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#213859 - 01/07/14 04:10 PM What does this quote mean?
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Posts: 12 momi1234![]()
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Posts: 12 I dreamt that my hair was kempt. Then I dreamt that my true love unkempt it
#213863 - 01/07/14 05:06 PM Re: What does this quote mean? [Re: momi1234]
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this too shall pass kempt :: neat, tidy (combed)
it looks to me as though kempt is actually an old word that went obsolete or unused for several hundred years, and then was recovered via back-formation from unkempt.
#213866 - 01/07/14 06:56 PM Re: What does this quote mean? [Re: momi1234]
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Posts: 13,803 FWIW, the kempt part seems to come from an Old English verb meaning 'to comb'. Not to mention humorously reviving the obsolete word kempt.
#213873 - 01/08/14 10:53 AM Re: What does this quote mean? [Re: momi1234]
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Posts: 12 So it means, "this is what happened in my dream. My hair was in order but my sweetheart disorganized it.?"
What does it want to say?
#213874 - 01/08/14 11:19 AM Re: What does this quote mean? [Re: momi1234]
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this too shall pass what does it 'want' to say? it seems to say what it says about lovers mussing each other's hair..
it could also be euphemistic, I can't tell what the dream(s) have to do with it without seeing this 'quote' in context; it could mean that the dreamer was dreaming of being ravished by their lover.
using a rare 'opposite' of unkempt makes me think this author wasn't being very serious; see Quinion and How I met my wife.
edit: I assume that this is the source of your quote:
This is my dream,
It is my own dream,
I dreamt it.
I dreamt that my hair was kempt.
Then I dreamt that my true love unkempt it.
-Ogden Nash
Ogden Nash was well known for his humorous poetry.
Last edited by tsuwm; 01/08/14 12:18 PM.
#213877 - 01/08/14 12:57 PM Re: What does this quote mean? [Re: momi1234]
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Posts: 12 So my literal interpretation was correct and it's just that?
#213878 - 01/08/14 01:11 PM Re: What does this quote mean? [Re: momi1234]
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this too shall pass to quote someone, it is what it is. : grin :
#213879 - 01/08/14 01:12 PM Re: What does this quote mean? [Re: momi1234]
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Posts: 13,803 Plus the play on kempt meaning 'combed'.
#223680 - 02/29/16 10:39 AM Re: What does this quote mean? [Re: momi1234]
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Posts: 1 It doesn't just refer to hair though does it. It almost means scruffy, i.e he's very unkempt, he looks like a hobo. Not cared for?
I think this detailed jes extender guide is helpful.
#223684 - 02/29/16 04:25 PM Re: What does this quote mean? [Re: Beatrix]
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Land of the Flat Water Welcome
----please, draw me a sheep----
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