Saint Ignatius High School

Etymology Word of the Week

As some of you know, in addition to being the Director of Admissions, Pat O'Rourke '90 also teaches Latin at Saint Ignatius and is a self-proclaimed "word nerd." Here is his latest Etymology Word of the Week.
humble - "not proud or arrogant; modest; courteously respectful; lowly."  From the Latin adjective humilis, humile meaning “lowly, on the ground” from the Latin noun humus, humi meaning “ground, dirt, earth.” (All information is from www.wikipedia.org, www.etymonline.com and/or www.dictionary.com).
 
RELATED WORDS/PHRASES – humility, humiliate, exhume, (possibly) posthumous

Sample sentence – "The prosecutor asked that the victim’s body be exhumed so that previously unavailable DNA testing could be performed on it." 

GUESS THE APHORISM:  You can’t make a silk purse... (scroll for the answer)
 








































...out of a sow’s ear.