big grass (for tall grass)?
big grass (for tall grass)?
I heard a speaker in a conference I attended refer to grass (lawn not pot) as big. The speaker is from Alabama but was born and raised in Wisc. I usually say the grass is tall, could you say big? The context:the speaker was talking about a Self Advocate who wanted to buy a blade for his lawn mower to cut the big grass. Is this usage localized to that area,or did he misuse the word?
ACCESS_POST_ACTIONS
Signature: Ahmed EL Namer
Dawson Creek,BC
Dawson Creek,BC
big grass (for tall grass)?
My wife Laverne who is good with the vernacular, says big makes her think of pampas grass. In a somewhat similar way it makes me think of any tall but also clumping grass like giant wild rye. Dunno why. You might try Googling the terms; I get 30 or 40 times more hits on "tall" than "big"
ACCESS_POST_ACTIONS
big grass (for tall grass)?
Ahmed, I’ve never heard of tall grass referred to as ‘big.’ My guess is that it is being used facetiously as in the manner of the expression ‘big hair.’ BIG HAIR is an originally U.S. phrase from the early 20th century, which became quite popular in the 1980s and is still in use. It refers to long hair that has been teased and sprayed into a large bouffant and it can be said of men’s hair as well as women’s.
________________
Ken – April 9, 2005
ACCESS_POST_ACTIONS
(Cassell’s Dictionary of Slang, Oxford Dictionary of Slang, Oxford English Dictionary)<1913 “She looked at him repellently through her streaming tears. ‘BIG HAIR!’ she cried. ‘BIG HAIR!’”—‘Lahoma’ by J. B. Ellis, vii. page 73>
<1991 “I expressed my concern that I didn't want a power hairdo, that bouffant meringue known affectionately as BIG HAIR.”—‘Guardian,’ 13 May, page 34/5>
<1993 “BIG HAIR, make-up, shiny pink leotards with contrasting tights are out.”—‘Sunday Times’>
<2001 “Extremely BIG HAIR (watch out for the comeback of BIG HAIR) colored a flaming reddish gold.”—‘Vogue (U.S. editions), March, page 122/2>
________________
Ken – April 9, 2005
big grass (for tall grass)?
We have long grass over here, and when I was younger I had lots of fun I had in it I vaguely remember.
ACCESS_POST_ACTIONS
Signature: All those years gone to waist!
Bob in Wales
big grass (for tall grass)?
I recall the shag grass of the '70s. How much fun we had in it depended on the kind of company we were keeping.
ACCESS_POST_ACTIONS
Signature: -- Looking up a word? Try OneLook's metadictionary (--> definitions) and reverse dictionary (--> terms based on your definitions)8-- Contribute favourite diary entries, quotations and more here8 -- Find new postings easily with Active Topics8-- Want to research a word? Get essential tips from experienced researcher Ken Greenwald
big grass (for tall grass)?
.. we have a tourist attraction called the "Big Banana" .. and as the banana plant is a grass maybe he was talking about bananas ?? .. a longshot but you never know ..
WoZ of Aus 12/04/05
ACCESS_POST_ACTIONS
WoZ of Aus 12/04/05
Signature: "The question is," said Alice, "whether you can make words mean so many different things."
big grass (for tall grass)?
Hey Wiz, We’re trying to maintain our PG rating on this site, so watch your mouth! (<:)
__________________
Ken – April 11, 2005
ACCESS_POST_ACTIONS
__________________
Ken – April 11, 2005
big grass (for tall grass)?
Er... WoZ, the banana is a herb, not a grass, and belongs to a family of its own (Musaceae) that is different from the grasses (Graminaceae).
ACCESS_POST_ACTIONS
Signature: -- Looking up a word? Try OneLook's metadictionary (--> definitions) and reverse dictionary (--> terms based on your definitions)8-- Contribute favourite diary entries, quotations and more here8 -- Find new postings easily with Active Topics8-- Want to research a word? Get essential tips from experienced researcher Ken Greenwald
ACCESS_END_OF_TOPIC