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 1 of 2 1 2
#1598 04/25/00 09:43 PM
Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 1,981
J
jmh Offline OP
Pooh-Bah
OP Offline
Pooh-Bah
J
Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 1,981
When did author become a verb in general use?

I can (just about) cope with "to author a web-page" as a specific technical term relating to HTML but surely not ...
to author a book - what's wrong with write!

jmh (= old fogey, or is it fogy)


#1599 04/26/00 10:10 AM
Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 6,511
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 6,511
Yep, that rubs me the wrong way, too. But my very (least) favorite is "to impact."

fellow fogey (future journeyman)


#1600 04/26/00 03:18 PM
Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 11,613
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 11,613
Jo,
I loved 'wrong with write'! Oh, the alliteration! Oh, the
double-entendre!
Another one I can think of, AnnaS., is "to effect".
And, though this is not a verb, I can't stand it when someone says they're going to use "preventative" measures.
Grr from another fogy. (Goodgold, thanks to you I DID
check this one! Fogey is listed as a variant of fogy.)


#1601 04/26/00 03:49 PM
Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 6,511
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 6,511
*jumping in before the guys do* ... Jackie, I hear you on the generalized misuse of "effect" as a verb, but it also can be one, to wit: "effect change."

Now it's time to read all the references on "fogy" vs "fogey."

Counting down to journeyman status,
AnnaS.


#1602 04/26/00 06:42 PM
Joined: Apr 2000
Posts: 10,542
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Apr 2000
Posts: 10,542
first, I thought y'all were okay with being lumped in with "the guys". <g>

second, it's really easy to take shots at the verbing of nouns -- I know, 'cuz it's one of my pet peeves. But there are instances where the practice has made for a richer language. To take a couple of instances from Sport (a guy thing): 1) in baseball, if you hit a ball that gets caught on the fly (a fly ball) you are said to have flied out -- you have not flown out (like the irregular verb) because the verb comes from the noun (which obviously has no inflected forms) and you just add -ed in the normal way 2) in hockey, if you get mugged by the goon with a high-stick you've been high-sticked (not high-stuck); same sort of thing. A non-sport example of this is grandstanded (not grandstood).

So these are all examples of one sort of verbing of nouns which adds to the language in a positive way.


http://members.aol.com/tsuwm/

#1603 04/26/00 07:26 PM
Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 1,981
J
jmh Offline OP
Pooh-Bah
OP Offline
Pooh-Bah
J
Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 1,981
Well, another thing, I'm sure we could go on about "affect" being used when it really should be "effect" forever.


#1604 04/26/00 07:29 PM
Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 1,981
J
jmh Offline OP
Pooh-Bah
OP Offline
Pooh-Bah
J
Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 1,981
Are we OK to be lumped in with the guys?

The jury is still out. I know Phillip doesn't like "ladettes". We're still in decision mode.


#1605 04/26/00 08:08 PM
Joined: Apr 2000
Posts: 10,542
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Apr 2000
Posts: 10,542
>But my very (least) favorite is "to impact."

Mine also; and now I have to tell you (this is going to hurt me more than it hurts you) that it appears from the etymology that the verb came first, from the Latin impactus. This verb has been nouned!

http://members.aol.com/tsuwm/

#1606 04/27/00 05:31 AM
Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 1,027
old hand
Offline
old hand
Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 1,027
>this verb has been nouned..
Which verb? the original also made it into English: impinge


#1607 04/27/00 03:18 PM
Joined: Apr 2000
Posts: 10,542
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Apr 2000
Posts: 10,542
>Which verb? the original also made it into English: impinge

The point being that the verb form of impact came waaaaay before the noun (first recorded in 1781). The fact that impactus is the past participle of impingere, while interesting, is academic.

For those with an interest, the word history can be found at http://www.dictionary.com/cgi-bin/dict.pl?term=impact

http://members.aol.com/tsuwm/

Page 1 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 (), 442 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