Show JUST TAKE MY WORD By Frank Colby St. St Louis How do you account for the n in passenger and messenger mes mes- E. E. E E. E H. H Answer The n is intrusive ie i.e. it has crept into into- the words illegitimately The words entered Middle iddle English from rom the French as cr and In Websters Webster's original American dictionary of the En English lish language language lan lan- guage g is listed as the first-choice first spelling spelling- and passa ger is the only choice although followed by this note This word wordis is usually written passenger Many other English words have intrusive vowels or consonants The d lid of thunder is intrusive for or the original Saxon Anglo-Saxon word was Nimble in Middle English was Thimble was Thumb was the Saxon Anglo-Saxon thuma which in Middle English Eng e evolved v vol o l v e d thus The l I 1 of could is intrusive The Middle English Eng spell spelling o g was coude the An Saxon Anglo Saxon lo-Saxon was The I 1 of could simply slipped into the they word by association association association tion with shou should l and would the Middle English forms of which were and wolde Another curious intrusion has in such words as nickname nickname nickname nick nick- name and newt a kind of sala sala- mander Nickname originally was and meant surname surname surname sur name The Thc original Middle English English English Eng Eng- lish spelling spelling- of newt was The errors persisted finally the words sprouted permanent initial ns and became nickname nickname nick name name and newt But the opposite in the case of apron umpire and adder the viper Apron entered Middle i English Eng from the Old French as a word ord closely akin to napkin both having having- evolved from fromI I the Latin nappa table napkin Umpire in Middle English Eng was from the Old French I not even hence a third I person The adder in Anglo- Anglo I Saxon were which became I the Middle English N Now ow these three words when j i spoken were taken to be an apron apron apron ap ap- ap- ap ron an and addre hence the modern spelling apron umpire umI umpire um um- I pire adder |