572: hippopotamus Jul 2, 2016

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When languages need a new word to describe something that was unknown or had not existed for a long time, there are 2 ways of accomplishing this: the first is to take the existing word and adopt it from the original language, and the second is to create something new, usually from existing words. In the case of 'woodchuck' and 'groundhog', English-speakers did both (see Word Facts from February 2, 2015). However, in the case of 'hippopotamus', that word was invented from the Greek for "riverine horse" in order to describe the animal in Middle English.

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