Marriage, poker and Latin.
There’s a
theme here. I promise. Of sorts, anyway.
Just the
other day, I was reading a little bit of law and came across, once again, the
word “antenuptials.” That got me to
wondering.
I’ve heard
a whole lot about prenuptials but not
about antenuptials. So, I wondered what the difference was.
Most of us
have heard about prenuptials, or prenups, even if we don’t know anyone who ever
signed ‘em. We know they are agreements two
people sign before they get married to determine who gets what if the marriage
doesn’t work out.
I wasn’t
sure about the other word – antenuptials – though.
In high
school, I took the typing course, just so I wouldn’t have to take Latin. Turns out that it was a great decision
because I’ve used typing in just about everything I’ve done since then.
But typing
hasn’t helped me figure out words and meanings; Latin might have done
that.
So, as I
was wondering about antenuptials, I thought about playing poker and certain
other card games. A player puts his
chips – or money – in the pot before the hand begins. That’s called “ante-ing up.” (Gee, I’ve never
tried to spell that word before; it looks odd.)
Over at the
state house in Columbia, there’s a small room just outside the Senate
chamber. It’s called the
“antechamber.” It’s a little conference
room just before the big chamber. So, I
was thinking that “ante” must have something to do with “before.”
And most of
us have heard of “antebellum,” typically used to describe those big Southern
mansions that existed before the Civil War.
There we have it: “before.”
Just a few weeks ago, I had spinal surgery called “anterior cervical fusion.” There was another “ante-something.” Since the surgeon went in through the throat area to work on the cervical spine, I guessed “anterior” meant before, which it does. It means before or in front of. It’s the opposite of “posterior,” and that, of course, means behind.
Just a few weeks ago, I had spinal surgery called “anterior cervical fusion.” There was another “ante-something.” Since the surgeon went in through the throat area to work on the cervical spine, I guessed “anterior” meant before, which it does. It means before or in front of. It’s the opposite of “posterior,” and that, of course, means behind.
And then,
right in the midst of all of this wondering, the word “antelope” came to
mind. An antelope is a big animal with
horns. But, if a person “lopes,” he is
just running along.
So, after
all of this wondering, I don’t know how the antelope got its name; I know that
antenuptials and prenuptials are the same thing.
And I know
that marriage and poker have a lot in common.
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