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OP This has been on my mind for a while...parents are always complaining that video games ruin a child's mind. Well, not when they contain interesting words! I can think of a few words I've picked up from video games that I would have not encountered otherwise, or else learned much later. Here's a sampling:
bandicoot: would this animal be as well-known without Crash Bandicoot bringing it to fame?
ocarina: from The Legend of Zelda, Ocarina of Time for N64. I played the whole game wondering if they'd made up the word ocarina, which was this flute you played as part of the game. I said to Dag one night, it sounds Italian, but it means "little goose". Lo and behold, I looked it up the next morning - the name refers to the egg-shape of the instrument, and it's a real instrument!
prophylactic: from Leisure Suit Larry. I played this computer game when I was too young to know this particular euphemism for condom. Of course by the end of the game you've figured it out, but you can't figure out how to pronounce it!
lemming: from the game Lemmings (you have to lead a group of Lemmings to a goal, as I recall, without them all falling off a cliff). Otherwise who would have heard of this particular animal?
minesweeper: I played this game for years, not thinking about the name, until seeing something on the news about minesweepers, sweeping the land for unexploded mines. It took me that long to realize that the game was named after this activity.
Anyone else got any video game (or other game) words you can think of?
Entire Thread Subject Posted By Posted Words from video games Bean 02/26/02 12:54 PM Re: Words from video games stales 02/26/02 01:46 PM Re: Words from video games RhubarbCommando 02/26/02 03:19 PM Words from Canasta wofahulicodoc 02/26/02 04:40 PM Re: meld Keiva 02/26/02 06:33 PM . Max Quordlepleen 02/26/02 06:20 PM Minesweeper wofahulicodoc 02/26/02 02:56 PM Re: Minesweeper Rubrick 02/26/02 03:09 PM Re: Words from video games TheFallibleFiend 02/26/02 07:47 PM Re: Words from video games Anonymous 02/26/02 08:05 PM Re: Words from video games TheFallibleFiend 02/26/02 08:24 PM Re: Words from video games TheFallibleFiend 02/26/02 08:47 PM mugwump wofahulicodoc 02/26/02 09:33 PM Re: mugwump Keiva 02/27/02 12:23 AM Re: Words from video games Flatlander 02/27/02 04:12 PM Re: Words from video games TheFallibleFiend 02/27/02 04:19 PM Re: Words from video games Angel 03/03/02 01:47 AM
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