Common Greek Words Used In English

There are many American English words that originate from common Greek words. Words like democracy, thespian, schizophrenia, and marathon are directly derived from their Greek origins.

Democracy combines the words, ‘demos’ (meaning people) and ‘kratos’ (meaning power) resulting in power to the people.

Thespian comes from the name of a 6th century Greek poet names Thespis. He was thought to be the first actor to perform on stage which is what the word thespian has come to mean today, ‘actor’.

Schizophrenia puts the words ‘schizein’ (to split) and ‘phren’ (mind) together to develop a word meaning a mental disorder resulting in fragmentation of the mind.

Marathon is and was an actual city in Greece. The term ‘marathon’ stands for the actual distance between Athens and Marathon which is 42.1 kilometers or 26.i miles. It is said that Pheidippides ran the full distance between the two cities to inform the defeat of the Persians in Marathon. Afterward he died.