
Clearing Up Medical Words: No Prescription Needed
Where do these words, expressions and illnesses come from? Some explanations might surprise you! Gardenal: The pharmaceutical lab that developed this sleeping pill brand had previously—and successfully—marketed other medications that all ended with “nal.” The firm’s director tasked the marketing department with figuring out a name for this new drug, asking them in French to garder (or “keep”) the “Nal”… and voilà! The name was coined. Metastasis: this borrowed Greek term means “migration.” Spleen: this term has its roots in the Old French word esplen, which itself was borrowed from