Some words make it outside of the realm of specialized language and others do not.
Usage is one thing.
Legal usage might be something else.
Coming up on Word Matters,
when technical terms do or don't enter the common lexicon and pleading in the past tense,
I'm Emily Brewster and Word Matters is produced by Merriam-Webster in collaboration with New England Public Media.
On each episode, Merriam-Webster editors Neil Servin, Amin Shea,
Peter Sokolowski and I explore some aspect of the English language from the dictionary's vantage point.
A passing glance at English vocabulary will reveal a wealth of words that have gone from a highly specific,
technical meaning to broader, figurative use.
One can diagnose a problem without earning the credentials to make a medical diagnosis,
and debacles these days typically don't involve the breaking up of river ice.
How is it that some specialized words slip into general use and others remain lodged in their particular spheres of influence?
I'll investigate.
Gary writes to us, I think this is an excellent question.
For everyone's edification, mine included,
because I did not know the word anastomosis before reading Gary's question.
We define this term as the union of parts or branches, as of streams, blood vessels,
or leaf veins, so as to intercommunicate or interconnect, and also a product of anastomosis network.
as a synonym of the word network.