The Latin root word sid and its variant sed both mean “sit.”
Let’s first take a look at the root sid. Consider Sydney, a resident of a city, or that place where she “sits” back for a long time. She can “sit” in comfort at her residence, or that home where she is able to “sit” at leisure. Imagine that Sydney is president of a profitable company; as president, she “sits” in charge of her employees. In such a role she presides, or “sits” before everyone else as top dog.
Consider Sydney’s dismay when she finds out that there is a dissident in her company, or one who “sits” apart from those around him because he holds different opinions. Sydney considers rebels like that insidious, or “sitting” in secret ambush to upend her. Sydney ensures that his dissension will soon subside, or “sit” or settle down, and eventually go away, by offering him more money.
A variant of the root sid is sed, which also means “sit.” Do you know anyone who is a serious couch potato? He would be a good example of a sedentary person, or one who likes to “sit” around a lot. Has a doctor ever had to sedate you because you were too active? That sedative she gave you would cause you to settle or to “sit” down, forcing you to be inactive.
You may have learned in geology that sediment is that particulate matter that eventually “sits” upon or settles to the bottom of a body of water. Sedimentary rock is formed from that settled dirt and debris that has “sat” there and eventually compacted after a long time.
No longer will you have to “sit” down at a dictionary, thumbing through it to discover that sid and sed are both linguistically settled as “sit!”
- resident: one who ‘sits’ back somewhere
- residence: place where one ‘sits’ back
- president: one who ‘sits’ before
- preside: to ‘sit’ before
- dissident: one who ‘sits’ apart from others
- insidious: of one who ‘sits’ in ambush
- subside: to ‘sit’ under
- sedentary: of one who ‘sits’ often
- sedative: drug which causes one to ‘sit’ or settle down
- sediment: matter which ‘sits’ on the bottom of water
- sedimentary: type of rock formed from matter which has ‘sat’ on the bottom of a lake