Alphadictionary.com

impervious

Printable Version
Pronunciation: im-pêr-vi-ês Hear it!

Part of Speech: Adjective

Meaning: 1. (with to) Impenetrable, impermeable. 2. Insusceptible, incapable of being affected.

Notes: Only the letter V stands between impervious and imperious, so be careful of your spelling. This word is the negative of pervious "permeable, penetrable", a rarely used adjective. The adverb and noun are the obvious ones: imperviously and imperviousness. Impervium is a word introduced in the 30s referring to a science-fiction element that is virtually indestructible.

In Play: Today's Good Word is less frequently used in reference to physical imperviousness: "While flak jackets are impervious to bullets, they are not impervious to the impact of bullets." It is more often used in the figurative second sense: "Phil Anders is impervious to the reasonings of women's rights and the #metoo movement."

Word History: English impervious is a remake of Latin impervius "impassible", based on an assimilated form of in- "not, un-" + pervius "permeable". Pervius is a combination of per "through" + via "way, road" + an adjective suffix. Via comes from PIE wegh- "go, move, carry, especially by vehicle". It also produced vehere "to carry". Vehiculum "cart, carriage", which English borrowed for its vehicle, is a derivative of vehere. Wegh came to English via its Germanic ancestors as way, weight, and wagon. Weigh slipped into the language at a time when things were weighed by primitive scales, comprising two plates hanging by chains balanced on a fulcrum. Presumably, weight was a measure of how many weights an object could carry. (Lest he think we are impervious to gratitude, let's all thank William Hupy for yet another fascinating Good Word.)

Dr. Goodword, alphaDictionary.com

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