“Word Nerd Wednesday” is a weekly series that uses language to help us think differently and solve old problems in new ways.
While working on a project in the travel ector I learned that the idea of an easy travel experience is an oxymoron, at least from an etymology perspective.
The word “travel” evolved as a variation of “travail” which means labor, strife, torment, or journey. That makes sense. In the 14th century when it emerged, the journey from place to place was arduous by default.
What surprised me, though, was the origin of its Old French ancestor “travaillier.” Meaning to work, that evolved from the Latin trepalium, a three-pronged instrument of torture.
Not quite sure what to make of that!
