Literature

Definition of incunabula

The etymological root of the term incunabula comes from the Latin word incunabŭla, which can be translated as “diapers”. The concept is used to describe those books that were published in the period between the creation of the printing press and the beginning of the 16th century. Specifically, we can establish that this Latin word is the […]

Definition of expletive

In order to understand the meaning of the term expletive, it is necessary, first of all, to discover its etymological origin. In this case, we must emphasize that it is a word that derives from Latin, specifically from “improperium”, which is the result of the sum of two lexical components of said language: -The verb “improperare”, which can be used to […]

Definition of Iliad

Iliad is not a term that is part of the dictionary of the Royal Spanish Academy (RAE). It is the title of an epic poem that is usually attributed to Homer, a poet of Ancient Greece who lived in the 8th century BC. An epic poem is a poem of great length that revolves around […]

Definition of comic strip

In order to know and understand the meaning of the term comic strip, it is first necessary to discover its etymological origin. Specifically, we can indicate that it is the result of the sum of two lexical components from different languages: -The Greek noun «istoria». -The Latin suffix «-eta», which is synonymous with «small». Concept of comic strip Comic strip is a […]

Definition of prodigal son

A child is a human being or an animal in relation to its parents. A child, therefore, is the descendant of the parents. This bond of paternity can arise through biological procreation or through adoption. The idea of ​​a child can also refer to an individual in relation to his nation, his province, […]

Definition of heptasyllable

Before going into the meaning of the term heptasyllable, we will proceed to know its etymological origin. In this case, we can emphasize that it is a word that derives from Greek and is the result of the sum of two lexical components of said language: -The word “hepta”, which can be translated as […]

Definition of hemistich

A hemistich is the middle of a verse. The term, which comes from the Latin hemistichĭum (which in turn originates from the Greek hēmistíchion), is often used to refer to each fragment of a verse that is separated from the others by a caesura. This means that, beyond the allusion to a […]

Definition of haiku

The term haiku has its etymological roots in the Japanese language. The concept refers to a poetic composition consisting of three verses: the first with five syllables, the second with seven syllables and the last verse with five syllables. It is a type of poetry originating in Japan. The original haikus […]

Definition of fairy

The etymology of fairy takes us back to the Latin fata. A fairy is a fantastic creature with a feminine form to which magical abilities are attributed. For example: “Yesterday I saw a film where a fairy made a poor girl’s dream come true”, “My daughter asked us to decorate her room with elves and fairies”, “When […]

Definition of gloss

The etymological journey of the term gloss begins with the Greek word glôssa, which translates as “tongue”. From there it passed to the late Latin glossa, which refers to a concept that needs explanation. A gloss, therefore, can be a note – generally brief – that is written in the margin of a text or even between […]