116v

[Koen G]

Compounds with anti- in Greek can be somewhat different than the current use. Take "You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login to view.". It comes from antidoton (pharmakon), a drug given "against". Literally "againstgiven drug".

In the modern use, the second part of anti-compounds would be the thing which is protected against. Anti-tank protects against tanks. Anti-bugs protects against bugs. 


But "anti-doton" does not protect against "given", the drug (antidote) is given. The "anti" is almost like a property of the drug, it works "against x". Antidoton pharmakon is a given drug against an unnamed danger. Following the same structure, antichiton would be an armor against an unnamed danger.

(This danger would of course be named in the rest of the sentence, i.e. fire and whatever)


The same pattern in "antagonist", which is from the Greek verb antagonizesthai "to struggle against". So an antagonist is an "against-struggler". He struggles against x, where "x" is not part of the word. If anti-chiton were a verb form, it would be "to armor against x", so the same structure.

Antidoton: (medicine) given against x
Antagonize: struggle against x
Antithesis: thesis against x
Antipathy: feeling against x
Anitchiton: armor, coat,.. against x