The Cons Have It

In our modern vernacular, the word “con” usually means “against”. It is the shortened form of the Latin prefix “contra”. Many of our words, such as contrary, controversial, contrast, and contraband follow this prefix.

However, many English/American words beginning with the prefix con actually refer to the opposite. Some of these words stem from the Latin prefix cum, which is defined as “with” or “altogether”. Words such as constitution, confluence, congratulate, and confederation are derived from this latter prefix.

The U.S. Constitution, for example, refers to a document that was created to bring together a government of thirteen separate, but united, states. The Articles of Confederation, the document that preceded the Constitution, signified an agreement of binding the thirteen colonies as they tried to agree to a more permanent form of government. When, later, eleven Southern states seceded from the Union, they hoped to establish a government of a lighter connection, hence they became for a time The Confederate States of America.

After the Revolution succeeded in 1783, the need for a cohesive governing body of the original thirteen colonies was obvious. Yet, many Americans, Patrick Henry being one of the most vocal of this group, were hesitant about allowing another government to take over – after all, they had just been released from a difficult yoke from across the Atlantic. The colonies wanted their own states’ rights – but questions prevailed when larger problems loomed. Who would pay for national needs? Who would help organize any fight against future conflicts? If Massachusetts were to be invaded, for example, was Virginia obligated to send troops? Or give their state money for taxes in another state? What about the mail system? What about roads that crossed from one state’s border to another? Who would designate who would pay, and who would work for maintenance and repairs?

The Articles of Confederation were made into law, but as the nation grew, it was evident after a few years that these slender ties were not sufficient for the growing concerns of government. The U.S. Constitution, then, was the answer. It provided the more permanent solution, and was introduced in 1787. It formally became law the following year, once the majority of the thirteen colonies ratified it.

Some of our words beginning with the prefix con denote a coming together, and others are defined as going against.

Here are a few more “con” prefixes:

Conversion – the act of changing, either physically or inwardly into another person or thing. The conversion of the house into several apartments was a difficult transition.

Concise – brief, condensed, shortened. You need to be more concise with the details.

Concede – to give in, to admit an error or grant another’s victory or point of view. Lee conceded the battle of Gettysburg to George Meade by leaving the field first.

Consequence – something that follows as a result. The consequence of war is always a tremendous cost in lives and treasure.

Concatenation – the joining together of two or more otherwise unlikely events or things that lead to something else. A strange concatenation of events led to the Battle of Gettysburg.

Conjecture – guesswork, an inference on little evidence. If the South had won Gettysburg, the outcome of the war is now simply conjecture.

Constriction – a tightening or narrowing. The constriction of the path made it more difficult to reach the summit.

Conflagration – a large, uncontrollable and disastrous fire. The conflagration completely destroyed the barn and all of the outbuildings.

Contradict – to deny, or assert the opposite point of view. He always contradicts me in whatever I say.

Constrain – to persuade strongly, to bring pressure upon an object or person. I felt constrained to withhold my opinion.

Contraction – a word that is made from the combination of two words into one shorter term. Words like don’t and can’t are contractions and must always have an apostrophe.

Contumacious – rebellious, obstinately disobedient. The contumacious manner in which you behave makes it difficult to be your roommate.

Concordance – a principal agreement or grouping, often in literature. This particular publication is a concordance of the works of Shakespeare.

Condescend – a verb that indicates going beneath oneself to patronize another. Aristocrats often appear to condescend when they mingle with the public.

Confine – to keep within limits. I am confined to bed with this cold.

Consign – to entrust, or give over to another. He will consign his documents to your care.

Consensus – a coming together of agreement to opinions or events, a concord of authority. The consensus of testimonials convinced us to try this product.

There are thousands of words with this prefix. Some mean going against or narrowing, some denote a joining or coming together and enlarging. We just need to learn the meaning by context. It makes for interesting study and improves our usage and communication.

The cons certainly provide it.

Pass the word.