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ute/Ute

Posted: Fri Apr 05, 2024 6:30 am
by DerekB
This word has two distinct meanings, distinguished principally by whether the first letter is capitalised or not. The meanings are geographically separated.

ute
▸ noun: (Australia, New Zealand) A small vehicle based on the same platform as a family car but with a unibody construction and a built-in open tray area for carrying goods; similar but not identical to a pick-up truck.

Ute
▸ noun: A Native American people of Utah, Colorado and New Mexico.
▸ noun: The language of this people, of the Numic branch of the Uto-Aztecan language family.
▸ noun: A member of this people.

Re: ute/Ute

Posted: Fri Apr 05, 2024 7:57 am
by Slava
Well, the first one is a trimming of utility, covered in utile. Not related to futile, by the by. Perhaps a suggestible word for the Agora?

The Utes, however, seem to have a murky etymology. The closest I got was a 'perhaps from'.

Re: ute/Ute

Posted: Fri Apr 19, 2024 4:38 am
by DerekB
"Ute" is not to be ignored for lack of obvious parentage. At the bottom of many etymologies is a word that simply came into being without any known precursor.
Wikipedia finds enough information about Utes to make the word perfectly respectable.