The International Institute · Department No. VIII ·
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No. VIII Plain Lexicon · XVI entries · Complete

Department No. VIII · The Plain Lexicon

The plain lexicon, complete.

All sixteen words, in order. Readers seeking excitement are directed elsewhere.

XVIEntries listed
XVIEntries present
0Entries praised
All sixteen entries
  1. Thing
  2. Stuff
  3. Nice
  4. Okay
  5. Fine
  6. Quite
  7. Rather
  8. Actually
  9. Basically
  10. Bit
  11. Lot
  12. Get
  13. Put
  14. Seem
  15. Very
  16. Much

Word 01

Thing Noun

/θɪŋ/ · THING

An object, matter, or affair. Used when no more precise word presents itself.

Etymology. Old English þing, thing, meeting, matter; from Old Norse þing, assembly, council; Proto-Germanic *thinga, appointed time. From assembly to the business discussed there, to any business whatever.

"Put the thing by the other thing."

Word 02

Stuff Noun, verb

/stʌf/ · STUFF

Material of unspecified kind. To fill or pack tightly.

Etymology. Middle English stuffe; from Old French estoffe, material, furnishings, from estoffer, to furnish or stock, probably of Germanic origin.

"The cupboard is full of stuff."

Word 03

Nice Adjective

/naɪs/ · NYSSE

Pleasant enough. Not objectionable.

Etymology. Old French nice, foolish, simple; from Latin nescius, ignorant, from ne- not + scire to know. Sense shifted via coy, fastidious, and precise to agreeable by the late eighteenth century.

"The tea was nice."

Word 04

Okay Adjective, adverb

/əʊˈkeɪ/ · oh-KAY

Acceptable. Neither good nor bad.

Etymology. American English, 1839, O.K. for oll korrect, jocular misspelling of all correct, first attested in the Boston Morning Post; popularised by the 1840 Old Kinderhook campaign.

"The form was okay."

Word 05

Fine Adjective

/faɪn/ · FYNE

Of satisfactory quality. Also: unobjectionable, dry, or well.

Etymology. Middle English fin, excellent, pure; from Old French fin, finished, perfect; from Latin finis, end, boundary, limit.

"The weather is fine."

Word 06

Quite Adverb

/kwaɪt/ · KWYTE

To a moderate or considerable extent. See also: rather.

Etymology. Middle English quite, completely; from Old French quite, free, clear; from Medieval Latin quitus, from Latin quietus, at rest. Weakened from wholly to fairly by the nineteenth century.

"It is quite cold in the store."

Word 07

Rather Adverb

/ˈrɑːðə/ · RAH-dhuh

Preferably. Or: to some degree.

Etymology. Old English hraþor, earlier, sooner, comparative of hraþe, quickly; of Germanic origin.

"It is rather late."

Word 08

Actually Adverb

/ˈæk.tʃu.ə.li/ · AK-choo-uh-lee

In fact. Used to correct or clarify without urgency.

Etymology. Actual + -ly. Actual from Old French actuel, from Medieval Latin actualis, from Latin actus, a doing, from agere, to do.

"Actually, the office shuts at five."

Word 09

Basically Adverb

/ˈbeɪ.sɪk.li/ · BAY-sik-lee

Fundamentally. Often used when the fundamentals are not under discussion.

Etymology. Basic + -ally. Base from Old French base, from Latin basis, from Greek basis, step, pedestal. Attested from the early twentieth century.

"Basically, the rota is unchanged."

Word 10

Bit Noun

/bɪt/ · BIT

A small piece or amount.

Etymology. Old English bita, morsel; from bitan, to bite; Proto-Germanic *biton-.

"There is a bit of dust on the shelf."

Word 11

Lot Noun, pronoun

/lɒt/ · LOT

A large amount. Or: a share assigned by chance.

Etymology. Old English hlot, portion, share; Proto-Germanic *hluta-. The sense of a great quantity is nineteenth-century.

"There are a lot of forms."

Word 12

Get Verb

/ɡɛt/ · GET

To obtain, fetch, or become. A general-purpose verb.

Etymology. Middle English geten; from Old Norse geta, to obtain; Proto-Germanic *getan-, to seize.

"Please get the folder."

Word 13

Put Verb

/pʊt/ · PUT

To place or set. No further detail supplied.

Etymology. Middle English putten, to put, push, thrust; of obscure origin. No certain cognates outside English.

"Put it on the desk."

Word 14

Seem Verb

/siːm/ · SEEM

To appear to be. Without commitment.

Etymology. Middle English semen; from Old Norse sœma, to honour, befit; Proto-Germanic *somiz. Sense shifted from befit to appear.

"It seems all right."

Word 15

Very Adverb, adjective

/ˈvɛri/ · VEH-ree

To a high degree. Or: exact, as in the very file.

Etymology. Middle English verrai, true; from Old French verai, from Latin verus, true. The intensifier use developed from the sense of truly.

"The queue is very long."

Word 16

Much Adverb, adjective

/mʌtʃ/ · MUCH

A great deal. More than a bit.

Etymology. Middle English muche; from Old English mycel, large; Proto-Germanic *mikilaz. Cognate with Greek megas.

"There is not much ink left."