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#102700 05/07/03 02:38 PM
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here's something else that may (or may not) be related:

A term used in various senses in the game of marbles (see quots.).

1823 E. MOOR Suffolk Words s.v., A player knocking two out of the ring cries ‘dubs!’ to authorize his claim to both. 1882 M. H. FOOTE Led-Horse Claim iv. 62 ‘What is it the boys say when they play marbles?’..‘Fend dubs?’ Hilgard suggested. 1896 Dialect Notes I. 220 In Missouri..dubs means, not doublets, but that the player has blundered, and by crying ‘dubs’ is entitled to play again.



#102701 05/07/03 04:32 PM
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I remember that "dibs" was used in marbles game, but can't remember how it was used.
I ;haven't seen kids play marbles, tops, of mumbledy peg for seventy years.


#102702 05/07/03 04:56 PM
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re:haven't seen kids play marbles, tops, of mumbledy peg for seventy years.

my kids had tops, but didn't play "war" with their tops they way boys did when i was young..

marble are still sold.. (and i have a lovely collection of marbles, including some aggies, all "street finds" --the last one added just a week or two ago..)

kids lives are more controled, and they are less likely to entertain themselves (i don't consider a video game that some one else developed to be self entertainment..)

but kids are kids.. in HS- my son was involved in long term (it went on for weeks) game of hi-tech tag... they used a small plastic (brightly colored) gun, that shot plastic disks about the size of a US nickel..different colors on different days had differing point values (the gun selected the ammo, randomly!) i never knew all the rules, but about 20% of the school kids got involved (eventually, the school administration cracked down, to many plastic disks, and a fear of someone getting their eye shot out...)

and my kids would call dibs, to 'ride shotgun' or to the last piece of candy, or to other silly stuff..as i did, as a child... every parent knows the term.. kids learn it from each other.




#102703 05/08/03 06:52 AM
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Playing ‘war’ with tops was a new idea to me until my 6 year old grandson introduced me to Beyblades. It seems to have come back in fashion with a bang, from Japan, and tied into a TV programme. We didn’t fight with tops when I was young, or at least, ‘my lot’ didn’t. Here’s a site about Beyblades, there are many others.

http://www.popularcollections.com/beyblades.html



#102704 05/09/03 01:11 PM
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There is also Dibs the hero of a wonderful account by Virginia Axline about the treatment of a brilliant but disturbed little boy with that name. I never did stop to consider where his name came from. Perhaps she made it up out of whole cloth. Anyone with an opinion on that one?

assuming any else read the book: ca 1960, I believe

Edit: 1964, to be precise. See
http://endeavor.med.nyu.edu/lit-med/lit-med-db/webdocs/webdescrips/axline803-des-.html
for a brief description.



#102705 05/09/03 05:37 PM
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I've used and heard dibs at school, but in the UK at least, the term usually used is bagsied or bags. e.g: "I bags the last chocolate." Though the origin of this is probably more straight forward - as in grabbing/bagging something.


#102706 05/09/03 11:54 PM
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Quinion also uses the term "get his hands ... on the dibs". Dibs is also an old term for money, Georgin era I think, as in "the dibs are in tune" for having money.


#102707 05/10/03 05:03 AM
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#102708 05/10/03 12:07 PM
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How's that again?


#102709 05/10/03 01:02 PM
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A compelling example of deconstructionist mediocrity?


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