The Facts on File Dictionary of Foreign Words and Phrases (Writers Reference) (16 page)

catastrophe (katastrafee) GREEK
[overturning, from katastrephein to
overturn] noun a calamity, disaster, or total failure; can also refer to
the denouement of a novel, play, or
other story: "The region faces economic
catastrophe with the loss of thousands
of jobs."

catatonia (katatoneea) GREEK [from
kata down and tones tension] noun a
condition associated with schizophrenia, characterized by periods of
immobility, stiffening of the limbs,
and mania: "The patient became hysterical, later slipping into catatonia."

catechesis (katakeesis) GREEK [katekhesis instruction by mouth] noun (plural catacheses, katakeeseez) oral
instruction, often referring specifically
to the teaching of Christianity.

catechumen (kaVDoman) FRENCH
[from Latin catechumenus, itself from
Greek katechoumenos being instructed]
noun a convert to Christianity prior
to baptism, or one being taught in
Christian doctrine before joining the
church.

catharsis (katharsis), katharsis GREEK
[purification, from katharsis, from
kathairein to cleanse] noun (plural
catharses, katharseez) purification of the emotions: "The whole episode
served as something of a catharsis in the
young man's life."

catheter (kathatar, kathtar) GREEK
[kathienai to send down] noun a hollow tube through which fluids may
be injected into or withdrawn from
a body or by means of which a passageway or canal may be kept open:
"He was shocked to see his aunt in hospital,
dependent upon catheters and drugs."

caudillo (kothee),o, kotheelyo) SPANISH [small head, from Latin capitellum,
diminutive of caput head] noun (plural caudillos, kothee),oz, kotheelyoz)
a military or political leader in a
Spanish-speaking country.

causa sine qua non (cowza sina), kwah
non) LATIN [cause without which not]
noun phrase (plural causae sine quibus
non, cowzl sinee kweebas non) the
immediate and indispensable cause of
something happening: `Poverty is the
causa sine qua non of most acts of vandalism and other petty crimes." See also SINE
QUA NON.

cause celebre (koz saleb, koz salebra),
cause celebre FRENCH [celebrated
case] noun (plural causes celebres,
causes celebres) a notorious affair,
scandal, case, person, or thing: "It's
dcult to say what it is, but it may yet
be a cause celebre,'said the Assistant Commissioner" (Joseph Conrad, The Secret
Agent, 1907).

causerie (koz3ree) FRENCH [chat]
noun an informal chat; also a short
piece of writing in an informal style.

ca va sans dire (sa va son deer)
FRENCH [that goes without saying]
interjection it goes without saying,
it stands to reason.

cavatina (kavdteena) ITALIAN [from
cavata producing tone from a musical instrument] noun (in music) a
simple aria, or a melodic instrumental
composition, with no repetition of
words or phrases.

caveat (kaveeat) LATIN [let him beware,
from cavere to be on guard] noun a
warning to others to beware or to
be careful, a proviso: "He recommended
a vacation in Europe, but then qualified
the recommendation with a lengthy list
of caveats."

caveat emptor (kaveeat entor)
LATIN [let the buyer beware] interjection buyer beware, at the buyer's
own risk (a warning to a purchaser
that he or she can have no recourse to
the law if due care is not exercised in
making a purchase) : "But I say that if my
story be right the doctrine of Caveat emptor
does not encourage trade" (Anthon), Trollope, Phineas Redux, 1876). 'abbreviated form c.e.

cave canem (ka),vee kkndm) LATIN
[beware of the dog] interjection beware of the dog.

Cdt. See COMMANDANT.

c.e. See CAVEAT EMPTOR.

cedilla (sadila) SPANISH [diminutive
of zeda, letter Z] the diacritical
mark as on c in French, Portuguese,
and other languages to show that it has
the sound of s.

ceilidh (klee) GAELIC [from Old
Irish ceilide visit] noun a Scottish or
Irish barn dance, usually featuring live
folk music: "There is a ceilidh in the village hall every Friday during the summer."

ceinture (santoor, ' sanch2r) FRENCH
[from Latin cinctura girdle, from cingere to gird] noun a belt or sash worn
round the waist.

census (sensds) LATIN [register of
citizens and property, from censere
to assess] noun (plural censuses,
sensasiz) an official count of the
population of a city, region, or nation:
"The 1991 census found that 47 percent
of Brazilians considered themselves black or
brown; 51 percent said they were white."

cerebellum (serabelam) LATIN [little
brain, diminutive of cerebrum brain]
noun (plural cerebellums or cerebella,
serabela) the lower rear part of the
brain that controls the muscles, posture,
balance, and various mental processes.

