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私以为可以将pdf正文前的多篇文章也加入词条,以完善词典的内容,并更好的使用词典。
7 I+ J' g9 [4 a0 U1、Where English comes from) o# [# h% S( {
The English language has existed for hundreds of years.
3 `; t7 X" U& Q! R: ~1 WMany words came into English from various European languages.# `2 n. t( Q+ Y5 t
For example, St. Augustine and other Latin-speaking
& B* y* c q% \+ Y% [2 C5 _missionaries to England used such words as bishop and$ \* G! {2 W/ R
priest. Latin was the language of scholarship and religion.- w# C* ^5 ~/ P
Wherever Latin scholars, missionaries, and government officials9 p% ^2 j5 S1 G8 g' s6 I
exerted important influence, Latin words became
- B. m5 O6 ~+ p2 ~( l' kknown. When the Scandinavians invaded and settled in Britain,
0 m5 V# ] q& B0 j% D7 Xsome words beginning with sk- were adopted into English.
$ ?' b" t7 T; M3 f% `+ s7 R) b5 LFor example, skill, skirt, and sky. The Scandinavians
2 Z% |7 @, Z. k- Nalso contributed important pronouns such as their, them,7 `5 d0 R5 ^: ~/ H0 N% o- L2 b
and they. Words of French origin include army, blue, chair,% X' d5 n, P3 }- A3 W& ?( G: X
dinner, government, jolly, mayor, paper, and towel. Balcony,
4 X4 E+ s$ P! o4 P" J8 a+ Upiano, and pizza come from Italy; fiesta and siesta,- c. z$ z' D( `. ^' j0 v
from Spain; orchestra, from Greece; boomerang, from Australia; W& [' ^0 `. [4 o3 L( ? g+ m
vodka, from Russia; and igloo, from the Eskimos.
* P" T# s& L4 y t; N0 T English is always growing and changing. Words constantly* D$ Q1 y2 z0 C' t9 n. @% k% ^
are being added and falling into disuse. Many words that6 `$ i" w K3 g& Y Q. ~7 I4 Y
you hear, speak, and read today were not part of the language
* A" w0 i8 z4 W0 Jyour grandparents used. Look in a dictionary published
8 ^4 a" E" v4 |, c6 \6 _2 ]at that time and you will not find such words as astronaut,
/ l3 L6 r; u, gculture shock, miniskirt, rolamite, and microfiche.5 N+ m( r- v1 }* ~3 S: b x
Every time new inventions, scientific discoveries, art forms,
% v C& h# I9 r* G) }( B6 h1 Ior fashions appear that do not have names to identify them,7 B5 g1 R8 D5 J0 R; }* n/ i
new words must be invented or old words given new applications,: R- i& T B" j
or taken from other languages.
6 U, w; E4 e- ~" }; X8 c! n9 S When words are not used, they become obsolete. Obsolete& s& x; U0 c! ]6 T! o$ K
words are included in the dictionary because they are
4 a" A! K: ^( l$ @/ o7 ?; K) kpart of our history and our culture. You will want to know& U0 P( T% `. P' S
what they mean when you read them in old books or hear+ N( [6 i. L* ?& }$ f
them used in plays written a long time ago. Before the automobile
# ?; w9 | {: @( _* Bwas a common form of transportation, people traveled
: q4 c6 o. K& c) N/ L+ ^$ Oin buggies drawn by horses. Now when you hear or
. r) F% f) P6 W2 y4 Ysee the word buggy you are inclined to think of something1 N% Z, R9 F% O
old-fashioned or insect-ridden.- L" `) {5 w& @; s7 o& _
Many words have changed their meanings. For example,8 y$ H0 b4 g2 Y/ \. X+ P! x
sly and crafty people were once described as "pretty." At" R F% {+ c8 J
one time, when people wanted to picture someone as stupid% C- f3 _- D0 L) x# D
and ignorant they referred to that person as "nice." Today,
# n$ A! S5 D1 M3 E2 h2 ^* uif someone tells us we are "nice" and "pretty," we feel flattered,
! T4 q0 ^+ L/ W* m$ ?- t. F- Tnot insulted.% A2 x8 O# M" C5 c. {- [& O
These are only a few of the ways in which language
! e9 R: O3 b9 m1 P* Q D" Pchanges and grows. By knowing how words become part of' v. K3 R; P' ?! p0 B8 T9 R
a language, you discover important clues to social, political,
# \+ o! O& N6 _( L/ Hand cultural changes that take place in the history of a: i' _; ~% D# @9 T
country using that language.# c8 |3 w' m% \5 U
The story of how English originated is a fascinating one.+ {0 }6 V8 v, B+ \8 E: v
$ X& v; H7 I! Q- k) r
How English began
1 Q7 [6 Q8 S$ k+ }4 K9 s1 NEnglish comes from a common ancestral language believed
( f% J( _5 a1 q0 u& x, Sto have existed a very long time ago. It has been called9 K8 a9 K& U* K# K
Indo-European. About 4,500 years ago, the people who/ _2 Z0 z$ F7 K. Z& ]
spoke varying forms of this language split into groups that. v8 B4 v9 a2 ?! ~
drifted into Europe and parts of Asia. Different speech communities4 ^3 Z% U; K* U" G* Z5 I O
developed within these widespread groups eventually) B" t" U, s5 k: x
giving rise to several languages including Latin, from
7 y& J- s- V) C2 k* pwhich many of the languages spoken in Europe today developed.
