Question

congeries noun What do "epitome," "circus," "tribunal," and "congeries" have in common? All are part of a relatively small collection of English nouns that made the transition from Latin to English unaltered in both spelling and meaning. "Congeries" joined this group in our language in the early 1600s. Latin "congeries" comes from the Latin verb "congerere," which means "to carry or bring together" and which is also the source of our word "congest." In English, "congeries" stands out because it is a singular word with a plural appearance -- and its plural is also spelled "congeries." : aggregation, collection

Accepted Answer

July 8, 2010 KAHN-juh-reez As we walked past the food stalls our nostrils were assailed by a congeries of exotic, unfamiliar smells.

Word	congeries
Date	July 8, 2010
Type	noun
Syllables	KAHN-juh-reez
Etymology	What do "epitome," "circus," "tribunal," and "congeries" have in common? All are part of a relatively small collection of English nouns that made the transition from Latin to English unaltered in both spelling and meaning. "Congeries" joined this group in our language in the early 1600s. Latin "congeries" comes from the Latin verb "congerere," which means "to carry or bring together" and which is also the source of our word "congest." In English, "congeries" stands out because it is a singular word with a plural appearance -- and its plural is also spelled "congeries."
Examples	As we walked past the food stalls our nostrils were assailed by a congeries of exotic, unfamiliar smells.
Definition	: aggregation, collection

Congeries Latin Collection English Word Plural July Noun