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stranger
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stranger
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I wonder if anyone can help me with the meaning of the word 'busculation'.
M Chabon uses it in a short story, and its not in any of my dictionaries.
Fleur
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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Chabon likes to play around with words, and I'm going to go way out on a limb and guess that what he's done here is blend 'buss', to caress with the lips, and osculation, an act of caressing with the lips. the resulting word, in context, seems somehow to suggest something a little more than a sum of its parts. - joe (see also aetataureate) friday
Last edited by tsuwm; 06/25/2008 1:17 AM. Reason: link to context
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old hand
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old hand
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That's as good a guess as you'll probably get.
My shot will be in the opposite direction, and will probably circle the globe and hit tsuwm in the butt...
I propose it is a typo. The word should be "musculation". Although this is not a common term, it refers to body-building activity, muscle development and so forth. Apparently the word is spelled exactly that way in French, at least, and probably was borrowed from it. Given the context, it makes some kind of sense, perhaps more than as an invented word as written. What do you think, tsuwm? :0)
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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well, let me put this to you (no pun), what's she more likely to light up after, thrashings and musculation or thrashings and busculation?!
-joe ( *<8^D ) friday
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old hand
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old hand
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Well, don't you need to use a few muscles (and he was worried about her after all the "thrashing about") in your pre-fumigatory activities?!? At least it's a word!
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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For what it's worth,
bousculer or busculer ⇒ (pousser , heurter brutalement)=
verb: to shove (push roughly)
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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I propose it is a typo. The word should be "musculation". Although this is not a common term, it refers to body-building activity, muscle development and so forth.
Yeahbut®, perusal of several on-line dictionaries indicates that musculation is a very close synonym of musculature, which is a state of being and the context demands an activity. Even if you accept musculation as a body-building activity, I don't think rassling around in bed qualifies as body-building.
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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If you feel like getting a serious answer:
"... afraid I had hanned her somehow in our thrashings and busculation,"
then busculation is in this case a playful pushing and pulling as I suppose the thrashing is not meant seriously either.
Coming from or related to the French word in my former post.
A propos the "hanned" , that's something I can 't find. (??)
Last edited by BranShea; 06/25/2008 7:39 PM. Reason: "hanned"
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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take a look again(?) at the context link I posted. the word is actually(!) 'harmed' which has been rendered as 'hanned' by the scanning software, yet another example of keming (improper kerning). - joe (wwftd strikes again) friday
Last edited by tsuwm; 06/25/2008 7:46 PM. Reason: typo
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Carpal Tunnel
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Fine. Fine! But there's nothing te keming about 'busculation'. Your word travels round BTW. keming Automatic translation , always nice too.
Last edited by BranShea; 06/25/2008 8:19 PM.
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