Word of the Day

: October 6, 2010

kismet

noun KIZZ-met

What It Means

: fate

kismet in Context

Penelope and Richard believed it was kismet that brought them together on that day when they met and fell in love. "He was sitting at the bar of the Fairmont Hotel…. It was pure kismet that I sat down next to him." -- From an article in Simple Justice, August 29, 2010

Did You Know?

Is it your fate to tie macrame while drinking coffee and eating sherbet in a minaret? That would be an unusual destiny, but if it turns out to be your kismet, you will owe much to Turkish and Arabic. We borrowed "kismet" from Turkish in the 1800s, but it ultimately derives from the Arabic "qisma," meaning "portion" or "lot." Several other terms in our bizarre opening question (namely, "macrame," "coffee," "sherbet," and "minaret") have roots in those languages too. In the case of "macrame" and "minaret," there is a little French influence as well. "Coffee" and "macrame" also have Italian relations, and "sherbet" has an ancestor in a Persian name for a type of cold drink.

Quick Quiz: What flower's name comes from the Turkish word for "turban"? The answer is ...