/ D8 z5 j! A, J7 eOne group of Indo-European languages is known as0 p5 t; a9 t( F5 T
Germanic, and this is the primary parent language of English
$ Y5 R, o3 X( ^# M( k1 ^# Y, Fand German.+ g4 J( d5 M& k6 @+ @2 z# U
Warrior-adventurers, who spoke Germanic, invaded what0 w$ G( W) t1 y
is now Great Britain about A.D. 450. The invaders—called0 O: T2 f& l- w* \: [( D `9 i
Angles, Saxons, and Jutes—all spoke similar dialects. The, u9 P2 F7 k, u/ W4 ]
people they conquered, known as Britons, spoke Celtic. The% z0 x% l/ E6 A% J
Celtic language included Latin words because conquering
% l& T. b, S: c5 o. N! c' IRoman troops occupied Britain from A.D. 43 until the 400's.
6 S, h$ _4 I- f# f: FThe troops had to return home to defend Rome against invading
5 T% b" q+ u$ [0 w7 L( aarmies. The Germanic tribes conquered Britain after
4 ]1 g) u8 T7 l- p# \; Z; Mthe Romans left.
" C9 @* e/ O! g- F1 K As the invading tribes took over and settled in Britain, the
4 ~6 ~% a! q: F: z3 NCeltic languages gradually retreated. Since the Celtic people6 P3 B- m. Z) p! L
were forced to communicate with their rulers, the history of- G! i( p. [$ B4 E; Y `* L/ D
the English language begins with the take-over of Britain by
3 P$ `8 ^4 N# X O4 b% P3 Uthe Germanic tribes. As a result, Celtic made only a small0 l8 g$ O, I# }/ L
contribution to the English vocabulary with words such as
+ N* |3 Z/ Q9 E: Fcrag and bin. However, many place names were adopted
$ ]+ e* s6 a6 Q$ @7 Pfrom the Celtic. Among them are Avon, Kent, London,
6 M7 V$ A" R- ZOuse, and Thames. Small groups of people living in Ireland, B) `/ a+ I; v! C
Wales, and the Scottish Highlands still speak varieties of Celtic% w3 q. |7 L% f, s5 L; R; h
such as Scottish Gaelic, Welsh, Breton, and recently
5 a; ]3 N; ^/ Arevived Irish.
2 n" a8 F, y( y N- w- U2 `& C7 Y0 h: d* F4 a2 X3 V) h
Old English" j/ w. t* w' U6 I& K% E. |# W
The Angles and Saxons occupied a large part of Britain. The5 ]$ E, L) ^* r, j
name of one of the former tribes eventually became the
+ Q3 y- A, t& F' y" W# iname of the land they occupied, England. The Anglo-Saxon
8 D5 @- Z% m9 O. |5 wlanguage, now usually called Old English, became firmly established
+ q" ?. t/ `/ E0 Iin Britain in the period from the A.D. 500's to 1066.
