HOW TODAY's KIDS LEARN THE ALPHABET  Gone were the days where A stands for apple,

and B for ball, and C for Cat.

Morphemes: AN

Cognates: a, an , one, another, alone (all + one), lonely

A/AN art. 1 [indefinite article before words beginning with vowels, 12c., from O.E. an (with a long vowel) "one; lone," also used as a prefix an- "single, lone;" see one for the divergence of that word from this. Also see a, of which this is the older, fuller form. O.E. got by without indefinite articles: He was a good man in O.E. was he wæs god man.]

ABANDON v. 4 [from à "at, to" + bandon "power, jurisdiction," in phrase mettre à bandon "to give up to a public ban," from L. bannum, "proclamation," from a Frankish word related to ban (v.). Etymologically, the word carries a sense of "put someone under someone else's control." Meaning "to give up absolutely" is from late 14c.

Morphemes: ad to + ban speak

Cognates: ban, bandit, fame, fable, fabulous

ABBREVIATE v. 6 [mid-15c., from L. abbreviatus "shortened," pp. of abbreviare "to shorten" (see abbreviation). Also sometimes 15c. abbrevy, from M.Fr. abrevier (14c.), from L. abbreviare. Related: Abbreviated; abbreviating.]]

Morphemes: ad to+ brev brief+ i + ATE v

Cognates: brief

ABBREVIATION n. 6 [mid-15c., from M.Fr. abréviation (15c.), from L.L. abbreviationem (nom. abbreviatio), noun of action from pp. stem of abbreviare "make brief," from L. ad "to" (see ad-) + breviare "shorten," from brevis "short, low, little, shallow" (see brief (adj.)).]

Morphemes: ad to + brev brief + noun suffix

Cognates:

ABDOMEN n. 4 [1540s, "belly fat," from L. abdomen (gen. abdominis) "belly," of unknown origin, perhaps from abdere "conceal," with a sense of "concealment of the viscera," or else "what is concealed" by proper dress. Purely anatomical sense is from 1610s. Biological sense of "posterior division of the bodies of arthropods" first recorded 1788. ]

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ABIDE v. 5 [O.E. abidan, gebidan "remain, wait, delay, remain behind," from ge- completive prefix (denoting onward motion; see a- (1)) + bidan "bide, remain, wait, dwell" (see bide). The historical conjugation is abide, abode, abidden, but the modern formation is now generally weak. ]

Morphemes: a on (as in alive, abroad, asleep)Cognates: bid, forbid, inhabit? Inhabitant?Association: inhabit, inhabitant

ABILITY n. 2 [late 14c., from O.Fr. ableté "expert at handling (something)," from L. habilitatem (nom. habilitas) "aptitude," noun of quality from habilis "easy to manage, handy" (see able). One case where a Latin silent -h- failed to make a return in English (despite efforts of 16c.-17c. scholars); see H. ]

Morphemes: able + noun suffix

Cognates: aptitude, apt, adapt, able, habit

ABLE adj. 1 [early 14c., from O.Fr. (h)able (14c.), from L. habilem, habilis "easily handled, apt," verbal adj. from habere "to hold" (see habit). "Easy to be held," hence "fit for a purpose." The silent h- was dropped in English and resisted academic attempts to restore it 16c.-17c., but some derivatives acquired it (e.g. habiliment, habilitate), via French]]

Morphemes: cap, hab, ap, hav—hold, grasp + adj. suffixCognates: apt, aptitude, habit, capable, have, capacity, captive

ABNORMAL adj. 6 [1835, displaced older abnormous (1742) and rival anormal (1835) under influence of L. abnormis "deviating from a rule," from ab- "off, away from" + norma "rule" (see norm). The older forms were via O.Fr. anormal (13c.), from M.L. anormalos, from Gk. anomalos, from an- "not" + homalos, from homos "same."]

Morphemes: ab away from + norm + al adj. suf.Cognates: normal, norm, enormous (ex+norm, out of norm)

ABOARD adv./prep. 3 [from à "on" + bord "board," from Frank. *bord (see board); the "boarding" or sides of a vessel extended to the ship itself. O.E. bord "a plank, flat surface. The call all aboard! as a warning to passengers is attested from 1838 ]

Morphemes: a on+ boardCognates: blackboard, cupboard, cardboard, keyboard

UNICORN

[

early 13c., from O.Fr. unicorne, from L.L. unicornus (Vulgate), from noun use of L.

unicornis (adj.) "having one horn," from uni- "one" (see uni-) + cornus "horn" (see horn). ]

Morphemes: UNI, HORN

Cognates:

UNIVERSE

[

1580s, "the whole world, cosmos," from O.Fr. univers (12c.), from L. universum "the universe," noun use of neut. of adj. universus "all together," lit. "turned into one," from unus "one" (see one) + versus, pp. of vertere "to turn" (see versus). Properly a loan-translation of Gk. to holon "the

universe," noun use of neut. of adj. holos "whole" (see safe (adj.)). ]

Morphemes: UNI, VERS (TURN)

Cognates:

ENTRY

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