It’s really cool when you’ve been blogging about words long enough that your children suggest Word Nerd Words to feature. How’s that for validation? 🙂
My son found an interesting story behind the word “jumbo” in the short story collection Guys Read: True Stories. If you, like my son, enjoying learning about words, join the Wondrous Words Wednesday meme, where bloggers share new words they’ve discovered while reading.
I’m sure you’ve heard of “jumbo” before, but do you know where it comes from? Is there a Latin root to explain jumbo? Nope.
Jumbo, noun, a very large specimen of its kind; or adjective, very large
Origin: Jumbo was the name of a huge elephant exhibited by P.T. Barnum in his circus. First known use 1883. (Merriam-Webster)
This shouldn’t be confused with mumbo jumbo, meaningless or superstitious words or activity. This term comes from Mumbo Jumbo, a masked figure among Mandingo peoples of western Africa.
Who says you don’t learn anything reading fiction?
Word Nerd Note: My son enjoyed the Guys Read collections. If you need book suggestions for a guy in your life (of any age), check out the Guys Read website. It’s run by a community of dudes who believe that guys will read when given books that interest them. The site has tons of information, including great reviews and book lists like “Classics that Actually Hold Up” and “People Being Transformed into Animals.” See my full, adoring post on Guys Read here.
Word Nerd Workout
Since it’s standardized testing season, let’s try an analogy. No need for the kids to have all the fun. 😉
taciturn: laconic :: jumbo : _____________
See how I worked in some vocab review? Thanks for “playing” with me.
I’ve heard of Jumbo the elephant but assumed he was given the name because of the meaning of the word. How interesting!
taciturn: laconic :: jumbo : huge
Hi Julia,
I did know of ‘jumbo’, but it is good to see that you have persuaded other family members to check out new to them words, as they encounter them in their reading.
Hubbie is now well enough versed in the format of Wondrous Words Wednesday, that he will point out any words he thinks I might have missed, or which he deems suitable for inclusion in a post.
I love the ‘Guys Read’ website. It seems to cater for all ages and reading tastes and is cool and interactive enough to keep those teens interested in reading.
Thanks for sharing your story and word 🙂
I’m glad you are familiar with the Guys Read site, and how wonderful that Hubbie is getting in on the wordiness!
Wow, this is something I didn’t know! It’s hard to wrap my mind around the fact that the elephant wasn’t named Jumbo because he was big, but that Jumbo means “big” because that was the elephant’s name.
Poor Jumbo.
It is kinda weird, isn’t it? T
gargantuan
Interestingly (or not), I grew up in St. Thomas, Ontario where Jumbo died when he was hit by a train. Jumbo was the town’s mascot (perhaps still is). So, yeah, I did know the origin of this one but it’s pretty arcane. 😉
Debbie, what an interesting piece of trivia to add to this story! Thanks so much for sharing!! Sorry Jumbo had such a sad end. 🙁 And, arcane sounds like another Word Nerd Word.
Um, big? Is ‘big’ an okay answer to the test? If not, sorry! I wasn’t prepared for standardized testing 🙂
Ha! Yes, Jessica, I will accept big. As a mother barely keeping her chin above water, I get it. Yay for big, and thanks for “playing”. 😉