Word of the Week: October 30, 2000
An Awful Pain

Anopheles is the genus name of all the sorts of mosquito that carry malaria. Although it is pronounced as though it were "an awful ease," it is not really from the word awful. Rather, it is from Greek an ("not") + opheles ("helpful"). So those pesky and morbid bugs are not helpful? What an understatement! Who knew? And here I thought at first that they were so awfully aptly named.

Words of the Week are written by Dr. Jacques A. Bailly.