A friend of mine posted on Facebook about American Heritage's list of 100 words every high school graduate should know. In looking at the list I find that there are some words that I really don't use very often.

Also a google search shows that AHD has many such "100 words" lists for various ages. It seems they have booklets you can purchase (of course) with the lists and definitions.

There is a quiz, too. I got 91%

Here is the actual list of words.

yeoman? jejune? moiety? really?

There are lots of words more deserving to be in such a list IMNSHO.

It's just someone's opinion, and not a good one, IMHO.

Some of them, I can understand. But many are technical, such as polymer, thermodynamics and nanotechnology. On the other hand, one of my favorite words, oligarchy is there.

Nice post, though, CW, and it's great to see you posting again.

Only got 98 - but I was very drunk last night when I took it (FWIW I missed jejune and fiduciary)

Struck me as a decidedly odd list. Why exactly is it important to know antebellum or moiety?

Sheer hubris, if you ask me.

I have no idea what moiety means, even though I looked it up when I took the test on March 2, a mere 8 days ago. It's just not a word I've ever even heard used. I do know fiduciary, though, because of Mary Poppins.

I remember it from chemistry.

quote:

I looked in my Old English dictionary and find that swifan meant 'to come to course' and our word swift is from the past particple. No mention of its sexual use. Nothing sexual under cwim either, except that it's a variation of comen whence our to come; it's related to Skt gam. 'to go', Latin venio 'to come', and Gothic qiman 'to come'. The use of the verb for come as a synonym for the climax of sexual intercourse is found in Hittite (don't have the word at hand).

Anyway, I'm still sceptical, but will reserve further opinion until I've read Money's article.

Don't mean to reopen such an old thread, but no one answer'd you.

The OE word that you're looking for is cwēme/cwēman (noun/verb) ... today's English, tho seldom seen, is queem.

OE cwēman: to give pleasure, please, delight, propitiate, satisfy. Quim is likely a variation of queem.

As for swīfan (strong verb in OE ... p swāf [swove], pp swifen [swiven], it also meant: to revolve, sweep, wend; of a course of action, to come to take part in a matter; intervene. No straightforward sexual witt (sense) but we are missing so much from OE. However, by ME, it did hav it.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: AnWulf,

How mendacious of you to say so!



Seriously, some nice posts to introduce yourself. Welcome to the board.