tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7529903.post116920935706846817..comments2024-03-07T11:39:09.758+11:00Comments on Will Type For Food: Word NerderyTimThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10333303180015967125noreply@blogger.comBlogger13125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7529903.post-1169417723446652392007-01-22T09:15:00.000+11:002007-01-22T09:15:00.000+11:00'Chiastic' sent me scurrying to the dictionary, th...'Chiastic' sent me scurrying to the dictionary, thank you Gauchegirl! Anyone who knows words like that can't be that gauche!TimThttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10333303180015967125noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7529903.post-1169416158232089512007-01-22T08:49:00.000+11:002007-01-22T08:49:00.000+11:00I was always fond of words of the english language...I was always fond of words of the english language put to chiastic use. From the profound such as think not what your country can do for you but what you can do for your country, or perhaps the equally profound the proof of good liquor is in the taste and the taste of good liquor is in the proof.Gauchegirlhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16605161641377204789noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7529903.post-1169379872358470782007-01-21T22:44:00.000+11:002007-01-21T22:44:00.000+11:00Ah yes, my mistake. O was a shortening of Oest (or...Ah yes, my mistake. O was a shortening of Oest (or Occident) as you suggest. That was the story, anyway. The writers suggested it was more likely that it came from the term 'I see the mountain'. In Spanish, obviously. I don't know of any <I>English</I> towns called Iseethemountain. <BR/><BR/>You are a learned fellow, Mr Tdix. Next you'll be translating the name into Ancient Sumerian via Ancient Lemurian.TimThttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10333303180015967125noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7529903.post-1169378007786856922007-01-21T22:13:00.000+11:002007-01-21T22:13:00.000+11:00"O is a shortening of mountain."O probably stands ..."O is a shortening of mountain."<BR/><BR/>O probably stands for West (the Occident), or 'Oeste' in Spanish. It would be rather superextraordinisimo if this happened to be the origin of Montevideo's name.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7529903.post-1169368803952224812007-01-21T19:40:00.000+11:002007-01-21T19:40:00.000+11:00'A Dictionary of Highly Unusual Words' by Irwin M ...'A Dictionary of Highly Unusual Words' by Irwin M Berent and Rod L Evans (that's the names on the cover, I wonder if they really do have middle names or those letters are just for show?) It's a little slapdash (relies a little too much on odd jokes to substitute lack of research), but well worth it. <BR/><BR/><A HREF="http://www.amazon.com/Dictionary-Highly-Unusual-Words/dp/0425156060/sr=1-4/qid=1169368629/ref=sr_1_4/102-0707838-3117741?ie=UTF8&s=books" REL="nofollow">link</A><BR/><BR/>I must look out for that Bill Bryson book!TimThttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10333303180015967125noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7529903.post-1169367857825114202007-01-21T19:24:00.000+11:002007-01-21T19:24:00.000+11:00Oh, I love books about words. What is the title of...Oh, I love books about words. What is the title of the one that you posted about?<BR/><BR/>BTW - Have you read 'Mother Tongue' by Bill Bryson. It is the perfect book for word nerds.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7529903.post-1169265744772208502007-01-20T15:02:00.000+11:002007-01-20T15:02:00.000+11:00Got the palindrome from here. They're comments to ...Got the palindrome from <A HREF="http://www.haloscan.com/comments/hhutton/110014371545205256/" REL="nofollow">here</A>. They're comments to <A HREF="http://chasemeladies.blogspot.com/2004/11/man-plan-canal-panama.html" REL="nofollow">this post</A>.TimThttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10333303180015967125noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7529903.post-1169265242904815882007-01-20T14:54:00.000+11:002007-01-20T14:54:00.000+11:00James Thurber's witty put-down of modern education...James Thurber's witty put-down of modern education in the classics was that it 'Put Descartes before the Horace.'TimThttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10333303180015967125noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7529903.post-1169265219628728682007-01-20T14:53:00.000+11:002007-01-20T14:53:00.000+11:00Hoorah! That splendid feat of palindromification, ...Hoorah! That splendid feat of palindromification, M. le Tim, will keep me in good cheer - and back again - for the next week, at least. I have nothing that even vaguely competes, but perhaps you could somehow work in "denim axes examined".Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7529903.post-1169247446013782852007-01-20T09:57:00.000+11:002007-01-20T09:57:00.000+11:00Here's a palindrome for you: A man, a plan, a cano...Here's a palindrome for you: <BR/><BR/>A man, a plan, a canoe, pasta, hero's rajahs, a coloratura, maps, snipe, percale, macaroni, a gag, a banana bag, a tan, a cat, a mane, paper, a Toyota, rep, a pen, a mat, a can, a tag, a banana bag again, or: a camel, a crepe, pins, spam, a rut, a Rolo, cash, a jar, sore hats, a peon, a canal, Panama!TimThttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10333303180015967125noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7529903.post-1169247324975586832007-01-20T09:55:00.000+11:002007-01-20T09:55:00.000+11:00The word Wowser was originally used to describe th...The word Wowser was originally used to describe those who drank and partied too much. An Australian journalist turned it around to describe those who do not like having fun.<BR/>To seal the change he come up with this...W.O.W.S.E.R...We Only Want Social Evil Reformed.<BR/><BR/>This was about One hundred years ago, it aptly describes modern day political correctness.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7529903.post-1169243702309051232007-01-20T08:55:00.000+11:002007-01-20T08:55:00.000+11:00This blog is in favour of homophonic marriage. Mor...This blog is in favour of homophonic marriage. <BR/><BR/>More random facts: The word 'typewriter' is apparently one of the longest words that can be typed by using only the top level of letters on the typewriter. <BR/><BR/>'Remacadamizing', a road-paving process, comes from <I>five</I> separate languages: 'Re' from Latin, 'Mac' from Celtic, 'Adam' from Hebrew, 'Iz' from Greek, and 'Ing' from English. <BR/><BR/>In the word 'reentered', each 'e' is pronounced differently. <BR/><BR/>A candidate for the longest word in Spanish is 'Superextraordinisimo', whcih is laying it on a bit thick, don't you think? <BR/><BR/>Razzamatazz has four z's in one word, Qawiqsaqq has four q's, and loxolophodonts (name for an extinct gigantic mammal) is one of the longest words using only 'o' for its vowel. <BR/><BR/>Apparently Dee Why in Sydney is so named because the harbour looks like a 'D' and a 'Y'. There is also a story that Montevideo came from an explorers shorthand notes, 'Monte VI de O', meaning sixth mountain from the west. VI is roman numerals, and O is a shortening of mountain. <BR/><BR/>Sometimes the authors seem to flub it: I quite like this name for a flower - <BR/><BR/>Meet-her-in-the-entry-kiss-her-in-the-buttery<BR/><BR/>Apparently one of 'only three' words in the English language containing nine hyphens. But that distinction, apparently, is shared by this term: <BR/><BR/>Great-great-great-great-great-great-grand-niece-in-law. <BR/><BR/>Hmmm... there's also 'nephew-in-law', obviously. And presumably those 'Great-etc-nieces-in-law' would have 'Great-etc-aunts-in-law' and 'uncles-in-law'. I'm not sure they did their research on this one.TimThttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10333303180015967125noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7529903.post-1169241523206277932007-01-20T08:18:00.000+11:002007-01-20T08:18:00.000+11:00Nerdery?! NERDERY??!! This stuff is da bomb, man. ...Nerdery?! NERDERY??!! This stuff is da bomb, man. MTV is now offering continuous live streaming of the LA gangsta rapper anagram-off, and AT THIS VERY MINUTE in Rio there are thousands of bronzed women in tiny gold shorts screaming for Latino-Irish palindrome artist, Julio O'Iluj.<BR/><BR/>Now that I've recouped some street cred for this iniquitously named "word nerdery": "abstentious" is joined by "abstemious" and "facetious" in having all five vowels arranged in alphabetical order; my favourite anagram is "listen" for "silent"; and I think homophones should be allowed to marry, if they want to.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com