A.Word.A.Day
with Anu Garg
Latin is the preferred language of the Vatican, but don't hold it against the language. It had no say in the matter. A language never hurt little kids, if you
don't count all the schoolchildren who had to memorize all those "amo amas amat" conjugations.
Latin is often perceived as an ancient or dead language, something for stuffy old people. But many Latin terms can sum up in just a few letters a whole
concept that would otherwise take many words or sentences to describe fully. Many Latin terms are part of the English language and are especially used
in fields such as law and medicine. This week we'll see five terms from Latin that are now part of the English language.
ex officio
(EKS uh-FISH-ee-oh)
adverb, adjective: By virtue of one's official position. For example, the US Vice President is the ex officio president of the
US Senate.
ETYMOLOGY: From Latin ex officio, from ex- (out of, from) + officium (office, duty). Earliest documented use: 1532.
USAGE:
"The governor of New Jersey was an ex officio trustee of the University."
Joyce Carol Oates; Mudwoman; HarperCollins; 2012.
ne plus ultra
(NE ploos OOL-trah, NEE/NAY pluhs uhl-truh)
noun: The ultimate or the perfect example of something.
ETYMOLOGY: From Latin, literally, not further beyond. Earliest documented use: 1637.
NOTES:
It's said that the Pillars of Hercules at the entrance to the Strait of Gibraltar had this Latin phrase
inscribed. It served as a warning to sailors not to go beyond the limit of the known world. The national motto of Spain, on
the other hand, is "Plus ultra".
USAGE:
"The greatest car in the world, the automotive ne plus ultra."
Jonathan Carroll; The Ghost in Love; Farrar, Straus and Giroux; 2008.
corpus delicti
(KOR-puhs di-LIK-ty, -tee)
noun: The concrete evidence that shows that a crime has been committed, for example, the body of the victim in the case
of a murder.
ETYMOLOGY: From Latin, literally body of crime. Earliest documented use: 1705.
USAGE:
"The fact that the State was unable to produce a corpus delicti was a very strong point in favor of
the defendants."
Sidney Sheldon; The Other Side of Midnight; HarperCollins; 2010.
ex post facto
(EKS post FAK-toh)
adjective, adverb: After the fact; retroactively.
ETYMOLOGY: From Latin ex postfacto (after the fact). Earliest documented use: 1632.
USAGE:
"One of the ex post facto justifications for the Iraq war: that the invasion was necessary on
humanitarian grounds."
Fighting for Survival; The Economist (London, UK); Nov 18, 2004.
cui bono
(KWEE BOH-noh)
noun: To whose benefit?
ETYMOLOGY: From Latin, literally, to whose advantage? Earliest documented use: 1604.
NOTES: Cui bono is the idea that the responsibility for an act can usually be determined by asking who stands to gain as
a result of the act. It's first recorded in a speech by Cicero attributing it to the Roman consul Lucius Cassius. If he were
speaking today he would say: Follow the money.
USAGE:
"Cui bono? Surprise, surprise, it's the banks."
Carol Hunt; Debt Would Be a Release Next to
This Travesty; Irish Independent (Dublin, Ireland); Jan 29, 2012.