Moving with this trend, let me propose another little everyday word with a respectable history.
Win/winner
PRONUNCIATION: wn
VERB: Inflected forms: won ( wn), win·ning, wins
INTRANSITIVE VERB: 1. To achieve victory or finish first in a competition. 2. To achieve success in an effort or venture: struggled to overcome the handicap and finally won.
TRANSITIVE VERB: 1. To achieve victory or finish first in. 2. To receive as a prize or reward for performance. 3a. To achieve or attain by effort: win concessions in negotiations. b. To obtain or earn (a livelihood, for example). See synonyms at earn1. 4. To make (one's way) with effort. 5. To reach with difficulty: The ship won a safe port. 6. To take in battle; capture: won the heights after a fierce attack. 7. To succeed in gaining the favor or support of; prevail on: Her eloquence won over the audience. 8a. To gain the affection or loyalty of. b. To appeal successfully to (someone's sympathy, for example). c. To persuade (another) to marry one: He wooed and won her. 9a. To discover and open (a vein or deposit) in mining. b. To extract from a mine or from mined ore.
NOUN: 1a. A victory, especially in a competition. b. First place in a competition. 2. An amount won or earned.
PHRASAL VERBS: win out To succeed or prevail. win through To overcome difficulties and attain a desired goal or end.
IDIOM: win the day To be successful.
ETYMOLOGY: Middle English winnen, from Old English winnan, to fight, strive. See wen-1 in Appendix I.
OTHER FORMS: winless —ADJECTIVE
winna·ble —ADJECTIVE
Appendix I
Indo-European Roots
ENTRY: wen-1
DEFINITION: To desire, strive for.
Derivatives include win, wont, wish, venerate, venereal, venom, and venison.
1. Suffixed form *wen-w-. win, from Old English winnan, to win, from Germanic *winn(w)an, to seek to gain. 2. Suffixed zero-grade form *w-y-. wynn, winsome, from Old English wynn, wen, pleasure, joy, from Germanic *wunj. 3. Suffixed (stative) zero-grade form *w--, to be contented. won1, wont, from Old English wunian, to become accustomed to, dwell, from Germanic *wunn. 4. Suffixed (causative) o-grade form *won-eyo-. wean, from Old English wenian, to accustom, train, wean, from Germanic *wanjan. 5. ween, from Old English wnan, to expect, imagine, think, from Germanic denominative *wnjan, to hope, from *wniz, hope. 6. Suffixed zero-grade form *w-sko-. wish, from Old English wscan, to desire, wish, from Germanic *wunsk-. 7. Perhaps o-grade form *won-. a. Vanir, from Old Norse Vanir, the Vanir; b. vanadium, from Old Norse Vanads, name of the goddess Freya. Both a and b from Germanic *wana-. 8. Suffixed form *wen-es-. a. venerate, venereal, venery1, Venus, from Latin venus, love; b. suffixed form *wen-es-no-. venom, from Latin vennum, love potion, poison. 9. Possibly suffixed form *wen-eto-, “beloved.” Wend, from Old High German Winid, Wend, from Germanic *Weneda-, a Slavic people. 10. Suffixed form *wen-y-. venial, from Latin venia, favor, forgiveness. 11. Lengthened-grade form *wn--. venery2, venison, from Latin vnr, to hunt. 12. Suffixed basic form *wen-o-. wanderoo, from Sanskrit vanam, forest. 13. Possibly zero-grade suffixed form *w-ig-. banyan, from Sanskrit vaik, vija, merchant (? < “seeking to gain”). (Pokorny 1. en- 1146.)
© The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language: Fourth Edition. 2000.
