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Joined: Sep 2001
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Sep 2001
Posts: 6,296 |
Here's a passage from a McCullers' novel in which the use of the verb 'to wall' confounds me:
[Describing a flying-jinny or merry-go-round horse]"The horse nearest Jake had a splintery wooden crack in its dingy rump and the eyes walled blind and frantic, shreds of paint peeled from the sockets" (McCullers Chap. 4).
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Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 11,613
Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 11,613 |
Back and forth; sideways. Wall-eyed. From M-W online:Main Entry: 3wall
Function: verb
Etymology: Middle English (Sc) wawlen, probably from Middle English wawil- (in wawil-eghed walleyed)
intransitive senses, of the eyes : to roll in a dramatic manner
transitive senses : to roll (one's eyes) in a dramatic manner
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Joined: Sep 2001
Posts: 6,296
Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Sep 2001
Posts: 6,296 |
Thanks, Jackie. I had thought it was probably related to 'wall-eyed' but the source I tried, AHD online, didn't include the definition you cite as a possibility. Should have tried M-W. Wonder whether the same definition is in my 3D AHD.
Edit: Nope. My hardback AHD doesn't include the defintion. As many recalcitrant students as I've witnessed 'walling their eyes' or just 'walling' (vi.), I would think that the expression would have been picked up by AHD, too.
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Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 11,613
Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 11,613 |
I figured you would. Using wall as a verb is kind of old-fashioned; I can remember my father and uncles using it thusly, but I wouldn't.
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Joined: Jul 2000
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 3,467 |
TEd
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