February
6 years ago
Wednesday, 11 March 2009
Blandiloquent
If someone asks ‘Does my bum look big in this?’ you should respond with blandiloquence. Blandiloquent describes mild, flattering speech.
Tuesday, 10 March 2009
Bin
We all know what a bin is. A bin is some form of container, usually with a lid, used for storage or a container for rubbish or waste.
But what if you found the word ‘bin’ in an inventory accompanying a will in the Stratford of Shakespeare’s time? It wouldn’t be referring to an ordinary container but to a hive of bees – bin was the local dialect term for bees.
Discovering this reminded me of the first time I looked through the wills of some my ancestors. One of them left a shyp to his daughter. Wow, I thought. He must have been rich to have been a ship-owner. It turned out he had merely left her a sheep!
Old inventories are fascinating things, not only do they contain some wonderful words, but they show what was considered valuable in the household. The ‘best bed’ was frequently the first and most important item on the inventory!
Among the other things you might have found in old inventories were a
Clossbowke – a bucket with a lid
Counterfeit – plated silver
Dassells – a saddle
Falling bands – collars or neckerchiefs
Falling-table – a gate-legged table
Ferret – silk ribbon
Flasket – a clothes basket
Body Harness – armour
Hutch – a small light chest for clothes
Male – a travelling bag
Pad pannel – a piece of cloth serving as a saddle
Pantables – slippers
Partlett – a woman’s neckerchief or ruffed collar
Piggin – a little earthenware jar
Posnett – a little basin
Porringer – a small dish
Sawser – a small dish, a sauce dish
Stalls – hives of bees
Voide – a large basket
But what if you found the word ‘bin’ in an inventory accompanying a will in the Stratford of Shakespeare’s time? It wouldn’t be referring to an ordinary container but to a hive of bees – bin was the local dialect term for bees.
Discovering this reminded me of the first time I looked through the wills of some my ancestors. One of them left a shyp to his daughter. Wow, I thought. He must have been rich to have been a ship-owner. It turned out he had merely left her a sheep!
Old inventories are fascinating things, not only do they contain some wonderful words, but they show what was considered valuable in the household. The ‘best bed’ was frequently the first and most important item on the inventory!
Among the other things you might have found in old inventories were a
Clossbowke – a bucket with a lid
Counterfeit – plated silver
Dassells – a saddle
Falling bands – collars or neckerchiefs
Falling-table – a gate-legged table
Ferret – silk ribbon
Flasket – a clothes basket
Body Harness – armour
Hutch – a small light chest for clothes
Male – a travelling bag
Pad pannel – a piece of cloth serving as a saddle
Pantables – slippers
Partlett – a woman’s neckerchief or ruffed collar
Piggin – a little earthenware jar
Posnett – a little basin
Porringer – a small dish
Sawser – a small dish, a sauce dish
Stalls – hives of bees
Voide – a large basket
Monday, 9 March 2009
Gone for a Burton
In informal British English, something or someone who has gone for a Burton is missing, permanently broken, ruined or destroyed.
The original sense was to meet one’s death, a slang term in the RAF in World War Two for pilots who were killed in action. Its first recorded appearance in print was in the New Statesman on 30 August 1941.
It's exact origin is obscure and many different versions have been put forward. The most favoured is that it was a way of avoiding referring to someone having been killed by suggesting they had only slipped out for a Beer. Burton's being one of the biggest Breweries at that time and Burton-on-Trent being the home of a number of other breweries. In addition, someone who downed their plane in the water was 'in the drink'. (There is also a hint of rhyming slang in there - Burton-on-Trent - went.)
Allegedly there was a series of advertisements for beer in the inter-war years which featured a group of people with one obviously missing, such as a football team of ten players. The tagline suggested the missing person had just popped out for a beer. The slogan was then taken up by RAF pilots for one of their number missing in action as a typical example of wartime sick humour. Whether these adverts ever existed is questionable.
The original sense was to meet one’s death, a slang term in the RAF in World War Two for pilots who were killed in action. Its first recorded appearance in print was in the New Statesman on 30 August 1941.
It's exact origin is obscure and many different versions have been put forward. The most favoured is that it was a way of avoiding referring to someone having been killed by suggesting they had only slipped out for a Beer. Burton's being one of the biggest Breweries at that time and Burton-on-Trent being the home of a number of other breweries. In addition, someone who downed their plane in the water was 'in the drink'. (There is also a hint of rhyming slang in there - Burton-on-Trent - went.)
Allegedly there was a series of advertisements for beer in the inter-war years which featured a group of people with one obviously missing, such as a football team of ten players. The tagline suggested the missing person had just popped out for a beer. The slogan was then taken up by RAF pilots for one of their number missing in action as a typical example of wartime sick humour. Whether these adverts ever existed is questionable.
Sunday, 8 March 2009
Thinking outside of the box
Thinking outside of the box is a modern, business-speak term for lateral thinking. It means to think differently, unconventionally, or from a new perspective.
'Thinking outside of the box' was voted the most disliked example of buffling (business waffling) in a survey commissioned by Ramada Encore Hotels.
