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tsuwm's thread about new words went of thread, but it has kept me thinking..
One word from his original list, boondocks is from Tagalog (M-W 10th Collegiate agrees with me on that) (rough mountainous country)
but in thinking, realize i also like
Meme and prion
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I like prion, too--sounds vaguely worshipful, doesn't it? Helen, I think you ought to have posted this under the original thread--we occasionally--no, sometimes--no, wait--often--no, frequently--oh heck, ALWAYS need to be guided back on track! 
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Helen, I think you ought to have posted this under the original thread
Aksherly, I quite like the trend among many ayleurs to throttle back the old wordster and rev it up in a new thread, when the old track gets a bit too long and serpentine. It makes it easier to keep an eye out for cunning coelacanths cycling swiftly past, reminding all ayleurs to put the pedal to the metal in their wondrous wordsters.
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You only used it twice Max  . Oh, and if I say it in French, phonetically, it means "Hey, their's".
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< Hey, their's …
… You with the stars in your eyes …
(sorry, just singing along there)
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Question: How long does it take a new thread to get "off track"
Answer: I'll leave it to you to answer - I suppose it just depends on the weather, the kind of way people got up in the morning and who happens to see it first.
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This ayleur agrees. Meme a great word, and prion (though something awful), is a good word too.
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Question: How long does it take a new thread to get "off track"It also depends on whether the track is in water (by the way, coelacanths are rare animals), on sand, or on solid earth  ..
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IN solid earth...but ask Shona, he should know about these relatives come back to life.
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Hey, their's …
… You with the stars in your eyes …Now, ain't that just the cat's pajamas! Game to you, paulb!
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Question: How long does it take a new thread to get "off track"
As soon as it meets a bear called Fred,
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> a bear called Fred<
I don't a bear called Fred..
I know Fuzzy Wuzzy bear..
and the famous Mondagreen bear, Gladly (the Crossed-eyed bear)...
who is a bear called Fred?
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>...a bear called Fred.
did I miss the "calling a thread a Fred" thread, or is this just some private campaign that you Brits have unspooled?
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Dunno about a Brit campaign, but Fred for thread is obviously Brit in origin - given the habits of pronunciation that some groups in London have...
cheer
the sunshine warrior
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ask ShonaAt first I thought somebody had a lisp and we were talking about containers for a soft drink with vegetable extracts. Very confuthing. Tho I athked Webthter, and Webthter, he thay: coe·la·canth
Etymology: ultimately from Greek koilos hollow akantha spine
: any of an order (Coelacanthiformes) of lobe-finned fishes known chiefly from Paleozoic and Mesozoic fossils
"Hollow spine"? Nah. Hollow skull, possibly. Hollow legs - or rather hollow (lobed) fins - almost definitely. Oh, I just wanted to say "Hey!" to all you Ayleurs out there. Perhaps that should be "Hail Ayleurs!" as "Hey! Ayleurs" sounds like it's leading up to a telling-off. "Hello Ayleurs!" is right out for now, as an "s" has a tendency to creep in between the two words, and Rhub (fellow enthusiastic Ayleur) has had enough of Swan Lake, apparently. So how should one Ayleur greet another? I mean another Ayleur, of course. Well, being Ayleurs, we're never going to agree on that one, are we? -------------------------------------------------------- BELATED AFTERTHOUGHToops.-----------------------------------------------------
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My hackles are going up. I am not an ayleur. I do not want to be an ayleur. I have already forgotten what the letters stand for, as I have the first F in FF.
Too gol-durned many new-fangled doohickies 'round this-here place fer me!
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I am not an ayleur
I'm gonna have to agree with Jackie on this one guys. About twice a day I have to stop and think what does ayleu stand for (can't just let an acronym go by without knowing what it means) and it doesn't even mean anything!
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and it doesn't even mean anything!This sounds exactly like the Von Trapp children telling Maria that do-re-mi means nothing. Of course, as any etymologist knows, Ayleu = anything you like - except unanimous. The 'r' at the end is gratuitous - much like most of us. BTW Jackie - I love the polite little 'Grr' with which you titled your post. Very ladylike! cheer the sunshine (grooming fur) warrior
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Thanks Rhubarb! It looks like Jackie could do with a drink. Hernando's?
