OT: Tis the Season

On Thu, 3 Dec 2009 18:20:13 -0600, Sunny wrote (in article ):

I'm the same way. I hate "irregardless." And my hate for the word is well known among the engineers I work with. So now when they want to push my buttons, they start with "irregardless this" and "irregardless that."

Maureen

It's an ABBREVIATION - that's all - no more - no less.

Peace on earth, good will toward all - even those that use abbreviations, and those who get in a snit about it.

Doc

No snit here. I'm just not one who would put an X over the word Christ.

Yes, peace on earth, good well toward men.

D> I try at least once every year to get at least one more

Ok, here's a rhetorical question for the masses: How long, or by what criteria, must a word or term be used in order for it to become cromulent?

Of course I use the word "cromulent" ironically, and with tongue firmly implanted in cheek (facial, that is) but IMO aptly/poignantly. From:

Since it was coined, it has appeared in the Webster=92s New Millennium Dictionary of English [and now several more online dictionaries]. The etymology of cromulent is inferred only from its usage, which indicates that it is a positive attribute. Webster's Dictionary defines it as meaning fine or acceptable.

"Irregardless" has been slung around a lot longer than 13 years (since I can recall my own English teachers' tirades from the '60s & '70 at

*least*). For some reason, people are more accepting of a totally made-up word than they are of a derived one.

A seemingly stranger irony is that the word "gullible", which I have known and used my entire life without question, hesitation or objection, appears in no dictionary whatsoever. ;-)

Doc

From:

"...some erroneously believe that the term Xmas is part of an effortto "take Christ out of Christmas" or to literally "cross outChrist"..."

I'm not going to argue style, usage, or political correctness. It's an abbreviation; the history and derivation are well documented.

I have to say, we also celebrate Yule. However, I do find that "X-mas" is disrespectful.

amy in CNY

'Gullible' is in even the Concise Oxford Dictionary (and, therefore, by extrapolation must be in the larger ones); and Roget's Thesaurus; whereas the 'i' word (that I have never, ever heard nor can I bear to write) is in neither.

Seems it is 'Two nations divided by a common language' - again >g< . In message , Dr. Zachary Smith writes snipped

In message , Dr. Zachary Smith writes

It appears in my dictionary. My dictionary is The New Imperial Dictionary which we bought in 1955. Hugs Shirley

Its in my concise Oxford Dictionary, Cambridge Dictionary, and even Google on line.

I'm not gullible!

Sally at the Seaside~~~~~~~~~~~~~uk

Dr. Zachary Smith wrote:

Perhaps her teacher was from England?

Sally at the Seaside~~~~~~~~~~~~~uk

Listpig wrote:

Howdy!

... or a matter of simple research...

The Living Webster Encyclopedic Dictionary of the English Language, 1971 (my copy)

Apple's Dashboard Dictionary - Merriam-Webster

Term I can't stand: "I could care less!" - makes me cringe to write it. It's wrong! Doesn't make sense that way. "I care so little I could NOT care less." so there! ;-P

R/Sandy- finally enjoying some quilt weather

Wanna bet? BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! GOTCHA ALL!!! 8^D

Doc

What's another word for "thesaurus"?

On to more serious linguistic gymnastics.

Am I the only one here who grew up knowing that those little christmas village things were called "kinderputzen"? I reckon some folk from this part of the country might have grown up with that term as well. The term is pennsylvania-dutch, and I believe the villages originated with them too.

Great-grandpa explained to us kids that they came about because of children. If you didn't have them, Mary was prone leaving the manger to hop into a toy buggy and jaunt off to a quilting bee, while Joseph and the Wisemen rode into town on wooden horses to hang out at the hardware store, leaving the baby Jesus to be minded by sheep and oxen because the shepherds were too busy jousting with their crooks to make it to the stable on time. Yeah, grandad had 6 brothers and no sisters.

NightMist

I've been in that club all my life, Merry Christmas! Bonnie, in Middletown, VA

I agree, I like TV--for entertainment. I very rarely watch the news preferring to read mine on the internet and avoid the hype (although even some journalists are getting into the fray as well). I make liberal use of the mute button too. :-)

Best regards, Michelle > Howdy!

I agree. Is "irregardless" more regardless than "regardless"? It's also so twisty.

Another bugaboo of mine is bring and take. When I was a kid (which at

45 is getting to be awhile ago) I was taught to use both bring and take, as in "bring me the remote" and "take out the trash". Has anyone noticed that often "bring" is being used in place of "take" now? I don't know how many time in various TV shows I watch someone says something like "I'm going to bring this back to the office." Yikes! Nails on a chalkboard to me.

Best regards, Michelle in Nevada

How about unnecessary prepositions?

Listen up! (Glad you told me that; I was about to listen down...huh?)

Leave out of there! (As far as I know, you can leave SOMETHING out, but if you're referring to departing, you simply LEAVE...)

Close out of your program! (Because if you just close your program, you'll be stuck inside it? I don't think so.....)

There are a zillion examples, but they all seem to revolve around unnecessary "up" and "out" insertions; I can't think of any with "down" or "in" off the top of my head.

--pig

Those are all good examples, Megan. :-) Can we do "that car is hard to get out of" ending a sentence with a preposition? However, I realize a lot of people find it more cumbersome to say, "that is a car in which it is is hard to get out" (and you know, we say the first so much, that I'm not certain my 2nd version is correct....)

Michelle in Nevada

Listpig wrote:

Now that's one I just can't be bothered with. (Using a preposition to end a sentence with.) If I must ever give a speech in the Rose Garden, we will hope that the teleprompter has fine grammar. Polly