Hi Glenn,
I'm glad to split hair with you. :-)
My dictionary says:
Ancillary:
Secondary; Subordinate; Auxiliary; Assistant
>From the link you suggest:
1) Ancillary
Of secondary importance: "For Degas, sculpture was never more than ancillary
to his painting" (Herbert Read).
Auxiliary; helping: an ancillary pump.
[From Latin ancilla, maidservant, feminine diminutive of anculus, servant.
See kwel-1 in Indo-European Roots.]
Source: The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth
Edition
Copyright © 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
2) ancillary
\An"cil*la*ry\, a. [L. ancillaris, fr. ancilla a female servant.]
Subservient or subordinate, like a handmaid; auxiliary.
The Convocation of York seems to have been always considered as inferior,
and even ancillary, to the greater province. --Hallam.
Source: Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
And, just I'm there, on thesaurus.com, I read that the "servant" connotation
is prominent:
ancillary found in 1 item.
Excerpt: "... ; subservient, ministrant, ancillary, accessory,
subsidiary..."
In the end, the Collin's dictionary:
ancillary [ænslr]
adj.
1. subsidiary.
2. auxiliary; supplementary: ancillary services.
n., pl. -laries.
3. a subsidiary or auxiliary thing or person: the company has an ancillary
abroad.
[from Latin ancillaris concerning maidservants, from ancilla, diminutive of
ancula female servant]
-The Collins English Dictionary © 1998 HarperCollins Publishers
I found "interesting" you had used that uncommon (at least to my hears)
adjective. You must know that I had looked at my dictionary. There was
actually no need as we have the matching term "Ancellare" in Italian, even
if it's a bit obsolete. After all, it's a Latin term.
Indeed it's clear I can't have a proper grasp on the infinite subtle
meanings of English words (that's why, for example, I often don't understand
Struan's sarcasm, so he doesn't hurt me). But actually you offer only part
of the full meaning. As you can see the term has a deeper connotation: the
"secondary importance" is due to a servile attitude.
But, of course, I can't give anyone English lessons here. Sticking to your
clarification, no problem if you think that my sentence is of secondary
importance. It's your opinion. My razor blade can cut your opinion off and
the fact remains the same.
About my conscience, thanks for your care. You will be in my prayer tonight.
Be good
Marco
----- Original Message -----
From: "Glenn Bradford" <gmbbradford@netscape.net>
To: <moq_discuss@moq.org>
Sent: Friday, April 26, 2002 5:09 AM
Subject: RE: MD A Goodbye Note
> Marco,
>
> GLENN: (earlier)
> > Your ancillary reasons for supporting Horse - that he pays the fees and
> > does the administration, are all very agreeable.
>
> MARCO:
> >Ancillary. Interesting adjective. Why do you think I should be ancillary?
> >Are you meaning I'm not sincere and that I'm having some double thought?
> >That Horse "pays" me in some way? Or that I'm incapable of an individual
> >determination? Take a look on my posts to Diana just before her
departure. I
> >was not very ancillary (anyway, I'd be glad to see her back here). So,
why
> >now? But I don't want to sound too ancillary, so I stop here.
>
> Interesting indeed. "Ancillary" is an adjective. That much you got right.
> It means "of secondary importance". It does not mean anything bad. In
> particular, it doesn't mean you are insincere, have double thoughts, or
> take bribes. Nor does it mean that you can't think for yourself or that
> your words are combative. You must have realized you were making wild
> guesses at its meaning. I realize you are Italian and English is not your
> first language, but you could have easily looked up the word in
> dictionary.com, instead of assuming that all its plausible meanings were
> part of some imagined insult I directed at you.
>
> And if you felt you were *somewhat* "ancillary" in your posts to Diana
> just before her departure, and regret it, why don't you send her an
apology
> and ease your conscience?
> Glenn
>
>
> __________________________________________________________________
> Your favorite stores, helpful shopping tools and great gift ideas.
Experience the convenience of buying online with Shop@Netscape!
http://shopnow.netscape.com/
>
> Get your own FREE, personal Netscape Mail account today at
http://webmail.netscape.com/
>
>
>
> MOQ.ORG - http://www.moq.org
> Mail Archive - http://alt.venus.co.uk/hypermail/moq_discuss/
> MD Queries - horse@darkstar.uk.net
>
> To unsubscribe from moq_discuss follow the instructions at:
> http://www.moq.org/md/subscribe.html
>
MOQ.ORG - http://www.moq.org
Mail Archive - http://alt.venus.co.uk/hypermail/moq_discuss/
MD Queries - horse@darkstar.uk.net
To unsubscribe from moq_discuss follow the instructions at:
http://www.moq.org/md/subscribe.html
This archive was generated by hypermail 2b30 : Sat Aug 17 2002 - 16:02:12 BST