Random Fact of the Day

Did you know that 'pawn' and 'pioneer' both come from the same word? They come from the Latin 'pedonem' which means 'going on foot' (foot in Latin is 'pes'), which in Old French became 'paonier' (foot soldier) and became 'pown' in Anglo-Norman and eventually pawn in modern English with a derogatory meaning for someone whose easily expendable. Whereas 'paonier' turned into 'pionnier' in modern French which means someone who leads the way or goes somewhere first (as foot soldiers were used to lead the way for others) and entered modern English with that, nice, meaning.