Mythical Word Origins

The Lesson Activities will help you meet these educational goals:

21st Century Skills—You will use critical-thinking skills and communicate effectively.

Directions

Please save this document before you begin working on the assignment. Type your answers directly in the document. ______

Self-Checked Activities

Read the instructions for the following activities and type in your responses. Click the link to the Student Answer Sheet at the end of the lesson. Use the answers or sample responses to evaluate your own work.

  1. Mythological Word Origins
  2. Use this online dictionary to match the terms derived from mythology with their definitions. Type, or copy and paste, each term next to its meaning in the table.

tantalizing (Tantalus)
Midas touch
panic (Pan)
atlas
herculean
Promethean (Prometheus) / titanic (Titans)
labyrinth
siren
Achilles’ heel
narcissism
Gordian knot

Sample answer:

Term / Meaning Derived from Mythology
labyrinth / a maze
atlas / a book of maps
siren / a woman who sings with enchanting sweetness
Gordian knot / an extremely intricate problem
narcissism / excessive self-love
tantalizing / desirable yet out of reach
panic / sudden fear without reason
herculean / a huge or heroic task
Achilles’ heel / a weakness
Promethean / daringly creative or original
titanic / colossal in size
Midas touch / success in everything one does
  1. Read the following words and their mythological associations. Use the entries in the Mythical Connection column and this online dictionary to help you define each word and use it in a sentence.

Check out this encyclopedia for more information about the myths and their references.

Sample answer:

Answers will vary but may resemble the following.

Word / Mythical Connection / Definition / Sentence
aurora / Aurora was the Roman goddess of dawn. Her Greek counterpart was Eos. / n–dawn; streams of glowing light in the sky above the planet’s polar regions / The aurora seen in the northern latitudes is known as the aurora borealis.
flora / Flora was the Roman goddess of flowers and flowering plants. / n–a treatise on or list of the plants of an area or period; plant or bacterial life / Jane and her friends have studied the neighborhood’s flora in detail.
laconic / The Spartans of Laconia were warriors known for using their words sparingly. / adj–using or involving the use of a minimum of words; concise to the point of seeming rude or mysterious / Gary's laconic brother made him look like an extrovert.
mercurial / The Roman god Mercury was known to the Greeks as Hermes. He was a prankster and the messenger to other gods and mortals. / adj–having qualities of eloquence, ingenuity, or thievishness attributed to the god Mercury; having fast and unpredictable changes in mood / Anne is scared of sharing the bad news and setting off her dad’s mercurial temperament.
museum / This structure was the temple of the Muses, nine Greek goddesses who presided over arts and literature. / n–an institution devoted to the procurement, care, study, and display of objects of lasting interest or value / The air and space museum in Washington, DC, has an exhaustive exhibit of aircraft and spacecraft.
nemesis / This Greek goddess rewarded noble acts but punished evil ones. / n–one who inflicts retribution or vengeance / Roger Federer played his old nemesis in this year’s Australian Open championship.
odyssey / The epic poem The Odyssey, as told by Homer, details the wanderings of Odysseus upon his victorious return to Troy. / n–a long wandering or voyage usually marked by many changes of fortune / The soldiers embarked on a perilous odyssey that many would never return from.
protean / The sea god Proteus had to be caught before he changed forms. / adj–of or resembling Proteus in having a varied nature or ability to assume different forms / Any aspiring actor has to be protean to succeed and become famous in this ever-changing industry.
  1. Study the following Greek roots. For each root provided, use this online dictionary to find and list examples of English words with that root.

Sample answer:

Answers will vary but may include the words listed below.

Greek Root / English Word Examples
aero–air / aeronautics, aerobes, aerodrome, aerodynamic
dem–people / demographics, democracy, democrat
geo–earth / geography, geology, geologist, geocentric, geochemical, geomagnetism
gram–letter, written / telegram, cablegram, cardiogram, diagram, histogram
mech–machine / mechanical, mechanic
meter–measure / thermometer, barometer, acidometer, altimeter, calorimeter, diameter, colorimeter, manometer, millimeter, kilometer, centimeter, nanometer
opt–eye / optical, optician
ortho–straight, right / orthodox, orthocenter
psych–mind, soul / psychology, Psychologist, psychoanalysis
therm–heat / thermal, thermometer, thermostat, thermolabile, thermostable
anthropos–mankind / anthropology, misanthropy, anthropoid, philanthropy, anthropophobia
hal–salt / halogen, haloaromatic, halobacteria
hepta–seven / heptagon, heptameter,heptathlon
nephr(o)–kidney / nephrectomy, nephritis, nephrology, nephron, nephropathy, nephrosis, nephrotomy

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