TIL
Today I learned — small notes on things I discover.
Aug 7, 2026
Diacope
A rhetorical device: repeat a word or phrase with a word or two in between. Once you see it, it's everywhere. "To be or not to be" is a diacope (ABA — the repeated word bracketing an interruption), and so is "a horse, a horse, my kingdom for a horse!" (AABA). The little gap is what gives it that insistent, drumbeat quality — it's why the line sticks.
Jul 24, 2026
Nomen est numen
A Latin phrase often rendered as "to name is to know." Literally it's closer to "the name is the divine power" (numen = divine will or presence) — the old idea that naming a thing gives you power over it, that to name is to comprehend. A modern English variant with a ring to it is "Name it to tame it".