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October 4, 2022
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| Word of the Week--"Premeditate" |
Definition--Premeditate- v. to plan; to think of beforehand; to plot.
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| Discussion-- We are most used to hearing the word premeditated in connection with murder trials. When someone is being tried for murder there is a big difference between Murder 1, which means that the killing was premeditated, and Murder 2, which means the crime was committed in the heat of the moment. The penalty for a murder that was planned and thought out is much stiffer than that which was committed impulsively. It is really an interesting concept- placing a value on the severity of a murder. Is it really better to kill someone without thinking about it? Should that really carry a lighter sentence?
Of course the word premeditation is not only used to apply to a murder. It can be used to refer to any action that involves thought prior to execution. For example, if I were to consciously run a red light, having told myself that no matter what happened I was not stopping at that light, then my traffic violation would be a premeditated act.
Right now I am performing a premeditated action as I type this Word of the Week. Hopefully I am not butchering the English language, or I am going to get charged with Murder 1!
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| Etymology--Premeditate- borrowed from Latin praemeditatus, past participle of praemeditari, meaning to consider beforehand.
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Foreign Translations
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| Dutch: |
beramen
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| French: |
pr�m�diter
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| German: |
vorher �berlegen
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| Italian: |
premeditare
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| Spanish: |
premeditar
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Jane Ellis
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