3/10/03
WHAT DO DANDELION, MASTODON, RODENT AND DENTINE® CHEWING GUM HAVE IN COMMON?
Each relates to the Latin root word, dent / dont, meaning "tooth." Dandelion is from the French dente de lion or "tooth of the lion" because of the outline of its dentate leaves; mastodon (nipple + tooth) is any of several very large, extinct mammals resembling the elephant but having molar teeth of a different structure; anything of extremely large size. The Egyptian pyramids are mastodons of masonry (a word presented in an earlier lesson).
Rodent: Any of various mammals of the order Rodentia, such as a mouse, rat, squirrel or beaver, characterized by large incisors (teeth located at the front of the mouth) adapted for gnawing or nibbling. Another order of mammals deriving its name from this same root is edentate [e (without) + dent (teeth) + ate (having)]: A group of mammals, some without teeth, including sloths, armadillos and anteaters.
Other "dent" words are: dentils, small toothlike decorations found on many classic and colonial buildings. Have you ever cooked pasta until it was al dente (not hard but not too soft, or in Italian to the tooth)? Remember Poseidon’s trident? What other words can you think of that are built on the dent root?
Could you define dentiloquist, a Bonus Blast® for students? First, think what loguist might mean and you might decipher it to "one who speaks through clenched teeth." Learning for teachers is as rewarding as it is for students!
Would you have ever thought to connect all these words? I selected them from the nineteen that are in this one of three ROOT-AND-BRANCH® lessons in Word Web Vocabulary’s Volume I, a lesson to which the entire week is devoted to the many words that originate from a single root.
