which may also be the source of the recent Word of the Day saber. A common claim is that, prior to Evenki, the word derived via Mandarin shāmén, “Buddhist monk,” or Tocharian B ṣamāne, “monk,” from Sanskrit śramaṇa-, “ascetic, monk.” Shaman was first recorded in English in the 1690s.
how is shaman used?
Shamans play an important role in many cultures .… The special treatment of the body and use of stones to keep it in a certain position suggests the woman held a unique position in the community, likely some sort of a shaman, the researchers said.