Asunder

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Dr. Goodword
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Asunder

Postby Dr. Goodword » Tue Feb 24, 2015 11:43 pm

• asunder •

Pronunciation: ê-sên-dêr • Hear it!

Part of Speech: Adjective-Adverb

Meaning: Apart, separated.

Notes: Today's Good Word is what I have called a "defective adjective" in my scholarly writings. This word is defective in several ways: it may not appear before a noun, it may be used as an adverb without the suffix -ly, etc. We may say, 'The curtains are asunder,' but not 'The asunder curtains'. We may also say 'She tore the curtains asunder,' but not asunderly. English has several hundred of these adjectives, including ahead, aboard, afloat, and so on.

In Play: Perhaps the most famous usage of today's Good Word is in the concluding phrase of a prominent Christian wedding ceremony: "What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder" (Mark 10: 9). Because of this, no doubt, it is treated as slightly more dramatic than apart. This would explain why it is frequently accompanied by the powerful verb tear: "Their deteriorating relationship was finally torn asunder when he caught her in the arms of another man."

Word History: Today's Good Word is a prefixed form of the verb sunder "to separate, divide". The prefix a- is a common way of creating defective adjectives (see above). The verb is a close cousin of German sondern "to separate; but". The root, sund- comes ultimately from Proto-Indo-European seni-(ter) "apart, separated" that also went into the making of Latin sine "without". We can also find traces of it in Sanskrit sanutar "far away" and Greek ater "without". Latin sed "but" may also be traced back to PIE seni with a -t suffix. (Let's now show our gratitude to William Hupy for recommending today's excellent Good Word. May he never sunder his relationship with alphaDictionary.)
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Philip Hudson
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Re: Asunder

Postby Philip Hudson » Wed Feb 25, 2015 3:59 am

Sadly the majestic marriage ceremony from the Book of Common Prayer has fallen on hard times. Nowadays couples frequently make up their own ceremony and there is little thought to permanent marriage.

In Handle's Messiah there is a magnificent chorus of "Let us break their bonds asunder, and cast away their yokes from us." from the second Psalm. I do not know the translation Handle used.

The KJV has it "Let us break their bands asunder, and cast away their cords from us."

Read the larger libretto from the Messiah or from any Bible translation and, if you are not alreadyfamiliar with it, you may be surprised. It is not a call to break the bonds of the enemies of Israel but rather a mocking of the rage of the heathens who do not follow Jehovah.
It is dark at night, but the Sun will come up and then we can see.

misterdoe
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Re: Asunder

Postby misterdoe » Wed Feb 25, 2015 9:06 am

That Biblical phrase is the inspiration for the title of a huge radio and club hit by Philadelphia band First Choice back in the 70s, Let No Man Put Asunder. Though widespread unfamiliarity with the word leads to online references to the song as Let No Man Put Us Under. :?

I've seen the verbs mow and rend used with asunder (mown asunder and rent asunder), for a more dramatic effect than just "broken" or "separated." There's also the verb sunder and related adjective sundered, which are also probably endangered.

Latin sine is also the source of the Spanish, Italian, and French words for "without," among others.

And the misspelling "Handle" above :) reminds me of an old joke I saw in Reader's Digest. In a public bathroom someone attached a note to the toilet saying "please wiggel Handel." Someone wrote underneath, "If I wiggel Handel, will it wiggel Bach?" :lol:
Last edited by misterdoe on Mon Jun 01, 2015 9:38 pm, edited 2 times in total.

LukeJavan8
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Re: Asunder

Postby LukeJavan8 » Wed Feb 25, 2015 1:42 pm

:lol: love it ! !
-----please, draw me a sheep-----

Philip Hudson
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Re: Asunder

Postby Philip Hudson » Wed Feb 25, 2015 3:24 pm

I would say my misspelling of Handel was "my bad", but, without this error, misterdoe would have missed the opportunity to share the Handel/Bach chestnut.
It is dark at night, but the Sun will come up and then we can see.

Perry Lassiter
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Re: Asunder

Postby Perry Lassiter » Thu Feb 26, 2015 12:27 am

Re asunder: Has anyone else noticed the irony that gays want to get married and straights just want to cohabit?
pl

LukeJavan8
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Re: Asunder

Postby LukeJavan8 » Thu Feb 26, 2015 12:33 pm

I have.
-----please, draw me a sheep-----


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