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Sally

Posted: Wed Jun 19, 2013 10:43 pm
by Dr. Goodword

• sally •

Pronunciation: sæ-lee • Hear it!

Part of Speech: Verb

Meaning: (Often used with forth) 1. To suddenly rush out aggressively, to sortie. 2. To set out confidently on a trip or other venture.

Notes: This verb may be used as a noun as in: After the futile sally, the commander gave his troops a rest. Today's word is not to be confused with the given name Sally, which originally was a nickname for Sarah. Also, remember to change the Y to I before any suffix beginning with an E: sallied, sallied, but not those beginning with I: sallying.

In Play: Today's Good Word implies leaving and entering into a new venture: "When the boss asked for a volunteer to take customer complaints, Ben Dover sallied forth to offer his services." There are overtones of self-confidence and adventure that attach themselves to this word: "As soon as they arrived, the children sallied forth to explore the house of their grandparents."

Word History: Today's Good Word from Middle French saillie "a rushing forth", a noun concocted from past participle of saillir "to leap, rush forward". French inherited this word from Latin salire "to spring, leap (out)", ultimate source of English salient. (Things salient jump out at you.) Another English word coming from this same Proto-Indo-European root is somersault. It was originally an old Provencal compound noun, sobresaut, made up of sobre "above, over", the Provencal result of Latin super "over, above" + saut, from Latin saltus "a jump, leap". Old French borrowed this version of the word as sombresault at which point English borrowed it, and simplified the consonant cluster MBR to just M. (We must all now sally forth and thank Gene DuBose for spotting today's Good Word and suggesting it.)

Re: Sally

Posted: Wed Jun 19, 2013 11:11 pm
by Perry Lassiter
A couple of incidental thoughts came to mind.

I understand salient as jumping out at you, but always thought of it as a synonym of wise or wisely relevant.

I don't understand a number of nicknames such as Sally for Sarah. Harry from Harold, sure, but Jack from John? What kind of etymology explains such leaps?

Re: Sally

Posted: Wed Jun 19, 2013 11:35 pm
by Slava
I don't understand a number of nicknames such as Sally for Sarah. Harry from Harold, sure, but Jack from John? What kind of etymology explains such leaps?
Here's a site that you might of assistance in explicating these quandaries.

Re: Sally

Posted: Thu Jun 20, 2013 11:39 am
by sardith
Hi Doc,

I was wondering if sally, the 'quippy' noun, was going to be tomorrow's Goodword?

Sardith :mrgreen:

Re: Sally

Posted: Thu Jun 20, 2013 11:49 am
by LukeJavan8
I don't understand a number of nicknames such as Sally for Sarah. Harry from Harold, sure, but Jack from John? What kind of etymology explains such leaps?
Here's a site that you might of assistance in explicating these quandaries.

Great reference, Slava, I use that site and its companion
for surnames frequently.

Re: Sally

Posted: Thu Jun 20, 2013 8:03 pm
by MTC
I understand salient as jumping out at you, but always thought of it as a synonym of wise or wisely relevant.
You were thinking of sapient, Perry:

sa·pi·ent (sp-nt)
adj.
Having great wisdom and discernment.

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[Middle English, from Old French, from Latin sapins, sapient-, present participle of sapere, to taste, be wise; see sep- in Indo-European roots.]

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sapi·ence n.
sapi·ent·ly adv.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition copyright ©2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved

Re: Sally

Posted: Thu Jun 20, 2013 11:49 pm
by Philip Hudson
Anyone who missed sally as a Goodword Suggestion might want to review the thread of responses to it.

Re: Sally

Posted: Thu Jun 20, 2013 11:58 pm
by Slava
Anyone who missed sally as a Goodword Suggestion might want to review the thread of responses to it.
The Goodword Suggestion on the Agora is here. But, is Sardith a Gene? :?

Re: Sally

Posted: Fri Jun 21, 2013 12:22 am
by Philip Hudson
Slava asks, "Is Sardith a Gene?" Some of us use nom de plumes to participate in the Agora. Some of us just put our names out for everyone to see. Sardith may want to maintain some remoteness by using a pen name. So I am not asking.

Re: Sally

Posted: Fri Jun 21, 2013 9:47 am
by sardith
Friends,

I hope that it was not objectionable, but I mentioned Dr. Goodword following the verb 'sally' article with the noun 'sally' version, because I was pleased and hopeful, not because I was unaware of our conversation in the Goodword Suggestion thread. (I'm in on those discussions, after all.)

I'm not sure if it is the innate flatness of text communications, but there are times I think I've erred in my questions, or in where I have placed my questions, based on the responses that follow. That's the last thing I'd desire.

I'm still operating on the maxim that, "The only stupid question is the one you don't ask," and until I know differently, I'll believe it is fine to go ahead with my questions.

Thanks for listening,
Sardith :mrgreen:
p.s. My name is Susan Ardith Lee, but I use Sardith for my email and when I signed up for Alpha, I didn't know about user names, or computers, (I think I'd had mine for less than a month), and that's why I ended up with that nom de plumes, and as far as I can tell, there is no way to change your user name, (without starting all over, I guess), much as I'd like to.

Re: Sally

Posted: Fri Jun 21, 2013 11:44 am
by Philip Hudson
Well put, Sardith. A rose by any name would smell just as sweet. I might adopt a nom de plume, but then I would forget it; the same as I forget all my passwords and pin numbers.