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Thank you, shanks and paulb! It's nice to know that somebody cares, even if (shanks) we disagree! Er--what's Hernando's, please? Whatever it is, I think I could do with one or six about now, never mind that it's eight o'clock in the morning. pss-st--can't resist: I still don't like ayleur! Take that, you linguaphile/philosopher, you!
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Whatever it may be - one virtual Hernando's coming up for Jackie! Ayleur extraordinaire
cheer
the sunshine warrior
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>>This sounds exactly like the Von Trapp children telling Maria that do-re-mi means nothing.
Isn't it a bit pretentious to compare ayleur with do-re-mi?
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Mmmm this is getting interesting I love a scrap.
I've given up trying to think of a name that anyone will agree with ages ago. Wake me up if you ever reach any kind of consensus.
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Isn't it a bit pretentious to compare ayleur with do-re-mi?
Pretentious? Moi? Dah-ling, that is too divine. You haven't seen me do pretentious yet. Tendentious, yes. Odious, yes. But pretentious? O o o that Shakespeherian rag. It's elegant, so intelligent...
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Pretentious? Moi? Dah-ling, that is too divine.I am rolling! Oui, toi! Dahling, you ah tee-yoo funny! You, with the convolutions and contortions of thought (AND sentences!!) we have witnessed?? Oh, my Dear, I would adore seeing what you consider as pretentious! Maybe private, as I'm not sure how many others share my enthusiasm for you. Make it good, won't you? Thanks for the drink!
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I have to agree with Jackie.
I am a member of several museums, and libraries, and I go to theater
I am not a museumer, or a librarian, or any other group. I am me!
Why do we need a name for everyone? I thinks it's a way of shutting people out.
Okay all of you out there with reference books handy (I am at work, and supposed to be working, and its bad enough I am do this without going off and searching the web, getting distracted...) Please provide the author and corrections if needed--I learned this in grade school-- back in mumble mumble....
Heretic, rebel, lout
He drew a circle that shut us out.
But Love and I had the wit to win,
We drew a circle that brought him in!
I felt welcome when I first posted on this board, I don't want it to be filled with all sorts of jargon to make it hard for others to feel welcome. (I am not even sure I like Stranger/newbie/etc...) and can't get caught up in the idea of graduating. though I will admit of all of them I like stranger best..(stranger than what?)
our on screen names, pun and obscure reference are more than enough to distinguish us.
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Why do we need a name for everyone? I thinks it's a way of shutting people out.
Ah, but I don't think that anyone is seriously suggesting that all who post here be called ayleurs, or anything else. I use ayleur for two main reasons. The first, and this is most important since it governs my choivce of language more than any other factor, is that I like the sound of it. It is aesthetically pleasing to me, and since I tend to speak what I type, I get to say a "pretty" word. The second reason is that using it demonstrates the truth of the phrase behind the acronym - you can indeed call us Anything You Like Except Unanimous. Think of all the fascinating highways and byways we have travelled during the course of the "who are we" discussion. The fact that some wordsters feel so strongly opposed to ayleur is great, because strongly held opinions, stated by such articulate, intelligent people, can but generate new threads. To paraphrase Tolkien:
"The Thread goes ever on and on
Down from the board where it began.
Now far ahead the thread has gone,
And I must follow, if I can,
Pursuing it on ayleur's feet,
Until it joins some larger way
Where many words and ideas meet.
And whither then? I cannot say.
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max, nicely stated; but this started out as a question as to how to address the group, and Jackie doesn't like to be called that word and Helen doesn't want to exclude anyone -- these are legitimate points. maybe we should resort to a simple "hey guys!" [for which see a very interesting piece at Maven's word of the day for Nov. 1] http://www.randomhouse.com/wotd/
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thanks, tsuwm, I don't mind being one of the guys or even one of those word guys or even one of those wierd word guys. Being one of the guys has a nice sence of inclusion! How do get to be one of the guys-- why just read and post!
It might not work for the guys over the other side of the pond-- how do you all feel about being one of the guys?
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I see your point tsuwm - the apology I intended should have been less oblique. I wanted to exp[lain that I use ayleur just for fun, and not as a label imposed on others against their will. If anybody feels that I have been calling them by an appellation they detest, I do apologise, as it was never my intent to offend anyone.
