Wordsmith.org: the magic of words

Wordsmith Talk

About Us | What's New | Search | Site Map | Contact Us  

Previous Thread
Next Thread
Print Thread
Page 2 of 2 1 2
Joined: Sep 2013
Posts: 1
P
stranger
Offline
stranger
P
Joined: Sep 2013
Posts: 1
"That's a diabolical liberty" was a catch phrase scripted for Sid James in the highly successful and influential BBC comedy series of the mid 1950s, 'Hancock's Half Hour'. Typically, "They can't do that! That's a diabolical liberty"

Last edited by Pted; 09/01/13 10:59 PM.
Pted #212366 09/02/13 04:01 PM
Joined: Jun 2008
Posts: 9,916
Likes: 2
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Jun 2008
Posts: 9,916
Likes: 2
WELCOME


----please, draw me a sheep----
Joined: Oct 2013
Posts: 1
N
stranger
Offline
stranger
N
Joined: Oct 2013
Posts: 1
I'm pretty sure it has a theological origin - it really means "of the devil". You can see these ideas clearly laid out in Milton's Paradise Lost, for example. God has permitted Free Will, because obedience and worship of God are only meaningful if we have the option not to obey or worship. But the exercise of Free Will led to the fall of the rebel angels, who have now become diabolical. But through continued use the phrase has lost most of its intensity, so "diabolical" becomes a mere adjective meaning "outrageous" or "offensive".

Also, the "liberty" part - "taking liberties" meaning behaving with inappropriate informality, in a presumptuous way. So a "liberty" would be an incursion on someone's privacy or dignity.

Joined: Jun 2006
Posts: 5,295
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Jun 2006
Posts: 5,295
Diabolos (toy) evolved from the Chinese yo-yo, which was originally standardized in the 12th century. Chinese yo-yos have a long thin axle, with disc-shaped wheels, while the western diabolo is more cone-shaped. Diabolos are made of different materials and come in different sizes and weights.
The term "diabolo" was not taken from the Italian word for "devil"—"diavolo"—but was coined by French engineer Gustave Phillippart, who developed the modern diabolo in the early twentieth century and derived the name from the Greek dia bolo, roughly meaning 'across throw'.
The Greek word "diabolos" means "the liar" or "the one that commits perjury", from the verb "diaballo", which means "to throw in", "to generate confusion", "to divide", or "to make someone fall". Later the word "diabolos" was used by Christian writers as "the liar that speaks against God". From this meaning come many modern languages' words for "devil" (French: diable, Italian: diavolo, Spanish: diablo, Portuguese: diabo, German: Teufel, Polish: diabeł).
Confusion about the provenance of the name may have arisen from the earlier name "the devil on two sticks", although nowadays this often also refers to another circus-based skill toy, the devil stick. (wiki)

Page 2 of 2 1 2

Moderated by  Jackie 

Link Copied to Clipboard
Forum Statistics
Forums16
Topics13,912
Posts229,283
Members9,179
Most Online3,341
Dec 9th, 2011
Newest Members
TRIALNERRA, befuddledmind, KILL_YOUR_SUV, Heather_Turey, Standy
9,179 Registered Users
Who's Online Now
0 members (), 444 guests, and 3 robots.
Key: Admin, Global Mod, Mod
Top Posters(30 Days)
Top Posters
wwh 13,858
Faldage 13,803
Jackie 11,613
tsuwm 10,542
wofahulicodoc 10,510
LukeJavan8 9,916
AnnaStrophic 6,511
Wordwind 6,296
of troy 5,400
Disclaimer: Wordsmith.org is not responsible for views expressed on this site. Use of this forum is at your own risk and liability - you agree to hold Wordsmith.org and its associates harmless as a condition of using it.

Home | Today's Word | Yesterday's Word | Subscribe | FAQ | Archives | Search | Feedback
Wordsmith Talk | Wordsmith Chat

© 1994-2024 Wordsmith

Powered by UBB.threads™ PHP Forum Software 7.7.5