Etymology Word of the Week – As some of you know, in addition to working in the Admissions Office, I also teach Latin at Saint Ignatius and am something of a "word nerd." Thus, each week, I’ll sneak a vocabulary word (sometimes derived from Latin, sometimes not) into the e-blast. Here, then, is this week’s edition of the Etymology Word of the Week.
Convalesce - “to grow better after sickness, make progress toward the recovery of health.” From the Latin verb convalescere meaning “thrive, regain health, begin to grow strong or well” which combines the Latin intensive prefix con- and the Latin verb valere meaning “be strong, be well” (all information is from www.wikipedia.org, www.etymonline.com and/or www.dictionary.com).
RELATED WORDS/PHRASES – valedictorian, invalid, ambivalent, equivalent, prevalent, valiant, valor, Vladimir
SAMPLE SENTENCE - “St. Ignatius found God when he read a book about the lives of the Saints and a book about Christ while convalescing from his cannonball injuries.”
INSPIRATIONAL QUOTE: “Actions speak louder than words.”