cerebrum (sereebr3m) LATIN [brain]
noun (plural cerebrums or cerebra,

sereebra) the front, main part of
the brain that is considered the seat of
conscious mental processes, including
movement, memory, and speech.

cerise (s2rees, s3reeZ) FRENCH [cherry]
noun a cherry red color. -adjective
of or relating to such a color: "She
hunted along the stale-smelling corridors
with their wallpaper of cerise daisies and
poison-green rosettes, streaked in white
spots from spilled water, their frayed red
and yellow matting, and rows of pine doors
painted a sickly blue" (Sinclair Lewis,
Main Street, 1922).

certiorari (sershee5rabree) LATIN [to be
informed] noun (plural certioraris)
a writ issued by a superior court
ordering the production of the records of a lower court or other judicial
body to enable inspection for irregularities.

cervix (serviks) LATIN [neck] noun
(plural cervices, serviseez) the neck
of the womb, a narrow opening leading from the vagina into the womb:
"Effective screening for cancer of the cervix
has greatly reduced the death rate."

c'est la guerre (say la .gair) FRENCH
[that is the war] interjection that is
what happens in wartime, we must
resign ourselves to the situation.

c'est la vie (say la vee) FRENCH [that
is life] interjection that is what happens in life, life is like that, we must resign ourselves to the situation, such
is life; used to express resignation
when confronted with an unpleasant
or difficult situation: "We spent years
campaigning for a new expressway. Now
that it's been built, the volume of traffic is
even greater and noisier oh well, c'est la
vie, I suppose."

cesura See CAESURA.

cetera desunt (ketara deesant, setara
deesant) LATIN [the other things are
missing] noun phrase the rest is missing (usually referring to missing portions of manuscript).

ceteris paribus (ketaris Paribas, setaris p ibas) LATIN [other things being
equal] adverb phrase other things being
equal, assuming nothing else changes.
'abbreviated form cet. par.

ceud mile failte (keeoot meela
fahaltya) SCOTTISH GAELIC [a hundred
thousand welcomes] interjection phrase
a hundred thousand welcomes!, a
greeting.

ceviche (saveechay, saveechee) SPANISH
[from cebiche fish stew] noun (in Latin
American cuisine) raw fish marinated
in lime juice and spices and served as
an appetizer.

cf. See CONFER.

cha-cha (chah-chah), cha-cha-cha
SPANISH [imitative of the rhythm of

the dance] noun a lively ballroom
dance of Latin American origin, or the
music that accompanies it.

chacun a son gout (shakan a son(g)
gW) FRENCH [each to his own taste]
interjection everyone to his or her
own taste, there is no accounting for
taste: "`I can't believe he likes that music,'
she sighed, `but chacun d son gout, as the
French say."'

chador (chadah, chada), chaddar,
chadar, chuddar URDU [from Persian
cadar sheet, veil] noun a large cloth
worn as a headscarf, veil, and shawl by
Muslim women: "Many of the younger
women protested publicly against the wearing of the chador."

chagrin (sharan) FRENCH [rough
skin] noun a sense of anxiety or ruefulness provoked by embarrassment,
humiliation, or disappointment. -verb
to provoke such a feeling in a person:
"But; he added, with an air of chagrin,
which he endeavored, though unsuccessfully,
to conceal, had I been aware that what
I then believed a soldier's conduct could
be so construed, shame would have been
added to the list of reasons"' (James Fenimore Cooper, The Last of the Mohicans,
1826).

chaise (shayz) FRENCH [chair] noun
a light horse-drawn carriage, typically
with two wheels and a folding hood:
"For now the chaise creaked upon its springs, and Mrs. Varden was inside; and now it
creaked again, and more than ever, and the
locksmith was inside; and now it bounded
once, as if its heart beat lightly, and Dolly
was inside..." (Charles Dickens, Barnaby
Rudge, 1841).

chaise longue (sha),z long) FRENCH
[long chair] noun (plural chaise
longues or chaises longues) a type
of sofa or couch with a single backrest
at one end: "At length, upon a peremptory call for Madame Lalande,' she arose
at once, without affectation or demur, from
the chaise longue upon which she had sat
by my side, and, accompanied by one or
two gentlemen and her female friend of the
opera, repaired to the piano in the main
drawing-room" (Edgar Allan Poe, "The
Spectacles," 1844).

chakra (chukra) SANSKRIT [from cakra
wheel] noun (in yoga philosophy) any
one of the seven centers of spiritual
power in the human body: "There are
seven chakras in a line running from the base
of the spine to the top of the head."

