Words of the Day: Rigger and Rigor
rigger
rig-ger / rĭg-ər
noun
1. one who equips with necessary supporting materials, such as a vessel with sails, etc.
There has been a time when a ship’s chief mate, pocket-book in hand and pencil behind his ear, kept one eye aloft upon his riggers and the other down the hatchway on the stevedores, and watched the disposition of his ship’s cargo, knowing that even before she started he was already doing his best to secure for her an easy and quick passage.
From “The Mirror of the Sea” by Joseph Conrad, 1857 – 1924
2. (often used in combination) a ship with a specific arrangement of masts, sails, etc.
During breakfast we notice a square rigger anchored in the bay a half mile behind us.
Brian Fox, “American Spirit II – Day 450”, ‘Word Cruising Club’, www.worldcruising.com/logsarticle.aspx?page=S635636235124441009&msclkid=eecc835caece11ec8ef920eee26422df, accessed March 28, 2022
etymology
A combination of the English verb rig, of unknown origin. and the English noun-forming suffix -er indicating a person associated with the action, thing, or place. The suffix comes from the Anglo-Saxon suffix -ere of the same meaning and is akin to the German suffix -er, the Danish -ere,and the Swedish are, and may be a Germanic borrowing from the Latin adjective-forming and noun-forming suffix -arius, -aria, arium indicating someone or something connected with an action or thing, which becomes -ary in English, as in functionary, auxiliary, or dictionary.
Thank you to Allen Ward for providing the etymologies of rigger and rigor.
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rigor
rig-or / rĭg-ər
noun
1. severity or strictness such as in judgement, attitude or action
Where strictness of grammar does not weaken expression, it should be attended to. . . . But where, by small grammatical negligences, the energy of an idea is condensed, or a word stands for a sentence, I hold grammatical rigor in contempt.
Thomas Jefferson, 1743 – 1826
2. a hardship; a condition that is difficult to bear
Those who rebel against authority and scorn self-discipline – who shirk the rigors and turn from the sacrifices – do not qualify to lead.
J. Oswald Sanders, 1902 – 1992
3. precision; the quality of being exact
The circumstances of human society are too complicated to be submitted to the rigor of mathematical calculation.
Marquis de Custine, 1790 – 1857
4. a sudden chilly feeling, often causing shivering, that is sometimes experienced preceding a fever
Rigors are triggered by the presence of chemicals called pyrogens in the blood which ‘turn up’ the body’s thermostat setting, telling the body to aim for a higher target temperature.
“What Causes Rigor?”, ‘Need to Know’, www. r4dn.com/what-causes-rigor/?msclkid=1ed02442aed111ecbcfac29abf51416e, November 22, 2020
5. a state of stiffness or rigidity in organs that prevents a response to a stimulus
Please help us find an appropriate sample sentence for this definition of rigor.
6. muscular stiffness which prevents flexibility
Whiting, for example, go into rigor very quickly and may be completely stiff one hour after death, whereas redfish stored under the same conditions may take as long as 22 hours to develop full rigor.
www.fao.org/3/x5914e/x5914e01.htm?msclkid=5e58cf8baed211ec91848d7078d35338, accessed March 28, 2022
etymology
Through the Middle English noun rigour (harshness, severity, strictness) from the Old French noun rigor/rigour (strength, harshness) derived from the Latin masculine noun rigor, rigoris (stiffness, hardness, firmness), a combination of the Latin verb rigeo, rigere, ___, ___ (be stiff, be rigid, be numb) and the masculine abstract-noun-forming suffix -or, -oris.
