Now a fact the word was never gender conscious as the vast majority of our English comes from Greek or Roman derivation, for the word comes from 'manus' the hand or handle. Hence we have the handler of the chair, or the hand controlling the chair. No gender. Sorry fellow readers though this may help...
We now must accept "google" into the English Dictionaries of the World. Be the first to submit an entry. It must be on the fast track to Websters. The Oxford Canadian Dictionary has now recognized "spork", that handy utensil in a KFC condement bag.
...and all this time, I thought this was from the bible, but it doesn't seem to appear any place except in modern chat rooms & message boards. Any hints?
Vin¢
I've just found this site and it's amazingly "lively" so it is with some caution that I dare ask... A while back we all were chatting and the whole business of swearing came up, and then it got wider and wilder and nobody could really work out what the difference was. What I mean to say is that you ...
There is a great on-line comic, with aspects of Pogo, Peanuts, and Calvin and Hobbes in every strip. You can find and read it at: http://www.ozyandmillie.org/ Real fun reading, very thought-provoking, too. There are five years of the strip in .zip files, if you read any and like them. =) (I have no ...
Is there a generally accepted date or time frame that what we consider correct spelling of English (or American) words came about? I've tried to research this, and have found details of several early dictionaries, one of which had the word "alphabeticall [sic]" in the title. I know that language is ...
This is an intriguing Aussie expression meaning busy or fast and I'd appreciate any other meanings When I google ~ as a phrase but rejecting "australia, "au" "uk" "aussie" etc I get only 32 hits; would I be correct in assuming it hasn't yet caught on here Incidentally, when "flat out" is added, does...
Why a lemon? Do lemons actually sit around? Why does it imply idleness or laziness? This is one of these phrases that we often use without thinking - we will say "Stop sitting around..." and add "...like a lemon" as an intensifier. How and when did this curious phrase originate? Submitted by Simon B...
Over Christmas it cropped up in conversation that I used to make silver jewelry and I referred to the "findings" that were aviable. There were 6 nationalities in the group, including 3 Brits and one American, yet none had heard of the term. These are essentially jewelry "blanks"; earings, rings, pen...
The following extract is from the archives >>> Where does the saying (or phrase) 'she's the cat's mother' come from? Submitted by: Library Macarthur Girls High School (Parramatta - Australia) Answer: The phrase, as I recall experiencing it, is 'She' is the cat's mother, and was always used as a repr...
In reading a Michener novel I came across the word "roanoke" used. The implication was it was an Indian word for an item used by Indians before European colonization. I'm sure the city of Roanoke was named for it but I can find no reference so far of it's actual meaning. Submitted by Bernie Malinows...
"King of beers." This Budwieser slogan has caused many a bar debate. If this brewing process produces a Czech Budwiess (spell check) then should it be "king of Budwieses. "king of porters", "king of Stouts" so on....