You will have several opportunities this semester, in the form of four brief assignments, to (re-)discover English words derived from Greek or Latin.

     The points you earn will be added to your overall scores in CC 100.

     Armed with the online dictionaries listed on our Resources Page, select and describe five words currently used in the academic discipline in which you are majoring (or would like to major).

     Each word must be derived from a Greek or Roman root(s), and any number of prefixes or suffixes.  Any root will do — even if it is not listed in the ÆON vocabulary.

     Each word must be truly useful; that is, by knowing its definition and etymology, an outsider should be able to learn something about your discipline.  The more general the word, the better.

     Consult the Words Pages to see if your words have already been used.  If so, go back to the drawing board.  By the end of the semester we will have accumulated a wide-ranging list of interdisciplinary technical terms.

     Your assignment must be formatted as follows:

• List the word and its part of speech (noun, verb, adjective...)
• Give a thorough definition of the word
• Identify the Greek or Roman elements from which the word is derived
• Name the dictionary in which each word was found

     Each assignment must be typed.

     I expect that you will work entirely on your own:  no sharing of words with your peers.

     Furthermore, I expect that your definitions, while based on those of the dictionaries you have consulted, will use your own language.  Do not simply tweak a few words here and there.  Try for a radical reformulation of the dictionary entry.

     You might consider defining a word in terms of its usage within your discipline — that is, tell me under what circumstances the word is important to know.  So doing you will avoid plagiarizing.

     Each word with a proper definition and etymology is worth 5 points.  Each assignment is therefore worth 25 points overall.