Hello to my favorite people! I was just looking through some of my emails and I stumbled on one about words with multiple meanings. In English, that’s pretty darn common, so why did I choose these? Well, I follow this fellow Anu Garg (at wordsmith.org) and he discusses five words a week that have a general theme. These two words amused me personally, so I’m sharing them with you.
I know what decolletage is, but I was curious how it might relate to decollate. Now you’ll find out too!
decollate
1. To behead.
2. To separate sheets of paper, from a multiple-copy printout, for example.
ETYMOLOGY:
For 1: From Latin decollare, from de– (from) + collum (neck). Earliest documented use: 1599.
For 2: From de– (from) + collate (to gather, merge, etc.), from conferre (to bring together). Earliest documented use: 1967.
NOTES:
Sometimes the word decollate is used as an alternate spelling for the decollete (which is short for decolletage: a low neckline on a woman’s dress). But when you need to refer to a low neckline in a formal context—an office memo, a research paper, a court brief, a patent application, etc.—it’s best to go with decollete. [KC – Hmm…I don’t think this will be in any of our office memos!]
This next one (with multiple meanings and spellings) reminds me of my mom. She’s the one that taught me what a dickey was when I was a little kid. She went to an all-girl Catholic college where they had to wear their black graduation gown over their clothes for certain events. Once you see the first definition for dickey, you’ll understand why it might’ve been useful for a quick change with the graduation gown.
dickey, dicky, or dickie
| noun: | 1. A detachable shirtfront, collar, bib, etc. |
| 2. A small bird. | |
| 3. A donkey. | |
| 4. The driver’s seat or rear seat in a carriage. | |
| 5. The luggage compartment of a vehicle; also known as trunk or a boot. | |
| adjective: | 1. Not working properly. |
| 2. In poor health. |
ETYMOLOGY:
For noun: A diminutive of Dick, a nickname for Richard. Earliest documented use: 1753.
For adjective: Of uncertain origin. Earliest documented use: 1788.
And now you can buy a four-pack of dickeys from Amazon, for under $20!
Kara Church | Technical Editor, Advisory | Technical Publications
Pronouns: she/her | Call via Teams | jackhenry.com
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