Sunday Rest: Word Not To Use Today: euro.

Yes, I know, I know.

I'm hugely fed up with the revolting little object, too, so I'll restrict myself to pointing out that giving a currency a name which sounds like either a dying car engine or a fluorescent 1950s washing powder was never a good idea.

I think it showed a lack of imagination: and without imagination, obviously, the future is bound to involve walking over rather a lot of cliffs.

Word Not To Use Today: euro. This word comes from Europe, the continent. Europe may be called after Europa, who was a Phoenician or Cretan princess abducted by Zeus (who was in the form of a big white bull at the time); or it could be from the Akkadian erebu, meaning to go down.

I'll just note two curiosities: in official documents the word euro must be used in the nominative singular at all times (a rule ignored, of course, throughout the continent); and that in the Greek language the word euro is indeclinable.