This week's word is phthisic from Little, Big by John Crowley, page 24.
phthisis is a noun meaning any wasting disease, as tuberculosis of the lungs.
phthisic the adjective form of the word.
The word comes from Latin which came from Greek, meaning a decay, which came from phthiein, meaning to waste away.
(From Webster's New World Dictionary, Third College Edition)
My sentence: His phthisic appearance made me think that he had not much longer to live.
What is your sentence?
My sentence from patient to doctor:
ReplyDelete"How dare you tell me that I'm phthisic!"
From A to Z
PS: Now that we know what it means, tell us how to pronounce the word!
Dear A to Z,
ReplyDeleteThanks for your sentence.
You have a good point: it can be pronounced ti-sis or thi-sis.
Question: Do you pronounce words in your head when you read them? For some reason, even though I have taught phonics, I hardly ever do.
Oops. I used the pronunciation for the noun. So it would be ti-sic or thi-sic.
ReplyDeleteYes, I pronounce words in my head when reading them. And - - mispronounce them!
ReplyDeleteFrom A to Z