英语词源词典 X.docVIP

X most Eng. words beginning in -x- are of Gk. origin or modern commercial coinages. E. Anglian in 14c. showed a tendency to use -x- for initial sh-, sch- (cf. xal for shall), which didnt catch on but seems an improvement over the current system. As a symbol of a kiss on a letter, etc., it is recorded from 1765. In malt liquor, XX denoted double quality and XXX strongest quality (1827). Algebraic meaning unknown quantity (1660 in Eng.), sometimes said to be from medieval use, originally a crossed -r-, probably from L. radix (see root). Other theories trace it to Arabic, but a more prosaic explanation says Descartes (1637) took x, y, z, the last three letters of the alphabet, for unknowns to correspond to a, b, c, used for known quantities. Used allusively for unknown person from 1797, something unknown since 1859. As a type of chromosome, attested from 1902. First used 1950 in Britain to designate films deemed suitable for adults only; adopted in U.S. Nov. 1, 1968. X-ray 1896, translation of Ger. X-strahl, from X, algebraic symbol for an unknown quantity, + Strahl (pl. Strahlen) beam, ray. Coined 1895 by Ger. scientist Wilhelm Conrad R?ntgen (1845-1923), who discovered them. Xanadu Mongol city founded by Kublai Khan, 1625, Anglicized form of Shang-tu. Sense of dream place of magnificence and luxury derives from Coleridges poem (1816). Xanthippe 1596, spouse of Socrates (5c. B.C.E.), the prototype of the quarrelsome, nagging wife. The name is related to the masc. proper name Xanthippos, a compound of xanthos yellow + hippos horse. xanthous 1829, from Gk. xanthos yellow, of unknown origin. Prefix form xantho- is used in many scientific words; cf. xanthein (1857) soluble yellow coloring matter in flowers, Huxleys Xanthochroi (1867) blond, light-skinned races of Europe (with okhros pale), xanthophyll (1838) yellow coloring matter in autumn leaves. xebec small three-masted vessel, 1756, from Fr. chébec, from It. sciabecco, ult. from Ar. shabbak a