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#175013 03/24/08 01:40 PM
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from schnorren to schnurren to:

to purr, hum, or whir

purr: 1601, of imitative origin.

hum:.1374, hommen "make a murmuring sound to cover embarrassment," later hummen "to buzz, drone" (c.1420), probably of imitative origin. Sense of "sing with closed lips" is first attested c.1485; that of "be busy and active" is 1884, perhaps on analogy of a beehive. Humming-bird (1637) so called from sound made by the rapid vibration of its wings.
"There is a curious bird to see to, called a humming bird, no bigger then a great Beetle." [Thomas Morton, "New English Canaan," 1637]

whir: 1400, Scottish, "fling, hurl," probably from O.N. hvirfla, freq. of hverfa "to turn" (see wharf). Cf. Dan. hvirvle, Du. wervelen, Ger. wirbeln "to whirl."

schnurren:
27 defs. of 'schnurren'

27 defs to cats' purring
(German cats)

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Odd, how close whir and whirl are.

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 Originally Posted By: Jackie
Odd, how close whir and whirl are.


what the l?


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You invented the word but actually you are the postergeist!

[All three words defining 'schnurren' express a state of contentment. I can see someone purring or humming with contentment, basking in someones generosity, but whir? Or even wirl? Makes me think of whirling dervishes. Or washing machines].

Ik wervel in uw goedertierenheid. Nah!

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 Originally Posted By: BranShea
You invented the word but actually you are the postergeist!


erm, not by my thought of the word.


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It's a two definition word:

1)a person who starts a topic and subsequently abandons it.
2)a poster (Jackie!)who jumps through the maze of threads with tiny jesty remarks.

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not by my thought of the word

The word in question is not even a week out of eta's mind's matrix and already its meaning is changing.

ἐξίσταται γὰρ πάντ' ἀπ' ἀλλήλων δίχα [Euripides, Eumenides, Tailor]


Ceci n'est pas un seing.
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 Originally Posted By: zmjezhd
not by my thought of the word

The word in question is not even a week out of eta's mind's matrix and already its meaning is changing.

ἐξίσταται γὰρ πάντ' ἀπ' ἀλλήλων δίχα [Euripides, Eumenides, Tailor]


Huh? "Be amazed that all turn against one another," ...or something like that?

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"For all things change, making way for each other" (link).


Ceci n'est pas un seing.
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 Originally Posted By: zmjezhd
[Euripides, Eumenides, Tailor]


iceberg


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