As to the "guy" link, it was a nice reminder of the different paths taken by Britain's former colonies - NZ still observes Guy Fawke's day. In fact, the sale of fireworks in NZ is only legal for a ten-day period ending on November 5. The history of "guy" very well known here, though probably less so now than formerly, as NZ distances itself from its colonial past. The only possible reason I can see for NZers to commemorate an attempt four hundred years ago to destroy the British Parliament would be a sort of surrogate wish fulfillment!
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Well, I haven't said much, if anything really, on this subject, but I think I'd have to say that I don't care much for the name 'ayleur'. I would like to propose a name that has been surprisingly neglected as a possibility, but has a great deal to do with this website. We all ascribe to this moniker from time to time and I think it really gets down to the guts of what the site is all about, plus, the sound has a nice flavor to it. I propose we call ourselves wordsmiths.
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We all ascribe to this moniker from time to time ... I propose we call ourselves wordsmiths.Not all of us, Jazzoctopus. I have never, and will never, call myself a wordsmith. The word carries an implication of skill and craftmanship in the use of words. My hubris doesn't stretch far enough for me to apply "wordsmith" to myself, even though it is undoubtedly apt for others.
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Much though I dislike having to say it, 'guys' or something equally neutral will probably do just fine. As I recall, the whole business started because someone wanted a more positive, or rousing way in which to get the attention of all the 'guys' here. Certainly the notion was not to exclude anybody by having a special word, or an 'in' group that nobody else could belong to. In fact, if, say, 'ayleur' had found favour, then by definition, anybody who posted here would be an 'ayleur' - all are welcome. As a second point - you are not necessarily defined by your appellation. I could be an ayleur, a temp, a man, a bachelor, a Brit, and many more things besides. What would get my goat, though, would be somebody deciding to treat me as if I was only, and exclusively, one of those things. I doubt that the 'guys' here are in danger of suffering from that - we know too much about the language, and about the Internet. To believe that anybody here is purely a 'guy' or an 'ayleur' would be so silly as to be almost surreal. (Actually, I have my doubts about Tsuwm - whom I strongly suspect of being one of Alan Turing's Universal Machines, or perhaps one of Rossum's Universal Robots?) cheer the sunshine warrior
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"...Then let the trumpets sound the tucket sonance..."
I am the very model of the modern ayleur-general...
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Or General Problem-Solving Computer? (All Hail General PS 'Puter? Don't sPute wid de squinch-owl?)
Sigh of relief - this is the Wordplay and fun forum, so I'm allowed to be silly.
cheer
the sunshine ayleur
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who is a bear called Fred?
Sorry its taken so long to reply, Helen, - it's a reference to an old, tired joke about Bear parents whose new cub had very tatty fur, so they called him Fredbare.
It has, indeed, got a lot to do with the fact that I am a Londoner, by upbringing if not, strictly speaking, by birth. It is part of the London speech pattern to pronounce "th" as "f" if the initial letter or "v" if the final one.
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GuyI have to dissent from this appellation. To me - and possibly to any other Brit of fairly mature years - the term "guy" is mildly abusive. To be a "guy", to me, is to be garishly decked out and looking grotesque, particularly if you have achieved this appearance by trying too hard to look sophisticated and soignée. It is a reference, of course, to the stuffed effigy that is burned annually on the bonfires of England on November 5th to celebrate the death of the martyr who nobly tried to rid this country of an oppressive monarch. Also, as a verb, to "guy" someone is to make fun of them by parodying their actions. The musical "Guys and Dolls," together with other Americam influences, has made the word at least understood in its transatlantic sense, and, for younger people especially, made it respectable. Time for that glass of wine and fast embrace with Jackie, eh paulb?But I can't bring myself to be at ease with the term, any more than I like ayleur (mainly because the redundant "r" offends my sense of propriety - sorry Max)
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the term "guy" is mildly abusive.
Oh my goodness, I never knew that! Here, guy is a generic term for any male you don't know, as in "the computer guy",
"the telephone guy", or "the guy we saw at the mall". So,
guy doesn't carry any pejorative connotation at all, here.
If we knew the guy we saw, we'd say, "We saw John at the mall".
The things I learn at this place! Thank you all.
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Don't get me wrong, Dearest Jackie! I wouldn't be offended if an american referred to me as a guy - indeed, I probably would n't be offended by anyone using the term - it's just that I wouldn't normally use it myself, especially not of myselfIf you want to test it out, meet me at Hernando's and say, "Hey there, guy, - would you like a glass of wine?"
