Solar Plexus
When someone punches you in the solar plexus, you feel as if the wind has been knocked out of you because there's a bundle of nerves in your abdomen behind your stomach that can cause the diaphragm to spasm. That actual complex of nerves is called "celiac plexus." This sounds so terribly technical, doesn't it? And unless you operate within the medical field (pun intended), why would you want to know about terms limited to anatomy?
The truth is "solar plexus" is most commonly used in a figurative sense these days. Its literal meaning is used to refer to the general location of where the celiac plexus resides. “Celiac plexus” and “solar plexus” are interchangeable. However, medical experts prefer to use the former. Since it’s the figurative usage we’re interested in here, the following example sentences are applicable:
“While watching the new Barbie movie, Ken felt the arrival of the end of patriarchy in his solar plexus.”
“Midge claimed her solar plexus was the center of her personal power.”
Notice in these examples "solar plexus" is not tied down to a negative or positive sense. You can use the phrase to enhance the sentiment of your expression no matter what the context may be. Also, be aware that even in figurative uses, the solar plexus is restricted to location. For instance, you wouldn't say:
I drank my solar plexus.
However, you can say:
I delighted in the surge of energy emanating from my solar plexus.
As for the etymology of "solar plexus," it first appears in English around the mid-18th century. It's not exactly known why "solar" was used; it could be because of the central location in the body or also because nerve signals emanate from the solar plexus like heat radiates from the sun. "Plexus" comes from Latin and means braid, which is why it was used to describe the physical bundle of nerves.
Finally, to answer the earlier question about learning technical terms, it is indeed beneficial to know them since probably all anatomical terms could be used in a figurative sense. In fact, many field- and industry-specific words are popularly used in common parlance. Consider this: people weren't using the signal-processing term "bandwidth" to describe their hectic, over-committed schedules until after the early 2000s when Web 2.0 increased the demand of data flow over the internet. There are plenty of examples of "tech term" gone vernacular, so don't be turned off by learning technical terms. Instead, think of ways to employ them to enliven your speaking and writing. ∎
Sources:
Harper, Douglas, “Etymology of plexus,” Online Etymology Dictionary, accessed July 29, 2023, https://www.etymonline.com/word/plexus.
Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, s.v. “solar plexus,” accessed July 29, 2023, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/solar%20plexus.
Wikipedia contributors, "Celiac plexus," Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Celiac_plexus&oldid=1145026709 (accessed July 29, 2023).
Wiktionary contributors, "solar plexus," Wiktionary, https://en.wiktionary.org/w/index.php?title=solar_plexus&oldid=73507228 (accessed July 30, 2023).
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