I do not use THE F word. I'm not a prude, but I consider it to be as offensive to be the user as it is to anyone who has to hear it. I imagine these feelings are a reflection of my upbringing. I didn't like the taste of soap, especially Lifebuoy, and I didn't care for the sting of a switch on my bottom. I do remember that the kids I knew who used it were given awed looks, but I also remember that they were from the other side of the tracks and not in the group I hung around with. Needless to say, times have changed. Nowadays it's used regularly in movies, and in some circles, according to an old joke, "mother" is only half a word. Teens even wear tee-shirts with the initials of French Connection, United Kingdom in large block letters.

Whatever your feelings about the word, it has had a surprisingly rich history. Etymologists, experts in the origins of words, have had an especially hard time determining where the word came from. One theory is that it is an acronym for Fornication Unauthorized (without the) Consent of the King. Others claim it is a variant of fruct, a Germanic and early English spelling for fruit. I'm convinced it has another origin, entirely.

My wife and I made our first trip to England in 1994 and visited several churches while we were there. One we especially wanted to see was Winchester Cathedral. At the time we met, there was a popular song out by that name and we definitely wanted to go there. Britain is full of cathedrals that look more or less the same, but I like them, anyway. While I was inspecting the nave, Evie happened to look at a Bible on a lectern and called me over. With a shocked giggle she pointed at the word.

"That's 'suck,' dear. In the Seventeenth Century the 'esses' looked like 'effs.'" I went on to tell her about a wall clock that I had seen that was manufactured in "Boston, Mafs." As I said it, it occurred to me that a similar confusion may have come as a great shock to anyone not familiar with Old English typography. At the time, oral sex was considered to be especially deviant, even demonic, in some quarters. And after King Henry broke with the Church of Rome, what better proof that he was in league with the Devil than that sexual deviance could be found in the King James Bible? What's more, some printer had inadvertently published a 'Wicked Bible' where the "Thou Shalt No"s had been printed as "Thou Shalt." Given the turbulence of the time, the answer to the origin of the the loathesome word seemed ridiculously simple when you thought about it.

By the way, those of you who are as interested in the origin of words as I am may be interested to learn of the derivation of the word "crossfire." I mention it in my novel, "The Cellini Masterpiece." If you are familiar with castles, the windows are in the shape of a cross. The reason for it is that it provided protection of the archers. An enemy would have to be a skilled marksman to send an arrow through the narrow opening. But even if he could, the defender was not standing directly behind it, but to the sides. The horizontal opening allowed him to stand to one side and fire. Even better, two defenders could cross their arrows for a wider range of coverage. The only area open would be straight ahead, and presumably your friend in the next window could cover that. The word "crossfire," then, means fire from the cross.

John Anderson is now a full-time writer after retiring from the collectibles trade. If you have any questions, you may reach him at http://www.cmasterpiece.com