A.Word.A.Day --liaise

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Nov 27, 2023

This week’s theme
Back-formations

This week’s words
liaise
jerry-build
osmose
manumise
enthuse

Illustration: Anu Garg + AI

Previous week’s theme
Self-referential words

A.Word.A.Day

with Anu Garg

Which came first liaison or liaise? That’s easy to answer. The noun liaison has been with us since the early 1800s. The verb liaise popped out some 100 years later.

This process of forming words by removing a part (an actual or supposed affix) from an existing word is known as back-formation. This week we’ll see five words formed by this process.

That out of the way, let’s ponder weightier questions in life, such as:

Which came first, the chicken or the egg?

Well, an egg doesn’t come just like that. As these things go, most likely some fowl play happened. Whichever came first, the rooster would take credit for it either way.

Discuss below or email us at words@wordsmith.org. Include your location (city, state).

For extra credit, discuss which came first: The seed or the plant? Humans or gods? Man or woman?

liaise

PRONUNCIATION:

(lee-AYZ)

MEANING:

verb intr.:
1. To establish a connection with someone in a different group or organization for purposes of working together, coordinating efforts, exchanging information, etc.
2. To act as a link between two or more parties.

ETYMOLOGY:

Back-formation from liaison, from French liaison, from Latin ligation (binding), from ligare (to bind). The word rose to prominence as British military slang during WWII. Earliest documented use: 1928.

USAGE:

“When they’d first liaised, Royston had been a little scared of this strong, fiery, extremely attractive woman, who’d been all probing questions and serious faces.”
Mat Blackwell; Beef; Lulu; 2016.

See more usage examples of liaise in Vocabulary.com’s dictionary.

A THOUGHT FOR TODAY:

A body of clay, a mind full of play, a moment's life -- that's me. -Harivansh Rai Bachchan, poet (27 Nov 1907-2003)

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