Curiosity Corner: Do you know why they say that? 

Curiosity Corner

By

Dr. Jerry D. Wilson,

Emeritus Professor of Physics

Lander University

Do you know why they say that?

Let’s check out some common words and phrases, like “nickname.” You may know the answer, and be “dead right.”

Nickname. A popular name applied to someone in addition to the proper name, like Bubba. The term “nickname” is believed to be a corruption or slurring of “an eke name,” with “eke” or “eka” meaning “in addition to,” or “similar to.” For example, when Mendeleev formulated the periodic table of elements in 1829, the vertical groups had similar properties. But some of the elements were yet to be discovered, and he called the unknown elements on one group “eka-silicon,” because they were similar to silicon. (Knowing what to look for, the element germanium was later found.) So, “an eke name” got slurred into “a nekename” or a nickname.

Dead right. “Dead” implies something to be absolute, complete or unchangeable. For example, a “dead silence” is devoid of sound. Being “dead serious” allows no room for joking. If you are “dead in the water,” you are not going anywhere. You might be a “dead ringer” for someone, or an absolute imitation or look-alike. (“Ringer” is a slang term for counterfeit.) So, “dead right” is absolutely right… no room for questioning. However, keep in mind that you could be “dead wrong,” too.

Poached egg. The poacher poached the chicken, and then had a poached egg. Does this mean those poached eggs you’ve been eating are stolen? Nope! Although poaching does mean stealing, there is another meaning derived from the word “poke,” meaning “sack” or “bag.” From this comes the word “pocket,” “pouched” and “poached.” So, a poached egg is when the yolk has been pocketed, or pouched in its own congealed egg white.

By the skin of my teeth. As we know, this phrase means by the latest possible margin of safety. “I got out of there by the skin of my teeth!” The origin seems to be biblical. In the King James Version, Job laments, “My bone cleaveth to my skin and to my flesh; I am escaped with the skin of my teeth” (Job 19:20). The Revised Version has “by the skin of my teeth.” There is considerable dispute as to what this meant to Job’s situation. Some say it means that he only had the power of speech left, and that his teeth had fallen out. Others say it means that he was so lean that he could only gnaw on his own bones. I don’t know,and I am not going to spend another skinny minute on it.

C.P.S. (Curious Postscript): “You know you are living in the 21st century when you accidentally enter your PIN in the microwave.” -Anonymous

Curious about something? Email your questions to Dr. Jerry Wilson at curiosity.corner@yahoo.com. Selected questions will appear in the Curiosity Corner.