Saturdays are perfect days for passionate surprises. Surprise—we’re talking about the minor root ARD- today!
Just because a root doesn’t appear in a wide range of words doesn’t mean it isn’t useful or meaningful. The root ARD-, derived from the Latin ardēre meaning to burn, carries connotations of burning and glowing. Much like fellow minor root ZEL-, ARD- usually evokes a figurative fire:
ardent (adj) - full of fervor or passion; burning or glowing
BREAKDOWN: ARD- (burn) + -ENT (inclined to)
—ardency is intense passion, zeal, or devotion
ardor (noun) - intense feeling, fervor, or passion (also ardency)
BREAKDOWN: ARD- (burn) + -OR (state of)
That said, sometimes the flame connected to this root is all too real:
arson (noun) - the crime of deliberately setting a fire with the intent to cause damage
—an arsonist is someone who sets a fire with the intent to cause damage
“In the ardor of pursuit men soon forget the goal from which they start.” —Friedrich Schiller