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Who can forget the Derek and the Domino's classic:
"L'Ayleur, you've got me on my knees..."
And the Dylan ballad:
"L'Ayleur delay
Lay across my big brass bed..."
Or maybe we should become a new political party - the mondeGreens? (No use of unreplenishable words. Recycle words and phrases where possible. Sustainable communication for all!)
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L'Ayleur delayWonderful I have often thought about forming a Guy Fawkes Party, with the intention of re-introducing fireworks (big time) to the Mother of Parliaments, raddled old whore that she's become!
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Sorry but Buck House goes first. At least Pugin was an architect (frothy though he may have been). Buck House, to me, seems to have no redeeming features. (We might even be able to get rid of some of the less savoury Royals...)
cheer
the sunshine (not really sure if I have republican tendencies) warrior
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Oh Fredbear is a fuzzy wuzzy bear!
Fuzzy wuzzy was a bear
Fuzzy wuzzy had no hair
Fuzzy wuzzy wasn't very fuzzy, was he?
and as for th sound like a f in beginning of a word, I guess the river is the fames, or "fems" not not the "tems"?
Is it a general rule (I've never noticed it--) or a sometimes rule?
Lost in one of the threads is a bit about Cockney's and Heagles, and Howls and 'awks.
In part of Appalachia, (US), Its becomes Hits, but only when Its is first word of the sentence, or some other very special circumstances.
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Is it a general rule (I've never noticed it--) or a sometimes rule?
I don't know if you have ever seen, or have access to, a BBC soap called EastEnders (it fil ne bet ne werse than any others), but, exaggerated though it may be, the accents pretty accurately reflect the East End/near Essex accent of which (along with RP) Estuary English is the bastard child. The point is that the 'f' and 'v' thing is virtually a rule:
bruv/bruvver (brother)
fick (thick)
I have also noticed, over the past few years, the tendency of those with sarf Lunnon accents to slur their esses ('s's), so 'stupid' comes out 'shtupid' and so on. This is a tendency particularly prevalent amongst teenage girls (in my experience) and women in their early twenties. Has anybody else noticed it? Is there an explanation?
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I have my doubts about Tsuwm - whom I strongly suspect of being one of Alan Turing's Universal Machines, or perhaps one of Rossum's Universal Robots
No no - Tsuwm is just Tsuwm.
The Tsuwm that can be named is not the eternal Tsuwm.
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an explanation?Yeah - they's fick as two short plangs ooh, who says Pugin was an architect - he only decorated the cake!
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>Tsuwm is just Tsuwm.
shona, you have grasped the true polysemous battology of my being.
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Hey folks (definitely not 'guys' in this context) Just come down to Lewes and we can watch an anarchic and satirical tableau go up gloriously, and the best firework display you're likely to see in the UK ( says he moderately)!!! Check out the Clinton tableau at the bottom of the Gallery under: http://www.cliffebonfire.co.ukMind you, Site appears to be very popular at the mo, so be patient. P.S. Friends over the Pond - you may also find this amusing.
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polysemous battologyHmmm...more meanings than Kali has arms... but "battology" I suspect of being a category 4 Meaningless Word. ( throws down gauntlet)
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>but "battology" I suspect of being a category 4 Meaningless Word. au contraire, mon ami, it is a category 3 Worthless Word (YCLIU) http://members.aol.com/tsuwm/abc.htm#battology
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Lost in one of the threads is a bit about Cockney's and Heagles, and Howls and 'awks.
In part of Appalachia, (US), Its becomes Hits, but only when Its is first word of the sentence, or some other very special circumstances. Which brings me to the one feature of "standardised" US accent that grates like a verbal fingernail across the blackboard of my soul - why do so many Americans, almost all whom I have heard, pronounce herd and herbal as 'erb and 'erbal. Many seem to say yuman instead of human. Does anybody know how this speech pattern developed? P.S. for any who are not familiar with "blackboard" think "chalkboard." I was going to modify it in the body of my post, but then I recalled my encouragement to Avy to celebrate his own unique English, and so decided not to.
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>grates like a verbal fingernail across the blackboard of my soul
what are we to use for a simile when chalk/fingernails on black/chalkboards are totally replaced by whiteboards and markers?
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>what are we to use for a simile when chalk/fingernails on black/chalkboards are totally replaced by whiteboards and markers?
oh, tsuwm, it will be a PC expression, as those who are unfamiliar with it, decide it is racial.
