Interesting English words

This post shows some interesting english words, etymologically.

Vitrify

• Meaning: convert something to glass(like)
• Origin: Old latin: Vitrium: glass
• Extension: Vitriolic: sharp, keen (+critisism)

Oxygen

Intersting story:

In the late 18th century, chemist Antoine Lavoisier discovered oxygen and mistakenly believed that it was a necessary component of acid, so he named it "oxygen". In fact, it was hydrogen ions that make acids. But this naming convention lasts till today. There are also other languages that are affected by this solecism. For example, in Japanese/Korean: “酸素”（さんそ）/산소（酸素）, directly translated to "acid element", is a directly borrow from Western chemical terms.

So oxygen can be broken into 2 parts: oxy, derived from the Greek "oxys", meaning "sharp" or "sour," it was associated in ancient times with acidity (sour taste). Although it's hardly seen in modern English, their influence can still be seen in science and medicine. For example: Oxidize / Oxysalt. The second part: gen simply means "generate", together means "element that generates acids".

The same naming convetion applys to hydrogen: "element that generates water"

Infant

In (not) + fant (speak, comes from latin affix fari, extended to modern english: confess, fate, fate), simply means "unable to speak", which, well, is quite vivid to describe an infant.

Aftermath

• Meaning: Result, Ramification
• Origin: After (English) + mæð (Old English, from German Mahd, meaning mowing) Actually, this word has nothing to do with 'math', which is not what I've been always imagining. It originally means "a second crop of grass grown on the same land after the first had been harvested", later converted to the meaning of "result" (of mowing).

Breakfast

Could 'breakfast' literally be related to the words 'break' and 'fast'?

It turns out- yes! And that’s exactly where the word comes from. Breakfast is a compound word made up of break and fast. The word fast in this context doesn't mean "quick" — it refers to the older meaning of fasting, which means going without food. When you sleep overnight without having any food, you're naturally fasting. So, when you eat your first meal in the morning, you're breaking your fast — hence, "breakfast."

This term has been in use in English since at least the 15th century, and also many other languages, with similar logic applied. For example, in French, petit déjeuner literally means "little lunch," suggesting the start of the day's eating.

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