Translation
superstition
Word origin
From Latin superstitio, built on superstare, to stand over or stand near. Roman writers used it for excessive, frightened religious observance, and the standing-over image is usually read as the awe of somebody hanging over a rite. The seam is real in Latin and gone in Esperanto.
- Origin
- Latin
- Root
- superstitio
- English cognates
- superstition
Examples
.
Many people still believe in old superstitions.
, .
That is not science, it is superstition.
.
The superstition about the number thirteen is very old.
Not super plus something. The word starts with the preposition
super, which is a genuine Esperanto word meaning
above, and a learner who cuts there is left holding stiĉo, which is not a
word in this language at all. There is no stiĉ- root. is one
indivisible borrowing, and the test is the one the affix articles keep
recommending: if the remainder after the cut is not itself a root, there was no
cut.
And yet the seam was real once. Latin superstitio really is super
plus stare, to stand: standing over, standing near. Which sense of standing
over the Romans meant is argued about, and the likeliest reading is the
posture of somebody hovering anxiously above a rite, doing it too much and too
fearfully. Cicero used the word as an insult, against as the proper
sort of observance. So this belongs with
inspiri and maniko: the
join you can see is real in the source language and dead in Esperanto, which is
a much more interesting fact than a simple false friend.
Using it. Superstiĉa is the adjective, and it goes on people as well as
beliefs: superstiĉa , a superstitious sailor. o is
somebody given to them. The neighbours are
magio, which is the craft;
sorĉi, which is to work it; and
kutimo, a habit, which is what most superstitions
actually are once the belief has drained out of them.
Where this fits
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superstiĉo: worksheet, infographic and listicle
Free printable study downloads for the Esperanto word "superstiĉo" (superstition): a worksheet with the answer key built in, an infographic, and a sentence listicle. Open any one to view, print or save.
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Start your free weekThis word is part of lesson 55.