A town on Long Island (lawng guylan) recently had to change the name of Guinnie Woods Road, since some 2nd and 3rd generation Italians (new to the area) thought it to be a slur on Italians.
It was named for a woods that provide fine hunting a 100 years ago for guinne fowl– a variety of chicken!
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helen, we'll give that one today's Niggardly Award.
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pronounce herd and herbal as 'erb and 'erbal
Do you pronounce the H in herb? I can remember being scolded as a child because I said herb like it was spelled. Then when I met a man named Herb and pronounced his name Erb everyone looked at me as if I were insane. It was quite a challenge for little 6 year old me to figure out why it was ok to call pronounce a man's name different than the plant's name with the same spelling. I don't know why it is pronounced differently on opposing sides of the pond, but my dictionary says
herb \'erb. US also & Brit usu 'herb\
so obviously Websters' acknowleges the distinction between a British herb and an American erb...
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Max, Sweetie,
You must not have "herd" any Americans from my part of the
country. I've never heard the word 'herd' spoken as anything but a homonym of heard. I will say that I have heard 'erbal, but herbal too. I have never heard anyone
say yuman.
And, we had blackboards in our classrooms years ago. Now they seem to be green. Usually, the term chalkboard was used to indicate a freestanding one, maybe on an easel.
Er--Helen, my Uncle Bennett had guinea fowl on his farm, so my experience tells me they are not chickens. They never would let me catch them, the little beggars!
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[jackie, I think "herd" was a typo]
It's a little known fact that, in the early days of TV, a homespun midwestern comedian named Herb Shriner was responsible for changing the pronunciation of 'herb'. Herb made many appearances on the old Ed Sullivan show, the most popular TV show in America back in the 50s. Herb used to like to tell tales about his folks back in Indiana and often peppered his stories with tastes of his mother's and sisters' kitchen talk. He would often use the expression "erbs and spices" to avoid confusion with his own given name.
(hi jazz ;-)
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Thanks, tsuwm for that jazzy explanation, and yes, of course, "herd" was a typo. It just seems odd that herb (and derivatives thereof) and human should for some reason be pronounced differently from other words starting with "h."
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Fascinating twu,
You really are loosening up these days - is it medication? Take several doses of meaningless drivel daily and you too can sound like Jazzoctopus.
We did discuss the re-Franglicisation of words in the mists of time. Another usage that non-US English speakers find strange is fillet (feel-lay) rather than our fil-let. There was a rather sensible proposal that if a word has been absorbed into the English language for more than 100 years, then it's just tough - we pronounce it our way. If it's a new word then we'll use the pronunciation from the country which donated the word. (Anyway isn't l'erbe something to do with grass, not herbs?)
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I must say, tsuwm, quite comendable, but don't you go taking my reputation. You can have your worthless words, but you can't have my piffle.
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Herb Shriner was, of course, a real person and Hoosier commedian -- had I really wanted to jazz up the story I would have called him Herb Spicer.  >You really are loosening up these days - is it medication? I suppose what it is, actually, is the steady degeneration, drib by drab, of my execrable wwftd master personna. soon I will be nothing but a shadow of my former sylph. -ron (who's a degenerate?!) obvious
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[jackie, I think "herd" was a typo]
No, I put the quotation marks deliberately, to show that I was making a play on words.
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< Guys and Dolls>
In the words (and music) of Frank Loesser:
"When the smell of the rain-washed pavement
Comes up clean and fresh and cold
And the street lamplight fills the gutters with gold.
That's my time of day, my time of day,
And you're the only doll I've ever wanted to share it with me."
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And if I were a bell I'd be ringing!
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The point is that the 'f' and 'v' thing is virtually a rule
Except in the word Thames (as mentioned earlier) - I suppose that as the "Th" is already pronounced as the single consonant "t" this is a variation of the rule. "Th" as "f" or "v" unless it is already pronounced "t".
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"Hey there, guy, - would you like a glass of wine?"
Well Mav, old fruit, how do you feel about the word "chap"?
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And if I were a bell I'd be ringing!
Um--if I were a song, I'd be singing?
paulb, Darlin', that was lovely--thank you! You are gold to me.
Now, Jo--just what kind of fruit are you supposing maverick is? Let's see--I believe he is one of our number who likes
numbers, and he is quick off the mark...I will say he is a bananosecond. (That is not original. The actual joke is that that is the definition of how much time elapses between slipping on the peel and smacking the
pavement.)
