prerogative

[email protected] 22 Dec 2007 10:39:05 -0000
Newsgroups gmane.culture.language.word-of-the-day
Message-ID <[email protected]>
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The Word of the Day for December 22 is:=20

prerogative   \prih-RAH-guh-tiv\   noun
          1 : an exclusive or special right, power, or privilege: as a :=
 one belonging to an office or an official body *b : one belonging to a =
person, group, or class of individuals c : one possessed by a nation as =
an attribute of sovereignty
     2 : a distinctive excellence

Example sentence:
          How Amy spends her money is none of our business, and if she w=
ants to use all her savings to buy that sports car, it's her prerogative=
.
=20

Did you know?
          In ancient Rome, voting at legal assemblies was done by group,=
 with the majority in a group determining its vote. The group chosen to =
vote first on an issue was called the "praerogativa" (that term traces t=
o a verb meaning "to ask for an opinion before another"). Because the fi=
rst vote was considered to be of great importance, Latin speakers also u=
sed the noun "praerogativa" to mean "preference" and later "privilege." =
As "praerogativa" passed through Anglo-French and Middle English, its sp=
elling shifted to create the noun we know today.





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