) c3 ~& H$ X2 Y8 E+ o. i8 W8 p' S Even as this happened, changes were taking place. Latinspeaking- f( b: w) a6 P+ [! Z* a0 z
Roman and Celtic missionaries under St. Augustine,
5 Y, p" G- u% x! V6 G+ Obegan spreading Christianity in Britain. The introduction of
- x; z, H/ l K. V/ }+ ~Christianity exerted a great impact on the English language.
4 E* `0 O0 Y) j0 V$ m% x" MReligion brought with it many new ideas and customs. And
5 U6 ^9 I. [: I8 i# P, iChristianity used Latin. In their attempt to identify and deal' {2 [+ t$ O; g+ ]
with all these new ideas and customs, the Anglo-Saxons did0 M/ J: B6 [# q' S6 Y1 z
not hesitate to borrow from Latin the special vocabulary
1 \; V9 `$ `$ Q, r% |% y( q! L: Xneeded for the new religious life. Among the words taken
% E! T/ u, H; \& k* bfrom Church Latin which still survive are:
7 L. c3 m/ y/ u! B7 A- @4 \
9 C8 P: X V9 ?0 a/ h. fLatin Old English Modern English
, }0 ?! R7 a B0 E2 z: J: labbatis abbod abbot4 d6 `; n! \1 ~( Z+ {5 h7 `0 \
candela candel candle8 _/ b- s% K; y$ A6 K% b
altare altar altar
, `- o8 R' A: ]* Y7 }amen amen amen
" L$ Z: \, t7 t, C9 n& A' qapostolus apostol apostle9 R; U5 D, h b
; k+ P! r* o2 D/ ]7 G9 N
However, users of Old English did not borrow as heavily
$ z! f; n0 @3 a2 y1 cfrom Latin and other languages in this period as they did& E) I' R, r8 a( b" N
later when there was greater communication with the Continent." o# f) t2 |3 [7 y( e9 r1 L) B
Sometimes they changed the meanings of native
5 a$ x: @! W& y) V% E, kwords. The word for Easter (eastron) originally was the
, b" ?1 n8 R4 pname for the spring festival honoring the goddess of dawn.2 L8 v I2 \# b
Ceol (Yule), the name of the festival held to celebrate the' L `8 j7 W, D" O
passing of the shortest day of the year, came to denote# t& Q9 s2 _( r$ \0 k u
Christmas.
) p" f, z' P6 L7 s Native ingenuity was shown in creating new words by+ y- w d! t. c" c( ~. L! ?
combining two native words in much the same way as we
3 p) ]& U$ ?( l8 H) Gnow combine words such as space and worthy to form d3 ~" ?; y9 R! W( B$ f* e
spaceworthy. Old English words such as Icececraft (leechcraft),
1 B( f0 D4 k6 P4 X1 o& d0 j; W6 jmeaning medicine, and handboc (handbook), meaning: t/ C8 Z6 P/ I' `$ [* |
manual, illustrate this practice.! u6 D( U2 o4 e) ~0 j& y$ x
The growth of the Old English vocabulary during this+ x0 T) ?! X7 Y+ [$ Z3 V
period of language history reflects the growth of English culture.
( }3 t+ n* j! }Because of the Church's influence, scholarship was encouraged! V# H+ w4 t$ B! ?& e. r+ ~
and Britain began its rise as one of the intellectual) d! C1 E6 q3 R
leaders of Europe.
