French is one of the major sources of vocabulary in the English language. From the Norman invasion to nineteenth century European diplomacy, French words have percolated into English and have sometimes been swallowed whole with little or no attempt to Anglicize terms or phrases. One area of language is particularly heavily dependant on French loan words – the language of war. The impact of Norman dominance […]
Etymology
Why is there a ‘b’ in subtle? And, for that matter, why is there a ‘b’ in debt, doubt or plumber? The letter ‘b’ is not the only seemingly redundant silent letter in English – why is there a ‘p’ in receipt, a ‘c’ in indict or a ‘s’ in isle or aisle. A sensible guess might suggest that the pronunciation has shifted over the years, […]