Root: GYN, GYNE, GYNEC
Meaning: I am woman, hear me roar!
Words:
- gynarchy (n) (arch = rule, govern): government run by women
Generally, I believe that gender should be completely irrelevant when choosing someone to govern a body of people. However, in the case of my family, I do feel it should be considered, and that a gynarchy with yours truly at the helm might be best. Certainly, LCB is well-intentioned, but it’s readily apparent who’s closer to omniscience in this land with two big and three small people in it.
- gynoid (n) (-oid = like): like a woman, a female robot
Androids (andro means man) fill the pages and pictures of science fiction books and movies, but what about gynoids? Why do robots tend to be male, and why do we often still refer to them as androids even when they are female? I’ve wrestled deeply with this issue over the ages.
Except, not really. I’m not partial to science fiction, and I certainly don’t own a robot, nor am I in the market for one. So really, I’ve only considered this question since I started this post. But, I found the paragraph above entertaining to write, so let’s pretend I’ve lost sleep pondering the lack of use of the word gynoid and how to rectify this grave injustice.
3. gynecologist (n) (log = study of) (-ist = person): person who studies and specializes in female diseases and care of female medical needs
After my first child was born, there was this sweet moment in the hospital where the pediatrician had just left my room and my gynecologist came in, oohing and aahing over my baby. I had never considered the medical profession as a career option before, but in that moment, having just had great experiences with both doctors, I remember thinking that maybe I could see myself doing it after all.
Then, my gynecologist turned from the baby to me and said brightly, “Okay, let’s do a quick pelvic check, to see if everything’s in order,†and the moment was so, so, so instantly and completely over.
God bless the gynecologists (and all the medical personnel) of the world, seriously, because they do essential, life-saving work on a daily basis. But that is not the cross I’m meant to bear.
Also, for misogynist, see Greek # 3.
There are no words to adequately describe how hilarious these particular examples were to me! I can totally identify with wanting to be a gynocologist in the romantic sense of helping to deliver life into the world. You adore them…until the first post-pardum exam, at which point you briefly loathe them. 🙂
Oh, and I’ve thought of all kinds of hilarious add-ons since I posted, too. Yes, I had such rose-colored glasses on for a minute there, and then reality hit like a Mack truck. And the reality too is, I’d be gagging and puking through way too many procedures to ever be more help than harm.