Werdpley

[Sqthreer]

Do you enjoy words? GOOD.

 

I must say that I am frequently intrigued by the languages we all speak and write and think. The hilarious mistakes and the clever creations that squeeze their way out of our brains and other body parts cause me to tingle sometimes, and I hope to spread the tingle around, as well as experience the tingles secreted by others.

 

While you're here, post some interesting linguistic facts you've learned, or some awesome alliterations, or some prime rhymes, or some spacky woonerisms, or perhaps select a word from your personal gualp* of neologisms. OR WHATEVER

 

I LOVE tongue twisters and I make my own up all the time. Here is one:

 

Eleven level elven leather elevator loveseats.

 

Here is another:

 

I discuss the skies cause I decide this guy's eyes disguise this size disc.

 

OH and here is a sentence that is very fun to say:

 

Pick up a couple o' papayas.

 

 

 

* Gualp: a moderately large group of objects or concepts sharing varying degrees of similarities in physical or stylistic attributes.

[kaelvan]

Any languages? *grab book on awesome German words*

 

Fetenlauschangriff: Tuning in and out of a number of conversations at a party

 

Also, a little fact I found: Folk etymology is a term used to describe the phenomenon of a word or phrase changing into something more familiar.

[Sqthreer]

First of all: I love German. I've been intermittently learning it with an application I downloaded onto my mobile device. And I like that word, fetenlauschangriff... I wonder if that means you're eavesdropping multiple conversations or participating in them.

 

 

Another tongue twister of my creation:

 

The fifth fit physicists fist fixed the sixth sick sister's cyst.

 

And another fun sentence(s) to speak:

 

Is this his existence? This is his existence.

[Bearded_Dragon]

I like that this thread is here. As soon as my brain warms up I'll post something that will knock your socks off!

 

Knock your socks off is a strange idiom...

 

My wife knows British Sign Language and frequently uses it in her job and she's said how difficult it can be to translate idioms into sign (as it is with translating idioms across any 2 languages) but sign is so literal that "knocking someone's socks off" just wouldn't make any sense whatsoever. 

[Toxophilite]

For consideration:

 

Bi-annual - twice per year

 

Biennial - once every 2 years

 

Bi-monthly - twice per month

 

Bi-monthly - once every 2 months

 

Why is there not a new word here?

[Bearded_Dragon]

What word are you proposing? Bionthly? Bienthly?

[Toxophilite]

What word are you proposing? Bionthly? Bienthly?

What about bi-moonly?

[Toxophilite]

My wife knows British Sign Language and frequently uses it in her job and she's said how difficult it can be to translate idioms into sign (as it is with translating idioms across any 2 languages) but sign is so literal that "knocking someone's socks off" just wouldn't make any sense whatsoever. 

Parenthetical remarks (however relevant) are unnecessary.

[kaelvan]

I have bit of obsession with how your sister country (UK) same words we have mean something completely different. Like how rubber over there can mean an eraser and over here (in US) can mean condom.

Do Brits actually call it that?

 

Maybe I should go now *starts running out of the room and hides behind some furniture*

[Sqthreer]

For consideration:

 

Bi-annual - twice per year

 

Biennial - once every 2 years

 

Bi-monthly - twice per month

 

Bi-monthly - once every 2 months

 

Why is there not a new word here?

 

I have had at least three mild bickerings about this with other people (even an accounting teacher a couple years ago). I completely agree that there should be a new word for this.

 

My suggestions, to be used for either twice a month or every two months I don't care okay just fix this now:

 

Di-monthly

Dy-monthly

Du-monthly

Duo-monthly

 

The same problem occurs with 'bi-weekly'. Bi-weekly can mean twice a week or every two weeks (at least we have fortnight for this one). But if it's the latter of the two, you could also say "bi-monthly".

 

Fug thiz shid.

 

Also, parenthetical remarks are awesome and I use them a lot (even when there's really no need to whatsoever and they just reiterate a point that was implied in the words that occurred before them and sometimes even go on waaaaaaay too long and end up being five times longer than the rest of the sentence or even end the sentence which entails a controversy over whether or not the period should be on the inside of the parentheses or not).

[Bearded_Dragon]

I have bit of obsession with how your sister country (UK) same words we have mean something completely different. Like how rubber over there can mean an eraser and over here (in US) can mean condom.

