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vaticinate

[ vuh-tis-uh-neyt ] [ vəˈtɪs əˌneɪt ] Show IPA Phonetic Respelling

verb (used with or without object)

to foretell or predict.

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More about vaticinate

Vaticinate “to foretell or predict” comes from Latin vāticinārī “to prophesy,” which is equivalent to vātēs “seer” and -cin-, a combining form of canere “to sing.” It is uncertain whether vātēs is the source of Vatican, but it is clear that vātēs is distantly related to Odin (from Old Norse) and Woden (from Old English, the namesake of Wednesday), who were the gods of wisdom and magic. Canere (stem cant-) is also the source of the recent Words of the Day cantillate and descant. In Latin, a often becomes i when stems are combined with prefixes to make new words; this is also how the stem cap- “to take” is the source of incipient (literally “taking in”) and principal (“first taker”). Vaticinate was first recorded in English circa 1620.

how is vaticinate used?

[O]ne of the big New York publishers was waiting for his new book, and showing signs of impatience; and the house in Mapledale Avenue was converted into a sanctuary where the family seer might vaticinate undisturbed.

Edith Wharton, The Gods Arrive, 1932

After the same manner, poets, who are under the protection of Apollo, when they are drawing near their latter end do ordinarily become prophets, and by the inspiration of that god sing sweetly in vaticinating things which are to come.

François Rabelais (c1489–1553), The Life of Gargantua and of Pantagruel, Book 3, translated by Sir Thomas Urquhart of Cromarty and Peter Antony Motteux, 1693
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Word of the day

sinistrorse

[ sin-uh-strawrs, si-nis-trawrs ] [ ˈsɪn əˌstrɔrs, sɪˈnɪs trɔrs ] Show IPA Phonetic Respelling

adjective

(from a point of view at the center of the spiral) rising spirally in a counterclockwise manner, as a stem.

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More about sinistrorse

Sinistrorse “rising spirally in a counterclockwise manner” comes from Latin sinistrōrsus “turned leftwards,” which is a contraction of sinister “left” and versus “turned.” Perhaps because of avoidance of taboo words, although Latin sinister survives today as Italian sinistro, most Romance languages replaced their “left” words with borrowings from other languages. Portuguese esquerdo and Spanish izquierdo are either borrowed from Basque ezker “left” or derived from a pre-Indo-European language of the Iberian peninsula. Meanwhile, French gauche comes from a Germanic-origin verb meaning “to turn, veer.” Sinistrorse was first recorded in English in the late 1850s.

how is sinistrorse used?

They walked halfway around the column, and Julie peered up until the fog shrouded it far above. It seemed to extend forever! She turned back to the base and sighted a broad stairway winding its way up the pedestal in sinistrorse fashion, right to left.

Wendy Isdell, The Chemy Called Al, 1996

His knees buckled and ached when he negotiated the turret’s sinistrorse stone staircase. A sneeze caught him by surprise, and as he put his hand to his thin twig-like nose, another came upon him. His pointed boot slipped off the step causing him to skid down the last few stairs…

Victoria Leeman, Gem: The Season of Prophecy, 2013
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iatrogenic

[ ahy-a-truh-jen-ik, ee-a- ] [ aɪˌæ trəˈdʒɛn ɪk, iˌæ- ] Show IPA Phonetic Respelling

adjective

caused by the diagnosis, manner, or treatment of a physician.

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More about iatrogenic

Iatrogenic “caused by the treatment of a physician” is a compound based on the Ancient Greek-origin combining forms iatro- “doctor, healer, medicine” and -genic “producing or causing.” Iatro- comes from Ancient Greek iātrós “healer,” from iâsthai “to heal,” which is also the source of geriatric, pediatrician, psychiatry, and the name Jason. The element -genic comes from Ancient Greek -genēs “born, produced,” which is also the source of cosmogenic, hallucinogenic, and the name Eugene. Iatrogenic was first recorded in English in the early 1920s.

how is iatrogenic used?

Sometime[s] these iatrogenic injuries are accidental. But sometimes, because of the limits of medical technology, they can be inevitable. Now, a medical researcher in Seattle thinks he has a way to eliminate some of the inevitable ones.

Joe Palca, “Why Painting Tumors Could Make Brain Surgeons Better,” NPR, September 12, 2013
[W]e also work 12-hour shifts and, ultimately, we are grateful, knowing that even the most experienced RN can make medical mistakes. Our mistakes can have catastrophic consequences: Iatrogenic (health professional-induced) mistakes are the third leading cause of death in America by some measures.

Tawny Buettner, “Nurse: Despite coronavirus pandemic, hospital patients need their loved ones at their side,” USA Today, July 17, 2020
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