"Ever since reading John LeCarre's spy stories," writes Marty Berg of Saratoga, Calif., "I have been hearing the word 'vetted.' I know what it means, but what is its origin?"
I'm more than happy to vet "vet," a trendy, overused word meaning to examine, scrutinize, as in, "President Bush's staff carefully vetted potential cabinet appointees" -- well, maybe not all that carefully. Picture a white-coated veterinarian giving your beloved Rottweiler, Spike, a full-fledged, tummy-pressing, ear-probing checkup -- say ahhhh! Grrrrrrrrrrr!
Yup, "vet" is short for "veterinarian." When first used as a verb during the late 19th century, it specifically meant to conduct a physical examination of an animal. But soon the meaning broadened to refer to medical checkups of humans and then to any probe of a person's background, character or suitability. In 1904, for instance, poet Rudyard Kipling wrote, "These are our crowd ... They've been vetted, an' we're putting 'em through their paces," which makes me rather glad I wasn't in Kipling's crowd.
Now "vet" can even refer to the scrutiny of ideas or policies, as in, "Let's vet Dinkleworthy's proposal to cut Social Security." Say AAAAAARRP!
My college roommate, Brock Putnam of East Litchfield, Conn., asks me to vet the origin of "doughboy," a nickname for U. S. infantrymen during World War I.
Donning my baker's hat, I'll knead the commonly given, wonderfully charming and probably inaccurate etymology. It comes from, of all people, Elizabeth Custer, wife of the famous general. In her 1887 book "Tenting on the Plains," Custer wrote that Civil War infantrymen acquired this moniker because the globular brass buttons on their uniforms resembled "doughboys," the small, round doughnuts served to sailors on shipboard.
Yet, in 1867, just two years after the Civil War, a writer in Beadle's Monthly, which apparently delved into issues like this, claimed the origin of the term was "one of the inscrutable mysteries of slang." Hmm ...
So, while some valiant etymologists are making a last stand around Custer's explanation, we more sagacious scholars resist such Armstrong/strong-arm tactics and conclude the origin of "doughboy" is uncertain. Yes, it's a bitter Pillsbury to swallow.
Rob Kyff, a teacher and writer in West Hartford, Conn., invites your language sightings. Send your reports of misuse and abuse, as well as examples of good writing, via e-mail to Wordguy@aol.com or by regular mail to Rob Kyff, Creators Syndicate, 5777 West Century Boulevard, Suite 700, Los Angeles, CA 90045.