well i never.. what? - Wordsmith.org

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#113778 - 10/16/03 11:47 AM well i never.. what?
dodyskin addict Registered: 04/24/02 Posts: 475 Loc: manchester uk	anyone know the end of this phrase, is there an end to this phrase? i have only ever heard, 'well i never', and,'well i never did'.
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#113779 - 10/16/03 11:55 AM Re: well i never.. what?
maahey addict Registered: 12/03/02 Posts: 555	...would've believed it?
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#113780 - 10/16/03 02:08 PM Re: well i never.. what?
of troy Carpal Tunnel Registered: 10/17/00 Posts: 5400 Loc: rego park	Well, I never seen such a thing! seen such a thing in my entire life! heard of such a thing! heard of such a thing in my life! experienced such a thing! experienced such a thing before in my entire life! or something else in a similar vein. _________________________ my other obsession
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#113781 - 10/16/03 06:37 PM Re: well i never.. what?
Zed Pooh-Bah Registered: 08/27/02 Posts: 2154 Loc: British Columbia, Canada	"did", the ending is did as in "Well, I never did!"[scandalized outrage e] And of course the answer is either "you should have" or "I'm not surprised"
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#113782 - 10/16/03 09:34 PM Re: well i never.. what?
Jackie Carpal Tunnel Registered: 03/15/00 Posts: 11578 Loc: Louisville, Kentucky	...heard tell of such a thing.
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#113783 - 10/17/03 06:57 AM something in a similar vein
wofahulicodoc Carpal Tunnel Registered: 08/06/01 Posts: 3783 Loc: Worcester, MA	Well, I never... ...would have believed it if I hadn't seen it with my own eyes. Do you suppose the phrase is sufficiently unique to have a documentable origin? Or, like Topsy (xthread), did it just grow?
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#113784 - 10/17/03 11:22 AM one half of a pair?
dodyskin addict Registered: 04/24/02 Posts: 475 Loc: manchester uk	i kind of thought it might have another half that goes with it but can be used alone like: it just goes to show with you never can tell no? ok is there a word for that, anyway?
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#113785 - 10/18/03 01:34 AM Re: one half of a pair?
Capfka Pooh-Bah Registered: 06/28/02 Posts: 1624 Loc: Utter Placebo, Planet Reebok	Well, as has been amply illustrated above, "Well, I never!" is short for a longer expression and take your pick for precisely what that longer expression is. English's ability to shorten the too-long knows no limits. Well, yes it does. Probably the ultimate contraction has to be "halfpenny'sworth" chopped down to "haypth"! I think the English language has rather rested on its laurels since coming up with that one.
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#113786 - 10/18/03 06:40 AM Re: one half of a pair?
consuelo Carpal Tunnel Registered: 06/11/01 Posts: 2636 Loc: Caribbean	Word!?
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#113787 - 10/18/03 07:16 PM the long and the short of it
wofahulicodoc Carpal Tunnel Registered: 08/06/01 Posts: 3783 Loc: Worcester, MA	Probably the ultimate contraction has to be "halfpenny'sworth" chopped down to "haypth"! For me the champion has always been "eleëmosynary" ==> "alms".
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