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.
Valentine - means "sweetheart, especially one chosen or greeted on February 14." Related to the Christian Feast of St. Valentine's Day; the word valentine itself comes from the Latin verb valeo, valentis, which means to "be strong or fare well"   
(All information is from www.wikipedia.org, www.etymonline.com and/or www.dictionary.com).

RELATED WORDS/PHRASES – valedictorian, prevalent/prevail, (antonym - invalid)

Sample sentence – "I choo-choo-choose you to be my Valentine this year." 

ABBREVIATION OF THE WEEK:  BVMH (Beatae Virginis Mariae Honorem) - BVMH means "for the honor of the Blessed Virgin Mary" and is often written on the top corner of papers and tests (along with AMDG) by Catholic/Jesuit  high school students. 

GUESS THE APHORISM:  Early to bed and early to rise... 
































 
...makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise.
(Benjamin Franklin in Poor Richard's Almanack)