Peripatetic (when used correctly) is a clear and succinct word choice. There are other words I think people misuse vis a vis the true definition (“peruse” comes to mind - often people use it to mean “skim” when it pretty much means the opposite - misuse of peruse drives me crazy), but peripatetic is not one of those words.

I would just say, “oh it was a lovely time in my life - did I make it sound otherwise?! Oops!” That corrects the main mis-impression without assuming/pointing out that she made a certain error in her reading. She might read this response and be prompted to go back and realize her own mistake, without the embarrassment of you pointing it out.

Hope that made sense!

Anonymous wrote:I actually think peripatetic can have a slightly negative connotation, and I say this as someone who is familiar with the word because I had a very peripatetic upbringing! Ie, nomadic, rootless, lacking community, etc. I would not be so certain your colleague misunderstands the word; he might just have negative associations with the description, some seemingly shared by some of the PPs here!

OP here. I agree that it can have negative connotations, but, the funny thing is, the context in the email was that I was referring to some cool places we’d gone to while on our travels. I hadn’t said anything negative about that time, so that was why I thought it was odd when the person replied that they were so sorry that my life had been so difficult.

This post reminded me so much of Mike Roewe’s Ted talk. Go to 7:30 to see why. However the whole thing is great.

Anonymous wrote:I see that word occasionally in the New York Times. I have never heard it or seen it in an email. I would just assume the person is well read.

Yup. I just checked to make sure that is where I see peripatetic. Here are some recent uses:

September 28, 2023
What’s in Our Queue? ‘Rough Diamonds’ and More
Matina Stevis-Gridneff
Writing in Brussels
I’m the New York Times bureau chief in Brussels, where I cover the European Union. I’ve had a peripatetic summer, split among Belgium, my native Greece and New York City. Here are five things I’ve been watching, listening to and more

August 1, 2023
Mauricio Diazgranados Is a Botanist in a Hurry
A passion for páramos and their otherworldly plants never left him, even as Dr. Diazgranados, now 48, embarked on a peripatetic career, taking research positions in the United States, Colombia and England, before arriving in the Bronx in June.

It seems like at least once a month I see it being used in the NYT usually when discussing careers just like OP's example.

I know what this word means in two languages. In my native language, it has a very different connotation!

I see that word occasionally in the New York Times. I have never heard it or seen it in an email. I would just assume the person is well read.

I’ve used it in speech as well as writing and never gotten a second glance. Among lawyers though. I probably wouldn’t use it when speaking with folks whose educational background I don’t know. I do assume it’s a word not everyone knows.

For the Latin PP, I think the origin of this one may be Greek.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I feel sad that people’s vocabularies are so lacking these days. Keep these words alive. They express exactly what you are trying to express.

People don’t read as widely as they used to!

I am very well-read and had to look up this word - I am 33 and a native English speaker, although I did grow up in Canad. I don't think it was wrong of you to use and would have looked it up if needed for context. I often use the dictionary feature on my e-reader, I like learning new words.

Anonymous wrote:Do you really have to correct this person’s understanding of your life when you were in your 20s? Can’t you just ignore their mistaken impression and carry on with a different conversation? I don’t understand why this requires a response in a work email.

This wasn’t a work email. This person is an extended family member and I don’t really want this person going around telling other family members how pathetic my young adulthood was. And I care what this person thinks, also, just because I don’t love the idea of a family member having such a false idea about me.

I actually think peripatetic can have a slightly negative connotation, and I say this as someone who is familiar with the word because I had a very peripatetic upbringing! Ie, nomadic, rootless, lacking community, etc. I would not be so certain your colleague misunderstands the word; he might just have negative associations with the description, some seemingly shared by some of the PPs here!

Yes. I know what that means.

Only some ages widely appreciate someone like Churchill. Or Cicero. Our age is not one of them. A rare thing, if you look at history.

In 20 years studying for the SATs will seem so quaint. so outside of lofty book length tomes, not expecting interest in even words to be of note or certainly not expected going forward. Not my choice but there you have it.

Do you really have to correct this person’s understanding of your life when you were in your 20s? Can’t you just ignore their mistaken impression and carry on with a different conversation? I don’t understand why this requires a response in a work email.

Yes, I know what it means but like others, if I didn’t, I would go look it up and be glad to know another word.

Anonymous wrote:I feel sad that people’s vocabularies are so lacking these days. Keep these words alive. They express exactly what you are trying to express.

People don’t read as widely as they used to!