Mar 10, 2021 · Felix, a Latin adjective meaning "happy" or "fruitful," is the root of the English words felicity and felicitate. The former, which is by far the more common of the pair, refers to the state of …

Jan 4, 2010 · The adjective "felicitous" has been a part of our language since the late 18th century, but "felicity," the noun meaning "great happiness," and later, "aptness," was around even in Middle …

Nov 3, 2025 · Fidelity came to English by way of Middle French in the 15th century, and can ultimately be traced back to the Latin adjective fidēlis, meaning “faithful, loyal, trustworthy.” While fidelity was

Apr 28, 2025 · “I have not that alacrity of spirit / Nor cheer of mind that I was wont to have,” says William Shakespeare’s King Richard III in the play that bears his name. Alas and alack, Richard! Alacrity comes

Jan 18, 2026 · Say them fast—or even slow—in isolation, and no one will know which one you mean: elicit and illicit both rhyme with the likes of explicit and complicit. But beyond being auditorily …

Jan 9, 2026 · Innocuous is rooted in a lack of harm: it comes from the Latin adjective innocuus, which was formed by combining the negative prefix in- with a form of the verb nocēre, meaning “to harm” or …

Jul 25, 2024 · What It Means Fealty is an old-fashioned and somewhat literary word that refers to intense loyalty or fidelity to a person, group, etc. More narrowly, fealty refers to the fidelity of a vassal …

Aug 5, 2011 · a : the garden where according to the Bible Adam and Eve first lived : Eden b : an intermediate place or state where the souls of the righteous await resurrection and the final judgment …

Dec 23, 2024 · Pleasure, delight, and enjoyment are all synonyms for the agreeable emotion that comes with the possession or expectation of something good or greatly desired. Why, then, use delectation, …

Dec 9, 2024 · 'The weary Sun betook himself to rest; — / Then issued Vesper from the fulgent west.' That's how the appearance of the evening star in the glowing western sky at sunset looked to 19th …