Do Brits actually call it that?

 

Maybe I should go now *starts running out of the room and hides behind some furniture*

 

I can confirm that in the UK rubber does mean eraser - just one of the oh-so-hilarious misunderstandings I had when I first moved to this country. 

 

They also use the word "pants" to refer to "underwear" - so when I told my gf at the time when we were shopping that this tie would look nice with my khaki pants she looked at me like I was some kind of mental case. 

[Toxophilite]

I can confirm that in the UK rubber does mean eraser - just one of the oh-so-hilarious misunderstandings I had when I first moved to this country. 

 

They also use the word "pants" to refer to "underwear" - so when I told my gf at the time when we were shopping that this tie would look nice with my khaki pants she looked at me like I was some kind of mental case. 

Don't forget 'fanny'. The differing use of that causes much hilarity amongst young children over here.

[Bearded_Dragon]

oh yes, fanny is a constant source of hilarity - especially with the American term for a bum bag being "fanny pack". Oh the double entendre!

[Sqthreer]

HAHA bum bag. I like yours better.

 

Also, isn't "randy" a word meaning sexual arousal or horny? We gotta lotta people here named Randy. I work with a woman whose name is Randi.

[Bearded_Dragon]

Yeah randy does mean sexually aroused, which is great whenever you watch American programmes

 

"Hi, I'm Randy!"

 

"Bloody hell mate, we only just met, at least buy me a drink before you jump right into that!"

[insanity]

For consideration:

 

Bi-annual - twice per year

 

Biennial - once every 2 years

 

Bi-monthly - twice per month

 

Bi-monthly - once every 2 months

 

Why is there not a new word here?

I say we let this take over the twice per year spot... http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/semiannual

 

Then just call it Semi-Monthly... :-) That makes more sense than bi-monthly anyway...

[Quarkle]

Anyone heard of the word "prepone"?

A word coined in Indian English, has a meaning opposite to that of 'postpone'

E.g. The meeting was preponed from March to February. Outside India and Pakistan, people use the term 'brought forward'.

 

There has always been a furious debate over the correctness of using 'prepone'. Half the people insist it is wrong since it isn't a part of British English (even this NF dictionary has this red-wavy-underlined). The other half argue that this word makes perfect sense, has been in use for decades and that Indian English deserves the same distinction as British and American English enjoy. Considering the fact that India is home to the second largest English speaking population in the world, next only to the US.

(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_English-speaking_population)

[Toxophilite]

Prepone, never heard it being used before but I like it. I'm in the 'makes perfect sense' camp.

 

On the same topic, has anyone come across the use of 'revert' instead of 'reply' in messages e.g. "please could you revert asap"? I think this is common in Indian English.

[insanity]

Prepone, never heard it being used before but I like it. I'm in the 'makes perfect sense' camp.

 

On the same topic, has anyone come across the use of 'revert' instead of 'reply' in messages e.g. "please could you revert asap"? I think this is common in Indian English.

That seems way weird... I think of revert as being "Take it back a version" IE... Can you revert these plans to last weeks version.

[kaelvan]

I don't know if you have trouble with affect and effect too, but Oatmeal really helped me to remember which is which.

 

[Toxophilite]

That seems way weird... I think of revert as being "Take it back a version" IE... Can you revert these plans to last weeks version.

Yes, that's exactly what I think. My boss has started using it now so we just make fun of him 'reverting' back to a previous state

[Sqthreer]

On the same topic, has anyone come across the use of 'revert' instead of 'reply' in messages e.g. "please could you revert asap"? I think this is common in Indian English.

I've never heard this but the word "revert" reminds me of words that are close to being palindromes but ruined by one extra letter > 'Divide' is another.

[Toxophilite]

I've never heard this but the word "revert" reminds me of words that are close to being palindromes but ruined by one extra letter > 'Divide' is another.

A man, a plan, a canal, Panama!

[kaelvan]

I keep thinking of "please revert back to section a-d (or whatever)"

[Quarkle]

Revert is a comparatively recent usage, I don't think its correct either. I think people use it in the same way as 'getting back' to someone after an email or phone call.

 

Another phrase we use differently is to do with exams and tests. In India we give a test or exam not take it.

This phrase is used because most Indian languages use the equivalent of the word 'give' for exams and that gets translated without change into English.