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I thought my multilingual Portuguese colleague had made a typo, but:
"interpellated"
is apparently common usage across the pond when speaking of parliamentary matters.
Interpellate comes from the latin interpellare. Its originary meaning is to interrupt someone who is speaking.
A priest once told me that knowing greek is the key to understand all languages. I don't know nothing of greek, but speaking a latin language is a great help.
You have to love dictionaries, though, especially the terse ones. The circular 'definition' Nate found 'explains' it by re-inflecting it.
Dictionaries are usefull to check the spelling of certain words or check the meaning of uncommon words like "terse". I use Dictionary.com.
It's certainly an interesting word, but not one used by the British - probably because we don't often interrupt European ministers :-)
Yeah, it's the sort of word used by Scrabble players or foreigners who learn from a dictionary ;)
We would say "questioned", from the Latin "questare", meaning to ask a question.
A translator would call it a Latinism. It would be edited out, perhaps mistakenly so, though there is no exact equivalent. Question, call into question, challenge, or simply ask?
Lat. interpellare also means: indispose, hinder, obstruct. Summon, arraign, call forth, send for. All that semantic spice in the original post!
In French, since a few years, (“cela m’interpelle”) it is used in the sense of : it calls out to me, it grabs my attention, attracts my notice, intrigues me, etc. which would probably be translated as: (some formulation) is noteworthy, intriguing, interesting, etc.
Enough!
That's not what he meant, Luis.
LOL! (I had the same thought.)
Thanks for the new word, Luis!
I think we may be missing the punch line here.
"Originary" (heh, heh, what the ...) Excellent Luis.
I'm pretty good with "American" (Hell Yea!!!! ... Damn Right!) English, but "originary" that's a new one for me as well. Learned a second word.
As, I believe it was Homer (Simpson) once said, "those French, they've got a word for everything".
I leave you with,
"Twas brillig, and the slithy toves
Did gyre and gimble in the wabe ... "
Without further ado, I shall now proceed to abscond this colloquium, via circumlocution.
Peace.
Aye, we should all endeavor to eschew obfuscation!
I learned me a new word today.
Euan and I also!