# g7 C) z2 w& B& N9 e" \ Toward the end of the 700's, hardy Vikings from Denmark,* |8 z) Q3 Y0 d" `: v9 r
Norway, and Sweden began invading and settling in
+ B; A1 T5 x; P2 }many parts of Britain. By the 1000's, a Danish king ruled
. E& K% L" [0 }0 V4 d$ W# ^6 b; H5 sBritain. As a result of the invasions from the Danish peninsula,5 S0 a" @0 \3 S" n2 C& q2 v8 |
many Scandinavian words became part of English.) x3 D& o7 G+ ]1 F" G% K( U% X
These did not identify new ideas and objects. They were everyday
9 m" K# v, j# K2 F8 swords for which the English already had terms and expressions.( ]) f4 s7 D* B$ j- [
Why did the Scandinavian words exist side by side with$ c8 q8 t$ U# l- p! a7 t, F, y
English words instead of replacing them? The Scandinavian. d) K5 H) Z9 ?; I
invaders were Germanic people like the Anglo-Saxons. Their
: l6 N( n& F# W% J9 ]3 ]. Ccultures were similar and their languages enough alike so
2 F( Y! h! E% |that they understood one another. Many words were exactly
, f% x, i2 C& @& \4 S5 j5 lalike, such as father, husband, house, life, man, mother,
: c7 f7 n8 F3 Y8 x& f' Csummer, wife, and winter. Other words were so much alike
9 i( o/ B& J$ |they were used interchangeably.7 s: Z) ?1 u8 S; d& ?- g6 o# r2 {) l
Although the Scandinavians and the English fought each
; L4 I5 \$ u8 f& N2 c9 v" Rother, many Scandinavians settled peacefully in Britain, married( C5 E6 B" f3 m& U8 g j0 ~2 `
English women, and raised families. Often both languages
/ A* i! o& Z5 U/ U s. B2 o3 swere spoken in the same household. Where different
u) B+ K+ ~# U2 Ywords existed for the same thing, the Old English word usually
, d! J2 y# h& @won out, but there were some exceptions. The results of- E0 y* c( x0 r: _
this absorption of language through close contact is seen in/ y9 ?) ~8 N& Q1 o/ A: u
the histories of such words from Scandinavia as skirt, skill,7 D2 F) m! V5 H1 u5 n" J5 N% H/ L
window, leg, gasp, birth, glitter, they, their, them, egg.
( K, N [$ R: R% G! s Scholars believe that at least 900 words of Scandinavian: z; h, r$ S, ]
origin have survived in modern Standard English. Many! g) ^/ K: n$ J8 F. | v' d: t
more are still in use in Great Britain. They are found in dialects6 M& ~8 I3 H2 v2 ^
spoken in regions heavily settled by the Swedes,
! {' I/ x* P6 r* F6 XDanes, and Norse in those early days.
- d. O t1 Q3 }9 z% M1 N8 p* ]) ~# @$ O! z9 `4 i( t
Middle English) s9 N; ]2 a0 z* v0 q& [
Old English began to undergo a great change when the Normans
6 ~. U3 `& Y: Z: Q9 L1 z" jinvaded England from France in 1066. Until then, in
. i9 M: Q/ v/ Z, L! A6 ^! ]spite of the Latin brought in by the introduction of Christianity,3 O0 J5 `2 _4 Z$ |+ i
the influence on English was overwhelmingly Germanic.- j+ ]& u% z0 X/ w
The Normans began a process that brought many; `7 e4 E5 ^( U3 ?
French words into the English language. They replaced the
* O1 ?+ S; V# k" ^# ]7 xEnglish as rulers, chief landholders, and church officials and+ {7 h7 k! }. y* }* P L2 D" k3 x
Norman-French became the language of the ruling class.
9 c. Q; E8 S$ E* n/ k! V4 DHowever, the common people continued to speak English.
# K% c8 u8 @( R8 S9 J" F Norman-French and Old,English existed side by side until
6 q" c% J" o2 u' a) n; L9 upolitical and social changes began to favor the use of English0 J! N: ?1 j4 l- v& D s' }2 ~& d
by all classes. The Normans lost control of their territory in8 W5 n i0 X2 P/ c
France in the early 1200's. Confined to Britain, the Normans7 G* B- ^3 O! x8 c
began to learn English. Eventually, it replaced French as the( A; V3 J1 ]' e4 t1 | c) z
language of the ruling class, the schools, and the courts. By
8 s/ \: ?$ D$ y& F/ ?the end of what is known as the Middle English period
$ d( X+ A' x* E8 |$ ?& V(1100-1500), English again had established itself as the major" k( J) M. w% j; e8 A; B% r
language in Britain.: Y! V6 M$ ?* E2 {9 N* w
During this period, English continued to borrow words
, @5 J$ s, k r t" Z, ^from French and from Latin. In the English we now speak, B* ]7 g8 g( q5 S
more than half of the words in common use come from
$ [/ N6 A. A% P, ]6 @$ X) n. o( bthese two sources. Many words from Old English and Anglo-- A/ B4 ]1 T) }6 N% A- C
French that are roughly synonymous exist side by side today.
