Wordsmith.org: the magic of words

Wordsmith Talk

About Us | What's New | Search | Site Map | Contact Us  

Previous Thread
Next Thread
Print Thread
Page 1 of 4 1 2 3 4
#114673 10/28/03 10:29 PM
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 13,858
W
wwh Offline OP
Carpal Tunnel
OP Offline
Carpal Tunnel
W
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 13,858
"'Come, none o' that 'ere, old Strike-a-light,' interposed Mr.
Weller, elbowing himself into the front rank. 'Beg your pardon,
sir, but this here officer o' yourn in the gambooge tops, 'ull never
earn a decent livin' as a master o' the ceremonies any vere. This
here, sir' continued Mr. Weller,...."

Source: Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)

Gamboge \Gam*boge"\, n.
A concrete juice, or gum resin, produced by several species
of trees in Siam, Ceylon, and Malabar. It is brought in
masses, or cylindrical rolls, from Cambodia, or Cambogia, --
whence its name. The best kind is of a dense, compact
texture, and of a beatiful reddish yellow. Taking internally,
it is a strong and harsh cathartic and emetic. [Written also
camboge.]




#114674 01/26/04 08:55 PM
Joined: Sep 2001
Posts: 6,296
W
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Carpal Tunnel
W
Joined: Sep 2001
Posts: 6,296
It would be fascinating to see those rolls of tree gum. I would love to see a color photograph of such rolls.

Do you think the gamboge came from some connection between 'gam-' and gum?


#114675 01/27/04 11:53 PM
Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 79
H
journeyman
Offline
journeyman
H
Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 79
Obscure fact: Le Cambodge is the only country name in French that ends with an "e" and is masculine.

"Gum" is "gomme" in French and "gummi" in Latin, from Greek "kommi".

Cambodge/Cambodia are versions of the indigenous name "Kampuchea", the meaning and origin of which I don't know.


#114676 01/28/04 02:25 AM
Joined: Sep 2001
Posts: 6,296
W
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Carpal Tunnel
W
Joined: Sep 2001
Posts: 6,296
This is just a little riff on what might have been, but wasn't:

Let's say Cambodia did derive from a word that meant 'land of the gum trees,' then we could modernize the name and call it Gumbodia.

But thanks, hibernicus, for the more correct explanation.
And I enjoyed reading and thinking about your obscure fact. It has been very, very long since I studied French; I have forgotten most of what I'd once learned. But, based on what you have written, L'Angleterre and L'Allemagne (not sure of spellings) would both be feminine, yes?


#114677 01/28/04 02:44 AM
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 13,858
W
wwh Offline OP
Carpal Tunnel
OP Offline
Carpal Tunnel
W
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 13,858
I remembered "gummi" meaning rubber in German. I searched for "Gummischlauch" and here's what I got:
ENGLISH GERMAN
Direct Matches
rubber hose [tech.] der Gummischlauch




#114678 01/28/04 03:18 AM
Joined: Sep 2001
Posts: 6,296
W
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Carpal Tunnel
W
Joined: Sep 2001
Posts: 6,296
So Gummi Bears are just Rubber Bears, yes?

Bon soir, wwh!


#114679 01/28/04 03:28 AM
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 1,773
Pooh-Bah
Offline
Pooh-Bah
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 1,773
I like the ribbed gummis.


#114680 01/28/04 03:31 AM
Joined: Sep 2001
Posts: 6,296
W
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Carpal Tunnel
W
Joined: Sep 2001
Posts: 6,296
I think they call them Gummi Worms.

You are soooooooo bad, Dr. Bill!!


#114681 01/29/04 12:17 AM
Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 79
H
journeyman
Offline
journeyman
H
Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 79
I like the ribbed gummis.

Any particular flavour?


(You are talking about Gummi Bears, right?)


#114682 01/29/04 12:33 AM
Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 79
H
journeyman
Offline
journeyman
H
Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 79
L'Angleterre and L'Allemagne (not sure of spellings) would both be feminine, yes?

They would indeed! And both correctly spelled to boot. But watch out for "Canada" - it ends in "a" but it's masculine: "le Canada", "au Canada".


Page 1 of 4 1 2 3 4

Moderated by  Jackie 

Link Copied to Clipboard
Forum Statistics
Forums16
Topics13,913
Posts229,580
Members9,187
Most Online3,341
Dec 9th, 2011
Newest Members
Karin, JeffMackwood, artguitar, Jim_W, Rdbuffalo
9,187 Registered Users
Who's Online Now
0 members (), 332 guests, and 0 robots.
Key: Admin, Global Mod, Mod
Top Posters(30 Days)
Top Posters
wwh 13,858
Faldage 13,803
Jackie 11,613
wofahulicodoc 10,713
tsuwm 10,542
LukeJavan8 9,931
AnnaStrophic 6,511
Wordwind 6,296
of troy 5,400
Disclaimer: Wordsmith.org is not responsible for views expressed on this site. Use of this forum is at your own risk and liability - you agree to hold Wordsmith.org and its associates harmless as a condition of using it.

Home | Today's Word | Yesterday's Word | Subscribe | FAQ | Archives | Search | Feedback
Wordsmith Talk | Wordsmith Chat

© 1994-2024 Wordsmith

Powered by UBB.threads™ PHP Forum Software 7.7.5