The Curmudgeon

YOU'LL COME FOR THE CURSES. YOU'LL STAY FOR THE MUDGEONRY.

Saturday, March 25, 2023

Bad Etymology

Church, n. a building dedicated to the ostentatious assertion of a special relationship; colloquial abbreviation of church hall, from Middle High British churchill, an exalted figure of dubious historicity, the fervent and unconditional worship of which was once considered a necessary qualification of Britishness.

Opinion, n. a subjective belief morally outweighing the facts; possibly derived with malicious irony from Old French pignon, ultimately from Latin penna, feather; or alternatively from pinion v.t., to shackle or bind, originally by removing the feathers of a bird's wing, hence to trap or handicap an opponent by cutting away their means of manoeuvre. See also flight of fancy.

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