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Guys and Dolls: the best musical of all time (working my way toward addict status)
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Mav, old fruit, how do you feel about the word "chap"?Pip, pip, old bean! And Jackie, though that banana is a pealing in some ways, I think my Upright Young Citizens would probably rather suggest the humble prune: occasionaly stoned, increasingly wrinkly, and often straining for a joke!
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Except in the word Thames...
... which is not to be confused with the Tames also of London, and its sister, the Sunday Tames.
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Dear Pruny,
You are the apple of my eye. No one compears with you.
Your papaya sure was raisin you right (on the Isle of Wight?). You make some berry grape jokes. Avocado more?
Orange you glad I lime you?
Cherry-o,
Your loving niece
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Avocado more? No, I'm out of stock - I work on a juiced in time delivery system.
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> but then I recalled my encouragement to Avy to celebrate his own unique English,
Her! her! her!
- I never realised a "shona" had been happening to me too.
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Avy, I'm sorry I didn't catch that. How could anybody not
know you're a female? That's a new one on me!
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In reply to:
Her! her! her!
- I never realised a "shona" had been happening to me too.
I am so sorry! I have just read through all your posts, hoping to get a clear sign from one of the posts you made prior to my blundering in here, but nothing I read in any of your fifty-seven posts listed gave me an unequivocal answer. This, of course, means that I have been guilty of the most base phallocentrism, for which I crave your indulgence. What makes it worse is that my misconception may have been coloured by cultural stereotyping as well - a perception of India as a very male-dominated society. After a gaffe like that, I think it's time for me make my quietus. 
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After a gaffe like that ...
It's inevitable that we will get people's gender wrong as we have no way of knowing from the personal biogs (I'll just nip off and check that) - perhaps we should have a line which says "preferred personal pronoun". In RhubarbCommando's case we would need to include the option "it". I wonder if we really do add or subtract fromthe board by not knowing - perhaps we should wander over to poster sex if we want to continue this discussion.
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Avy
My apologies too - I always assumed you were male. I have an excuse, though: all the Avys/Avis I knew in India were male. Oooops.
cheer
the sunshine warrior
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Her! her! her!…Avy, did anyone tell you that you have a lovely laugh? And is ‘to shona’ (bless you!) going to get adopted like Max’s ‘claytons’? If so, I propose that it defines: the state of being shemailed when posting to a socially ambiguous board. Ps: I thought the aside to which I responded hello s'ayleur had sorted out the Lancaster question
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> for which I crave your indulgence.
Max don't worry about it! ... my profile isn't very helpful either. So I have changed it. It has now become the window to my soul. :)
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the window to my soul. :) My dear sweet Avy, I suppose it is... Max, it's not polite to make a quietus in public. And, mav--my goodness, are you propositioning (did I just verb a noun?) my beloved Rhuby?
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Sorry for back-tracking a few days, but I've just returned from 4 days holiday. [As an aside, Australia virtually stops for a horse race (The Melbourne Cup), which was yesterday (Tuesday). Aus$70 million (~US$35m, and heading south?!) plunged on the ONE race. Melbourne residents get a public holiday, and many people take the Monday as well for that great Aussie tradition "the long weekend".]
why do so many Americans ... pronounce herb and herbal as 'erb and 'erbal.
Somewhere in the last few weeks - and my fruitless search of this board suggests it wasn't here - I read a funny piece about a visitor to the US who was offered "urban cheese roll". She was expecting some kind of metropolitan answer to country cooking.
Many seem to say yuman instead of human.
I, too, have heard people pronounce human as yuman, although I can't recall whether it's a national thing. More common, though, is the proununciation of the name Hugh as Yoo rather than (my preference of) Hyoo. Tends to lead to some ridiculous misunderstandings along these lines:
"Who did that? Was it Hugh?"
"No, it wasn't me, it was Hugh!"
"Was it you, Hugh?"
Have others experienced this Hugh/You pronunciation and is it confined to Americans?
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my profile isn't very helpful either. So I have changed it. It has now become the window to my soul. :)
Avy - is it true that you can sum up the entirety of your soul in the single word, "Female"? Does that word and that condition offer an explanation for all and everything? Is this a declaration or an excuse? Or are you just being gnomic? and, Jackie, of course mav wasn't propositioning me - the Welsh are far more notable as shepherds that as mariners.