chalet (shah, shala)') FRENCH [from
Old French chase] farmstead] noun a
Swiss-style wooden house reminiscent
of the huts originally built by Alpine
herdsmen; sometimes also used for
any wooden cottage or house (especiall), vacation houses): "Much worse,'
said Agatha. `I think we had better get under
the veranda of the old chalet. It is not half
a minute's walk from here"' (George Bernard Shaw, An Unsocial Socialist, 1887).

chambre (shomb, shombray)
FRENCH [past participle of chambrer
to bring to room temperature] adjective at room temperature (specificall),
referring to wine).

chamois (shamee, shamwah), chammy,
shammy FRENCH [after the chamois
antelope] noun a piece of soft leather
made from the skin of the chamois
antelope, or from sheepskin: "The children helped clean the car with a chamois
leather."

chancre (shankar) FRENCH [from
Latin cancer tumor or crab] noun a
hard, painless swelling, usually on
the genitals, which is the first sign of
syphilis.

chandelier (shandaleer) FRENCH [candlestick] noun a branched candlestick or light fitting suspended from
a ceiling: "Over the well of the staircase
hangs a great chandelier with wax lights,
which illumine a large eighteenth-century
French tapestry..." (Oscar Wilde, An
Ideal Husband, 1895).

chanson (Shonson ) FRENCH [song,
from Latin cantio song] noun a
song (especiall), one suitable for
music hall or cabaret): "In France, for
instance, he would write a chanson; / In
England a six canto quarto tale; / In
Spain, he'd make a ballad or romance
on / The last war much the same in
Portugal..." (Lord B),ron, Don Juan,
1819-24).

chanson de geste (shonson(g) da
zhest) FRENCH [song of heroic deeds]
noun phrase (plural chansons de geste)
an epic poem about heroic deeds of
the type written by medieval French
poets.

chanteuse (shonte r z, shontooz)
FRENCH [a female singer] noun a
female singer of ballads or other popular songs: "However, the management is
appreciative if they accept the invitation of
some dignitary of the army, of administration, or of finance, who seeks the honor of
hearing from the chanteuse, in a private
room and with a company of friends not
disposed to melancholy, the Bohemian
songs of the Vieux Derevnia" (Gaston Leroux, The Secret of the Night, 1914).

Chanukah See HANUKKAH.

chaos (loos) GREEK [from khaos
chasm, gulf] noun a state of utter
confusion or disorganization (originall),
referring to the disordered condition of
the universe when it was first formed):
As Rose stood by him watching the ease
with which he quickly brought order out of
chaos, she privately resolved to hunt up her
old arithmetic and perfect herself in the four
first rules, with a good tug at fractions, before
she read any more fairy tales" (Louisa May
Alcott, Eight Cousins, 1875).

chaparajos (shaparhos, chaparhos), chaparejos SPANISH [from
chaparreras, from chaparro dwarf evergreen oak] plural noun strong leather

leggings worn over the trousers by
western ranch hands to protect
themselves from thorny vegetation.
'abbreviated form chaps.

chaparral (shaparal) SPANISH [from
chaparro dwarf evergreen oak] noun
an impenetrable thicket of dwarf evergreen oaks or other shrubs and trees:
"One winter he was out in the Pink Cls
with a Mormon named Shoonover, an' they
run into a lammin' big grizzly track, fresh
an' wet. They trailed him to a clump of
chaparral, an' on goin' clear round it, found
no tracks leadin' out" (Zane Gre),, Last of
the Plainsmen, 1908).

chapati (chatee), chappati HINDI
[from capati, from capana to roll out]
noun (in Indian cuisine) a round flat
cake of unleavened bread.

chapeau (shag, shag) FRENCH [hat]
noun (plural chapeaus or chapeaux)
a hat.

chaperon (shaparon), chaperone
FRENCH [hood, cape] noun an older
person who acts as an escort in
public for young unmarried women
to ensure that they do not get into
trouble or misbehave: "It is a sort
of thing,' cried Mrs. Elton emphatically,
`which I should not have thought myself
privileged to inquire into. Though, perhaps, as the Chaperon of the
part)-I never was in any circle..." (Jane Austen,
Emma, 1815). verb to act as a chaperon for someone.

chaps See CHAPARAJOS.

charabanc (sharabang) FRENCH [from
char d bancs carriage with benches]
noun a motor coach: "He smiled ironically, looking at the raven horse, and was
already deciding in his own mind that this
smart trotter in the charabanc was only
good for promenade..." (Leo Tolstoy, Anna
Karenina, 1874-76).