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stranger
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stranger
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Hello! Just saw today's word ("betide, from Old English tidan (happen), from tid (time)") and wondered whether "Time and tide wait for no man" was originally redundant. Any ideas?
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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----please, draw me a sheep----
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Pooh-Bah
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Pooh-Bah
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I don't know but I do know that its an old saying and that tide didn't always refer to the sea rising or falling but to a season or a period in a year. Like in the phrase 'good tidings' as in an event or occasion.
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old hand
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old hand
Joined: May 2010
Posts: 963 |
Yes, it appears to have been intentionally, poetically redundant, rather like kith and kin. I think in both cases there are shades of difference, but they reinforce each other in meaning as well as sound.
Last edited by Tromboniator; 06/15/11 11:45 AM.
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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Yes, it appears to have been intentionally, poetically redundant, rather like kith and kin. I think in both cases there are shades of difference, but they reinforce each other in meaning as well as sound. Kith are people you know; kin are people you are related to.
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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Hello! Just saw today's word ("betide, from Old English tidan (happen), from tid (time)") and wondered whether "Time and tide wait for no man" was originally redundant. Any ideas? the Word Detective tidily agrees: "In fact, however, the "tide" of the proverb has nothing to do with the ocean or sailing ships. "Tide" in this case simply means "time" (making the proverb, which has been around in various forms since at least the 14th century, amount to the redundant and borderline nonsensical "Time and time wait for no man")."
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old hand
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old hand
Joined: May 2010
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Kith are people you know; kin are people you are related to.
Yes, but they're all people of importance in one's life, some more, some less, who have direct influence, and in many practical ways are not that different. I interpret time and tide to mean time and events, which are not strictly identical, but of no practical difference within the scope of the adage. To me those are shades of difference, close enough to be considered redundant.
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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Truly, and many kith are more important in many areas than kin.
And in many cases let something happen to you they both desert
you.
----please, draw me a sheep----
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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Kith and kin; never heard that expression before. There's kith and kin and if you're lucky there's neighbours. They all matter in different degrees.
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Joined: Jun 2008
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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I don't know any of my neighbors.
----please, draw me a sheep----
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