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You are so right, Anna - Guys and Dolls: the best musical of all time Me - I've always wanted a flat that would flatten the Taj Mahal, but I've never had "all kinds of dough!" - Maybe I'll just develop a cold!
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>are you propositioning (did I just verb a noun?)...
not to worry, Jackie. proposition was verbed (in the U.S.) way back in 1924 -- looks like it first turned up in pulp fiction!
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more notable as shepherds that as marinersMah! he's making eyes at me That reminds me of oe of the local 'getting own back on the Saes' type jokes: A metallic silver Jaguar glides to a halt soon after coming off the Fishguard ferry from Ireland, and a tweed-capped English gent leans out to speak to a passing shepherd. "Aigh s-hay, Dai, could you tell me the correct road towards Brecon?"The local looks unimpressed: "How did you know my name was Dai, then?""Oh, just a lucky guess" says the Englishman, looking ineffably smug. "If you're so lucky you can guess your way to f*-%£"ng Brecon!" replies Gwillym. PS: Saesneg = Saxon = English this Hugh/You pronunciation Wales has Huw, with a suitably poetic ring that rhymes with pew as in chapel. But there is a perverse local tendency to articulate the name of the ordinal as HAYCHE, which I loathe with a passion...!
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>is it true that you can sum up the entirety of your soul in the single word, "Female"? Does that
>word and that condition offer an explanation for all and everything? Is this a declaration or an
>excuse? Or are you just being gnomic?
None of the above. It was supposed to be a joke - a cheek that has in it a tongue? :)
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>a cheek that has in it a tongue? :)
I have one of those too, Avy. It gets me into a lot of trouble!
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... When I shove my tongue in my cheek, I invariably bite it!
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One that I just remembered, and like a lot, is 'copyleft'. I know it probably isn't in dictionaries, but I love the concept. As far as I am aware it is pretty much an Internet invention, and refers to the notion of asserting ones rights over a piece of text (or software code) without charging for it - in order to ensure that it can, and will, always be distributed for free.
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<Have others experienced this Hugh/You pronunciation and is it confined to Americans?>
Read The Go-Between.
I'd never come across it before reading this book and I was perplexed for quite some time as to what was going on!
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Read The Go-Between.
Thanks Bridget, I think I'll follow your advice. I enjoyed it as a school literature text at the age of 14. Bits of it are now floating back to me - Leo, Mercury, the soaring temperatures, belladonna - but much of it, including the Hugh/You reference, is lost in time.
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..and now I'm going to have to re-read it too, because I don't remember anything about belladonna or Mercury. (I hope I didn't recommend the wrong book....)
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belladonna ...Definitely the right book Bridget. The beautiful but deadly female is his leitmotif in this (and all the other versions of the same story he also wrote!)
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belladonna...
quoted, by Ambrose Bierce I believe, as a fine example of the similarity of the English and Italian languages!
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PS: Saesneg = Saxon = English Thanks for the P.S., mav. I have a Canadian friend of Scots origin who invariably refers to the English as "sassenacks" (I think... never saw him write it, phonetic approximation here) and now, thanks to you, I know the Gaelic origin. This friend also sports a tee-shirt that reads "The only reason Scotland doesn't float off to the North Sea is because* England sucks." --- * bad grammar, I know: just quoting
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I never read The Go-Between, though I think I saw the movie! Thanks for the reference, Bridget.
Yes, certain Yankees (i.e. those who live in the north of this great soon-to-be-ungoverned-if-we-don't-watch-our-collective R'ses country) say You for Hugh, Yuman for human, Yumid for humid.
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anna, this word is in my backlog of potential wwftd[s]; here is what I have on sassenach:
("s&s@n&x) [repr. Gael. Sasunnach adj. English, n. an Englishman = Irish Sasanach, Sacsanach, f. Sasan-, repr. the Teut. ethnic name Saxon. (Cf. Gael. Sasunn, Irish Sasana, Sacsain, England.)]
The name given by the Gaelic inhabitants of Great Britain and Ireland to their ‘Saxon’ or English neighbours. (Sometimes attributed to Welsh speakers: the corresponding Welsh form is Seisnig.)
All loved their McClan, save a Sassenach brute, Who came to the Highlands to fish and to shoot. - 1869 W. S. Gilbert (Bab Ball. 187)
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