valetudinarian
PRONUNCIATION:(val-i-tood-NAYR-ee-unn, -tyood-)
MEANING:noun: A weak or sickly person, especially one who is constantly or overly worried about his or her health.
adjective: Chronically sick or concerned about one's health.
ETYMOLOGY:From Latin valetudo (state of health), from valere (to be strong or well). Ultimately, from the Indo-European root wal- (to be strong), which is also the source of valiant, avail, valor, value, countervail, polyvalent, and wieldy. Earliest documented use: 1703.
USAGE:"Broadway theatre has long been known as 'the fabulous invalid', but could the old valetudinarian finally have caught a fatal cold?"
Charles Spencer; British Theatre Will Thrive in a Downturn; The Telegraph (London, UK); Dec 10, 2008.
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A THOUGHT FOR TODAY:Between truth and the search for truth, I opt for the second. -Bernard Berenson, art historian (1865-1959)