( Y2 G/ ^8 ~; }% Z' pFor example, dress and clothes, aid and help, royal! ?1 W8 K9 S: w, U3 Z4 q+ S
and kingly. In addition, trade between Britain and the Low
# d. v' r1 D* ACountries, especially Holland, accounts for the inclusion of
" @2 l. g# B( N( |" v# jperhaps as many as 2,500 words of Dutch origin in the English: N/ ^7 P' p) ^- n4 U9 t' R. k* b
language. Some examples are: boom (at the bottom of a
5 W+ U/ T5 \) l4 n: y9 w, r! lsail), deck, easel, etch, freight, furlough, and stoop (porch
" F- q5 Y6 {# T7 x$ Q3 e- lor entrance).
- d6 x# P# B2 H2 f& Q Before the Norman invasion, a great change in English8 |" @: G8 a) @% q
was beginning to shift grammatical and pronunciation patterns.4 w% t7 e3 Y3 U- g u3 w
However, the coming of the Normans accelerated& p4 b }1 ]/ {8 J$ z5 t& K
these changes. Everyday use, growth of dialects, and contact
$ h' G7 w8 t2 w( ewith foreign languages caused inflections (word endings) to2 F3 h9 N3 p8 P6 |% ^/ f
lose their distinctive meanings and their usefulness. Instead9 @! c; O( D6 H1 d/ S; v
of depending on word endings to give exact meaning to a
/ S3 ~' ?$ A8 gsentence, as had been the case in Old English, word order
u' U7 J, z1 M' O- [became the important indicator.6 s1 B% b& \# g+ H( K$ v; n
In Old English, for example, To his J>eowum se feeder cwaeoK; p4 h" g# d& T; f+ a0 ^# d
meaning "The father said to his servants" or "To his servants
$ P4 O8 J; v7 ~5 l0 Z- Wthe father said," would have the same meaning no matter" Q, t% Y# ?5 O& @7 A. O5 b) O
how the words were placed in the sentence. The -urn6 \! v. M5 b+ S9 J, J: k
ending on beow(um) would always indicate who was being X2 \( }8 }5 }- |% R7 P
spoken to. In modern English, if we shift word order to
& t4 N8 U/ S- G3 L) dmake the sentence read " His servants said to the father,"5 U% y! [7 C8 D3 c. M
the meaning would be quite different.$ v9 c% f i' u3 P* Z1 s
English still retains some inflections, including plurals and0 m6 C' V3 s+ ?# \. l* H: \
the verb endings. But Middle English had far fewer inflections6 o0 ?4 c3 E3 A
than Old English.
6 B) L% Z# s% L4 K+ c8 _
! V7 q: [( I& ?7 K# b( U' D5 E* Z7 NModern English
% a) V3 B3 J4 eThe Modern English period, starting about 1500, has been( f8 Q& s) y- K+ z1 _
concerned for the most part with regulating and standardizing
0 ]% Z, n2 M4 E. {- Athe language. But attempts to fix English into a permanent
. D) e. P7 M3 x6 a0 \form failed. The way a language is used gives it life,3 M6 R- u$ ]# G R& c2 L
and usage produces change.. Z/ |* E4 Z$ s; p* v0 |" T1 S& I" p
However, fixing a language and freezing its usages into a
, O3 y' ~. D( `7 F) z5 Z& Iform that tolerates no change is different from trying to
0 e6 k Q7 } s! Wstandardize its spelling so that communication between inhabitants4 v0 f6 g5 v9 E
of various regions of the country is easy and effective. [& M2 V' D- Q" a K4 ^
Several factors contributed to establishing Standard English
! W1 v% b/ d* M/ g6 m* Cspelling and some forms of usage and many of the traits that( L7 q+ e, X" `' z* e) g
exist in modern English. These factors included the introduction
0 y, a; J9 A: [% A3 ] A. [of the printing press into England in 1477 by William* h! Q& B% j9 q- N
Caxton, the revival of interest in literature, and the growth of( X+ A1 F ]1 d5 B1 k, a
popular education.
