Cover-up words

Idiopathic

According to Wikipedia, this word comes from the Greek, διος, (one’s own) + παθος (suffering). It means approximately “a disease of its own kind… where the medical community cannot establish a root cause for a large percentage of all cases”. In his book The Human Body, Isaac Asimov refers to it as “a high-flown term to conceal ignorance”. Similarly, in the American television show House, it is remarked that the word “comes from the Latin, meaning we’re idiots, because we don’t know what’s causing it”. Neurologists use this term frequently when referring to “idiopathic” Parkinson’s disease. A much better term is classical Parkinson’s disease where we do not have to confess ignorance each time we say it—at least to our colleagues—but maybe the word “idiopathic” impresses some patients (and lawyers?).

Primary

Another non-word, conveying ignorance. Consider its use in that variety of motor neuron disease—primary lateral sclerosis. The other major types (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, pseudobulbar palsy, progressive bulbar …