These were the nation's most hated buffling terms, according to the survey:
1. Thinking outside of the box
2. Touch base
3. At the end of the day
4. Going forward
5. All of it
6. Blue sky thinking
7. Out of the box
8. Credit crunch
9. Heads up
10. Singing from the same hymn sheet
11. Pro-active
12. Downsizing
13. Ducks in a row
14. Brainstorming
15. Thought shower
16. 360ยบ thinking
17. Flag it up
18. Pushing the envelope
19. At this moment in time
20. In the loop
Saturday, 7 March 2009
Housel
I came across the word 'housel' not very long ago. It is definitely one of the more obscure words to appear in my word blog as it turned out to be an archaic term for the Eucharist or the act of administering or receiving the communion.
Friday, 6 March 2009
Wag
Someone referred to a person on the television as a wag the other day. To me, a wag was a person given to droll, roguish, or mischievous humour and it hardly seemed to fit the somewhat characterless person on the TV. I had to ask Jo what they meant. It seems WAG is an acronym used by the tabloid press to describe the Wives And Girlfriends of high profile celebrities.
It seems that the meaning I knew is not understood by modern youth and so Home & Capital Advisers has produced a dictionary of “Gran Slang”, designed to help younger people understand and communicate with their grandparents. The equity release specialists recognised there was a vast array of guides on “youth street slang” to assist older people in bridging the generational gap, but nothing on the market to aid teenagers in comprehending the language of pensioners.
The “Gran Slang” dictionary is accompanied by a glossary of “youth slang”, allowing for simple cross-referencing. No longer will the word “mint” (used by teenagers to denote approval) be confused with a request for a hard-boiled, peppermint-flavoured sweet.
Nigel Hare-Scott, managing director of Home & Capital Advisers, says: “Many of the words used by teenagers today are incomprehensible to older generations, but it must be equally baffling for younger people trying to get to grips with the lexicon of their grandparents. Understanding is a two-way street – and that’s where the “gran slang” dictionary comes in.”
It seems that the meaning I knew is not understood by modern youth and so Home & Capital Advisers has produced a dictionary of “Gran Slang”, designed to help younger people understand and communicate with their grandparents. The equity release specialists recognised there was a vast array of guides on “youth street slang” to assist older people in bridging the generational gap, but nothing on the market to aid teenagers in comprehending the language of pensioners.
The “Gran Slang” dictionary is accompanied by a glossary of “youth slang”, allowing for simple cross-referencing. No longer will the word “mint” (used by teenagers to denote approval) be confused with a request for a hard-boiled, peppermint-flavoured sweet.
Nigel Hare-Scott, managing director of Home & Capital Advisers, says: “Many of the words used by teenagers today are incomprehensible to older generations, but it must be equally baffling for younger people trying to get to grips with the lexicon of their grandparents. Understanding is a two-way street – and that’s where the “gran slang” dictionary comes in.”
Thursday, 5 March 2009
Numinous
Numinous means filled with awe or wonder; evincing the presence of a deity; feeling that you are in the presence of God or something greater than yourself.
“He felt none of that numinous awe born of emptiness and the ... of plainsong on the silent air that ancient churches could evoke.” - P. D James 'The Lighthouse'
“The silence was numinous, broken only by the sound of the sea.”- P. D James 'The Lighthouse'
“He felt none of that numinous awe born of emptiness and the ... of plainsong on the silent air that ancient churches could evoke.” - P. D James 'The Lighthouse'
“The silence was numinous, broken only by the sound of the sea.”- P. D James 'The Lighthouse'
Wednesday, 4 March 2009
Hieratic
Hieratic means priestly; associated with the priesthood or priests.
It can also refer to a cursive form of ancient Egyptian writing (used especially by the priests ).
A third meaning is 'adhering to fixed types or methods; highly restrained and formal'.
It comes from the Greek word meaning "sacred" .
“It gave him a look, hieratic, distinguished, and alien but he wore it unselfconsciously....” P D James
It can also refer to a cursive form of ancient Egyptian writing (used especially by the priests ).
A third meaning is 'adhering to fixed types or methods; highly restrained and formal'.
It comes from the Greek word meaning "sacred" .
“It gave him a look, hieratic, distinguished, and alien but he wore it unselfconsciously....” P D James
Tuesday, 3 March 2009
Discombobulate
Fhina recently commented that she was discombobulated. A wonderful word and I had to put it on this blog.
Discombobulate - a verb meaning to throw into confusion. The noun from it is discombobulation.
To quote from Fhina's posting - "Discombobulate is an American invention, first appearing around 1834, but its origins are a bit cloudy. It may be, as the Oxford English Dictionary suggests, simply a humorous alteration of "discompose" or "discomfit." The Dictionary of American Regional English, however, suggests that the "bob" in "discombobulate" may have come from "bobbery," a somewhat antiquated word meaning "uproar" or "confusion.""
Discombobulate - a verb meaning to throw into confusion. The noun from it is discombobulation.
To quote from Fhina's posting - "Discombobulate is an American invention, first appearing around 1834, but its origins are a bit cloudy. It may be, as the Oxford English Dictionary suggests, simply a humorous alteration of "discompose" or "discomfit." The Dictionary of American Regional English, however, suggests that the "bob" in "discombobulate" may have come from "bobbery," a somewhat antiquated word meaning "uproar" or "confusion.""
Monday, 2 March 2009
Best Boy
A Best Boy is not necessarily the male child who has behaved most correctly – it is the name given to the first assistant to the gaffer (head electrician) of a film crew.
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