A Vocabulary Digression

So this has been bothering me lately: more and more in pop culture, I hear people using the word “regime” to describe a “regimen.” The worst offender seems to be BBC America, where I have heard this on “You Are What You Eat” and “How Clean is Your House?” As in, “new dietary regime” and “new cleaning regime,” respectively. It makes it sound as if a dictator is entering their home to impose a new government that makes them eat and clean!

This was bothering me, so I looked up “regime” on dictionary.com, and found that my irriration is only partly justified. Apparently, the two words come from the same French word, régime, which entered English in the 18th century. I also learned that the fifth definition listed for regime is “Medicine/Medical. regimen,” while the first definition of regimen is “Medicine/Medical. a regulated course, as of diet, exercise, or manner of living, intended to preserve or restore health or to attain some result.” So while technically they are ok using regime, regimen is clearly the more accurate term.

Definitions for regime:

1.     a mode or system of rule or government: a dictatorial regime.
2.     a ruling or prevailing system.
3.     a government in power.
4.     the period during which a particular government or ruling system is in power.
5.     Medicine/Medical. regimen (def. 1).

Definitions for regimen:

1.     Medicine/Medical. a regulated course, as of diet, exercise, or manner of living, intended to preserve or restore health or to attain some result.
2.     regime (defs. 1, 2).
3.     Grammar. government (def. 9).

~ by hurtfewabbey on August 26, 2009.