Wednesday, November 14, 2018

WORD RIFF OF THE DAY


"So I'd like to know where, you got the notion…"

My brain likes to sing. I know that sounds like fun--except it's not. My brain gets stuck on one phrase, singing it over and over without any help from mouth or vocal cords. How does it do that? Is this what madness sounds like? When King Lear said that a person's notion weakens he meant they were losing their grip on reality. It shouldn't be surprising then that an antonym for notion is reality.

"Don't rock the boat, don't rock the boat, baby"

Notion comes from the Latin word notio (idea) and from notus (known) and is remarkably similar when translated into a number of languages, all of which use a variation of the word notion or idea. Seems like everyone has notions, wherever they live. Only in North America does notion also mean a sewing item, like buttons, pins, zippers, and hooks.

"Our love is like a ship on the ocean
We've been sailing with a cargo full of love and devotion."

A cargo full of love and devotion. Ah! Who wouldn't want that? We have The Hues Corporation to thank for this catchy song and lovely rhyme. What other words could they have picked to rhyme with ocean? Not as many you would think: Emotion or potion could have worked, but I don't see any possibilities when it comes to commotion, promotion, demotion, or lotion. Personally, I would have loved to see them try to use Laotian.

A notion can simply be an idea or it can be so much more. A notion can be an idea that springs to life because of your beliefs, your impressions, your opinions, and most importantly, your perception of the world. There's a Spanish phrase, cada cabeza es un mundo, which translates to each head is its own world. In other words, your perception of reality is your reality.

A notion can also be an impulse or desire, especially the whimsical kind. Oh, whimsical, you're one of my favorite words but, Shh…don't tell the others.

According to vocabulary.com, a notion is lighter than a theory and embraces a whimsy that a simple idea never could. If you share a far-fetched idea with others, someone might respond with where did you get that notion?

You just tell them, "Be quiet, I'm singing."

2 comments:

  1. Ah haha. I remember being in a car with the top down and that song on the radio. Dare I say the year? Now I will have that stuck in my head. lol

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  2. Ha! I always have a song stuck in my head. Luckily, that's a good one.
    :-D

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