! @# J+ E2 S* q7 c The need for standardization was recognized as early as; L1 H0 K2 n; V; Z! a4 P4 o
the mid-1300's. From that time, the London dialect (East
6 L+ P) ^; |% N" A$ MMidland) was gradually adopted from the four main dialects/ r2 [0 T, S7 @% _% | }
in existence (Northern, East and West Midland, and Southern)( Y# @, j; N' E8 H1 \# `
as the basis for Standard English. The choice was made
4 D2 f3 ~7 t9 M! Ybecause the London dialect was the language of contracts7 `; N' p8 ]! o
and commerce and the speech of the ruling court. All official# D' U/ O" b" T5 B; e% X J
documents originating there were written in the London
: |+ K" ^( r* cdialect. Furthermore, the translation of the Book of Common9 v8 G' N( \8 b* N" d& q
Prayer and the King James version of the Bible became tremendous3 v$ g% X4 o2 _ m& s
forces for elevated English.2 F& E5 n0 O" w. w! `2 c* @
Before Caxton, literary works were written for the most9 v) R6 I6 m2 T d" p. Y
part in the dialect of the author. Spoken dialects continued
0 e$ e% M; q- ^6 t8 S4 g% ] Lfor a long time and, indeed, still exist. But, by the end of the
) z" b8 Q. X, G1400's, the London dialect was becoming accepted literary
, I. p' D) H* j( D1 ^* l* }6 yusage.
/ u' p9 r; Q6 c i, Q By the early part of the 1600's, more than 20,000 different/ b, O0 L1 e% p- i/ R/ y
works were printed in England alone. Books were available
" J8 F, R& e3 C) `9 C' t1 [ g+ Mto all who could read and afford them. The printed" Z6 U: J: X% w& n
word helped to make spelling more uniform. Up until that
6 i: f! j7 v2 o( ^9 w- vtime spelling usually varied from region to region.
9 n$ s+ l) s) U/ N8 w3 i From the 1500's through the 1700's, many writers experimented
& \4 h( l2 Q3 u% } Kwith words. Over 10,000 new words entered the! _$ k) b j) P) o
English language. Many of these were taken from Latin and
: j, }% ?) T' CGreek by scholars who wanted to replace the forms earlier
- B6 o. V3 E1 f; H3 z) J; Aadopted from French. Translators and writers believed the# x- u5 w3 n2 q
language was rough, unpolished, and incapable of doing
, I: Z$ p3 c: m3 A% y/ \what Latin and Greek had done, and what Italian could do.
, n" H9 L/ I) [, r1 ]" mThey set about enlarging the vocabulary, chiefly by translating& C) O/ ?# d# Z2 @' K. j. p
words from Greek and Latin. More than twenty-five per
9 L8 w; n3 z+ M; }5 V: d! hcent of modern English words come almost directly from
1 s, H3 Q, }# Iclassical languages. Very often we have two words that go# X" I; C7 x. I& W
back to the same Latin original—one brought in by the Normans,
8 [, E( @6 e; w+ j- j. fand one taken in directly. For example, words such as
( ^0 L& _: S5 ppaint and picture, certainty and certitude. The adoption of7 X0 }- }1 y$ t* w6 ^& {
Greek and Latin forms became so abundant and so outrageous* \" p$ {' S5 l4 P+ N9 B
that many of these borrowings were dubbed "inkhorn" Z0 {" \: n* j" b9 p
terms" because of their bookishness. However, some of: J N7 i+ ^: x5 g! |1 z
these terms were useful and necessary and they have survived
5 t$ |6 ?7 g2 F7 Y5 {" F- dto this day. Among them are conduct, dexterity, extinguish,, c3 Q; T# H0 x+ a, p+ n0 r9 g
scientific, and spurious." {8 r7 ]. A: M; W; u' u
% Q' ]3 _- r0 v& h2 G( u) L7 b5 o* IAmerican and British English
5 [1 L* v# u8 Y( w2 @ ^After the British colonized America, the English language
* M Z# r* y5 h8 L' a. oused by Americans began to change from that in the old1 r( j& q7 r/ m. |: r' Z
country. The biggest factor in this change involved the need
& A+ j2 f/ z* {4 n) l2 \! r4 _/ hto create or adopt words to identify unfamiliar objects. Animals,: N6 c0 C# j S* `4 t& z
trees, food, and the physical features of the land were
! K, @9 z4 ?! H h$ k: Ydifferent. The Americans took words from the Indians to
& w4 Y6 l$ H5 {- H% v; X' Qidentify a raccoon, a tomahawk, a papoose, and a wigwam.
