paradisiacal 的词源

“与天堂或类似天堂的地方或状态有关”，这个词最早出现在1630年代，源自拉丁语 paradisiacus（来自希腊语 paradeisiakos，意为 paradeisos；参见 paradise）+ -al（1）。

paradise rivals NECTAR in the number of experiments that the desire for a satisfactory adjective has occasioned. But, whereas nectar is in the end well enough provided, no-one uses any adjective from paradise without feeling that surely some other would have been less inadequate. The variants are paradisaic*(al*), paradisal, paradisean, paradisiac(al), paradisial*, paradisian*, paradisic(al), of which the asterisked ones are badly formed. Paradisal is perhaps the least intolerable, & that perhaps because it retains the sound of the last syllable of paradise; but the wise man takes refuge with heavenly, Edenlike, or other substitute. [Fowler] 

paradise 在形容词的创造上与 NECTAR 不相上下，都是因为人们对合适形容词的追求。然而，与 nectar 最终有了令人满意的形容词不同，没人会用 paradise 的任何形容词而不觉得还有更合适的选择。可选的变体有 paradisaic*(al*), paradisal, paradisean, paradisiac(al), paradisial*, paradisian*, paradisic(al)，其中带星号的形式不太规范。Paradisal 可能是最不令人反感的，或许因为它保留了 paradise 最后一个音节的发音；但明智的人会选择 heavenly, Edenlike 或其他替代词。[Fowler]