A history of the English Language

217.
Self-explaining Compounds.
A second source of new words is represented in the practice of making self-explaining 
compounds, one of the oldest methods of word formation in the language. In earlier 
editions of this book such words as 
fingerprint
(in its technical sense), 
fire extinguisher, 
hitchhike, jet propulsion,
the colloquial 
know-how, lipstick, steamroller, steam shovel,
and 
streamline
were mentioned as being rather new. They have now passed into such 
common use that they no longer carry any sense of novelty. This will probably happen, 
indeed has already happened, to some of the more recent formations that can be noted, 
such as 
skydiving, jet lag, house sitter, lifestyle, hatchback, greenhouse effect, acid rain, 
roller blades, junk food, e-mail,
and the metaphorical 
glass ceiling
. Many of these betray 
their newness by being written with a hyphen or as separate words, or by preserving a 
rather strong accent on each element. They give unmistakable testimony to the fact that 
the power to combine existing words into new ones expressing a single concept, a power 
that was so prominent a feature of Old English, still remains with us. 
218.
Compounds Formed from Greek and Latin Elements.
The same method may be employed in forming words from elements derived from Latin 
and Greek. The large classical element already in the English vocabulary makes such 
formations seem quite congenial to the language, and this method has long been a 
favorite source of scientific terms. Thus 
eugenics
is formed from two Greek roots, 
—
meaning 
well,
and 
—meaning 
to be born
. The word therefore means 
well-born
and 
is applied to the efforts to bring about well-born offspring by the selection of healthy 
parents. The same root enters into 
genetics,
the experimental study of heredity and allied 
topics. In the words 
stethoscope, bronchoscope, fluoroscope,
and the like we have -
scope,
which appears in 
telescope
. It is a Greek word 
σκ
o
π
ó
ς
meaning a 
watcher
. Just as 
in Greek means 
far
and enters into such words as 
telephone, telescope, television,
and the 
like, so we have 
stethoscope
with the first element from Greek 
(breast or 
chest), 
bronchoscope
from Greek ß
ρ
ó
γχ
o
ς
(windpipe), and 
fluoroscope
with the same 
The nineteenth century and after 285

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first element as in 
fluorine
(from Latin
 fluere, 
to flow). 
Panchromatic
comes from the 
Greek words 
πα
v
- (all) and 
χρω
µ
ατικ
ó
ς
(relating to color), and is thus used in 
photography to describe a plate or film that is sensitive to all colors. An 
automobile
is 
something that moves of itself (Greek 
‘self’+Latin 
mobilis
‘movable’). 
Orthodontia
is from Greek 
‘straight’ and 
‘tooth’, and 
thus describes the branch of dentistry that endeavors to straighten irregular teeth. A few 
minutes spent in looking up recent scientific words in any dictionary will supply 
abundant illustrations of this common method of English word formation.