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Drill/Turn #etymology

The surprisingly connected origins of "drill" and "turn". #etymology #WordNerd #linguistics #HistoricalLinguistics #language #words #lingcomm #drill #turn

Alliterative

3 weeks ago

A drill turns and thus bores a hole  into whatever it is you’re drilling. And etymologically this make sense. Drill  comes through Middle Dutch drillen “to drill” from Germanic *thr-, ultimately from  the Proto-Indo-European root *terə- “to rub, turn”. This comes into Greek as tornos “tool  for drawing a circle or lathe”, which was borrowed as Latin tornus producing the verb  tornare “to polish, fashion, turn on a lathe”, becoming Old French torner “to turn away or  around; cause to turn; change
, transform; turn on a lathe”, giving us English turn. Oh, and  drill in the other sense of “instruct in military exercise” is the same word, from the idea  of the “turning” manoeuvres they make.

Comments

@peterv7258

Seems like tornado must be part of that story

@carazy123_

Etymology is sick, thanks!

@jdstar6352

Then why is "dreschler" woodturner in German?

@leahthegeek9677

I love linguistics

@etiennedoucet8762

Tourner in French, with the u

@sologamer3122

Bro slow down 😅