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hi, dr. bill! My point was that Mrs. Bryne's definitions do not seem to match what tsuwm posted. I'm just a city-boy, but I'm pretty sure that "heifer" is not the same as "horse".
But I'd also not think that Mrs. B's "bounce" (implying a rebound from an opposite-direction motion) would fit the animal behavior you describe of "jumping straight up with legs straight".
Agreed that your hypothesized "communicative" reason for the animal behavior might be of use for a prey-animal. But would it seem of use to a predator, such as a cheetah?
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I remember seeing on TV predators circling pack of prey animals, trying to identify a weak one.
This reminds me of the story of The Lion and the Gazelle
Every morning in Africa a gazelle wakes up and knows that it will have to outrun the fastest lion or it will be killed.
And, every morning in Africa a lion wakes up and knows that it will have to outrun the slowest gazelle or it will starve to death.
So, in Africa, it doesn't matter if you are the lion or the gazelle. When that sun comes up, you had better be running.
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sorry for the confusion... the stuff you have from Mrs. B. agrees with my numbers (except that that the second set is labeled -n & v.i., which I assume means verbal-noun and intransitive verb). I then went to OED because her definitions didn't seem to all relate. that's where I found the two distinct nouns -- the original meaning of that which I showed as "steer, heifer, fool" was indeed an
inferior horse, but that sense is marked obsolete.
here, for the sake of clarity is the whole bloody thing:
stot n(1) -
†1. A horse. In OE. ? one of an inferior kind.
2. A young castrated ox, a steer. north.
3. A heifer. north.
4. †a. As a term of contempt for a woman. Obs.
b. A stupid, clumsy person. Sc. and dial.
5. Comb., as stot-beef, -hide, -ox, †-stable; stot-calf, a castrated bull-calf; †stot-plough = fool-plough (fool n.1 6).
stot n(2) -
1. The act of rebounding; a rebound; a rebounding blow. at or on the stot, (to catch or take) on the rebound; in quots. fig. to play stot, to rebound, bounce (Eng. Dial. Dict.).
2. A leap or spring, esp. in dancing. Hence, the swing or rhythm of a tune. to keep stot, to keep step or time (with); also fig.
stot v. -
1. intr. To rebound, bounce (from, off); to fall or impinge with a bounce (on, against); to jump, start, spring.
b. fig.
2. To move with a jumping or springing step, to bound along; also trans. (causative). Also, to stagger, lurch, move unsteadily.
Hence "stotting ppl. a. Also "stotter, a ball that bounces or rebounds.
so, aren't you sorry you asked? nor, as you can see, can Mrs. B. nor anyone else really do this word justice in an abridged format.
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Dear tsuwm,
You're a word-stotting dear here with your definitions, but that Scrabble dictionary is the problem with Scrabble. One of the problems, that is.
You quote:
b. A stupid, clumsy person. Sc. and dial.
And I think the Scots were confused about the word and got stot mixed up with sot to have come to the above misunderstanding. Not too many clumsy people could stot at all, but sots are often clumsy, so there's where the fork in the linguistic road occurred.
Best regards,
DD
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dear dub (A muddy or stagnant pool; a small pool of rain water in a road; a puddle. (Chiefly Sc.),
yeahbut. you seem to be the confused one, or you are pertinaciously denying the existence of two nouns -- the one in question having to do with various inferiorities and prolly nothing at all to do with the bouncing verb. (in the etymology, OED allows as how there may be yet another separation between the inferior horse and steer/heifer senses) 4a/b I think come from that same inate human kindness that has seen humans called cows or horse's patoots. The great stot of a farm lad.
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I wonder if the word is related to German "Stute" and our "steed".
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yeahbut.© you seem to be the confused one [...]
that'll be $0.99 plus sales tax, payable in Euros to my Swiss bank a/c please Michael.
yeahbut. (var. yeahbut!, yeahbut, emph) An exclamation that signifies acceptance of the contents of an interlocutor's contribution to the conversation, whilst placing a marker to signify an intention to rebut or demur from the thrust of the argument, said in allowing the brain to fully formulate the response. All © maverick enterprises unltd 2001, used freely by friends and enemas.
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Yeahbut© I'm glad to see you back and posting anyway! Is THAT how you plan on paying for that babemobile!! My cheque is in the mail.
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Dear Stot,
Watch those muddy or stagnant puwls into which you trod with your heavy huwves. Tuw much mud there, and you won't be able to stot anymore at all--no way. And what's the uwse of a stot who stots not?
Beast regards,
WordWot, a Scot who stots a lot!
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WO'N thought it of no advantage to cheetah to "stot". I think it is posssible that the cheetah wants to evoke similar response from the antelopes, so he/she will know which ones are too hard to catch, and when the others move, notice any who limp, meaning they could easily be caught.
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