/ }! ?# k7 ]5 J! X9 g7 H3 ]6 mWhen there were no appropriate words, they did what their
/ [( n+ e: w( G( hancestors had done. They combined words and gave them
3 R: J; E" X! K: ~new meanings. The combination of garter and snake produced
8 [6 V2 G+ ^0 M wa word to describe a crawling creature they had# d {" Q1 P5 t' K& U& c
never seen before. They named the sweet, edible root of a
, Y4 F {* x+ qvine belonging to the morning-glory family, sweet potato.; j) Q6 N/ S4 `1 q0 P0 _! x7 v
They adapted from the Narraganset Indians the name for the* N/ G( G0 Y3 O
fruit of a plant of the gourd family, the squash.; }% k1 A, {( j. b
The growth of American nationalism led to a desire for) Z, n, R4 U$ Y3 Q. h
cultural as well as political independence from the mother
: X: j9 X+ ^7 V* z _ m- H# p, ocountry. This, too, influenced American English, as in conscious3 P* g+ d( B) Z( `8 E) w# t7 H$ R
attempts to reform spelling so that in time, musick* ~3 i7 ^7 ]' k3 t5 P) h4 B
became music, and labour became labor. New ideas in the+ n+ T" i- p. s- _4 K. @
arts and sciences and the coming to America of people from+ O+ P( w3 K7 p0 t1 ]3 q
many different countries had a powerful effect on American
" ?0 l! i* x/ B* ?$ e6 B% |2 v4 QEnglish.$ n; e' H. G/ j6 M
Changes have not been so extensive that we speak a new
8 b# B3 G% ^# x3 S# v: rlanguage. Many Americans may not know that when an
2 r& V- L q# `8 X5 jEnglishman says fitment he means an alteration, and that
& t1 U- m; ~& V1 {8 p& @1 ythe British goods wagon is the American freight car. But, for2 f! s" n' U) `2 [4 b4 E! @8 l& S
the most part, Americans and Britons communicate easily, M# i( J4 O4 K/ K
because grammatical and phonetic patterns have not: ~# X4 p T* A, n
changed, though many words or lexical content are different.
; W) j9 ]" `" f The gap between American and British English has" B+ t7 N7 ?- @8 f0 N* f; j
become smaller in recent times, especially with the great increases
; x( `& K0 s2 O' h* H% gin the ease of transportation and communication.
0 b0 ]: [2 p0 E7 d* d/ k% E2 _5 GNeither the Americans nor the British have any qualms' c X: h5 J* h" C' E
about appropriating words from other languages when they
0 Y. \/ e$ b7 I5 a, c& R3 t2 P6 oexpress concepts better than native words can. The British
: R) P5 r1 K/ Q1 W# Hhave taken American words such as telephone, jazz, and
% }. ~* B) c; }* B2 o: V) z; _typewriter. Americans take words from many languages.
* B8 U+ j3 ^# e" h' _4 m English has also changed in other countries where it is
) _; k8 n4 p& h& {( R5 K0 Tused. Canadians, Australians, New Zealanders, and others: R2 y) K' g8 x% }8 g
have adapted English to fit their own needs. Although all
- C" v$ a3 n4 a8 C0 B5 t1 i; bEnglish-speaking people can generally understand each
' N R# ^2 `9 m- Gother, each English-speaking country has developed distinctive
! Z! k A" Y8 s- Y( v" f# xways of using the language. For example, New Zealanders. ] |5 [( y; U8 F# \+ N& q
refer to a section (a building lot in a city), Australians to
! b# G) s J) c+ X" Aa mob (a group of animals), and Canadians to a chesterfield7 W) x2 y3 U. Y
(an overstuffed sofa).- ^1 \$ Q5 E; H' i2 Y# _' J
As long as travel and trade exist between nations, as long/ T/ B+ a9 s7 B ~
as large groups of people continue to settle in countries
: Q8 N% U7 r a: Y: Xother than their native lands, and as long as the sciences- E; @; [0 H" `2 k9 A4 ?, Z: K
and the arts progress, new ideas, new words, and new usages
4 e/ D+ J `0 V8 _: D- |, Lof words will continue to keep language changing and- s, d$ C( Y6 h# f% Y/ M, @
growing. |
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