Pedants' Paradise

[Pulcinella]

Circle v cycle: I had assumed that the 'confusion' might have come from the possible US pronunciation of both as soy-cul.

[Pabmusic]

These days predictive text is adding to the existing stock of misheard misunderstandings(or ignorance coupled with lack of interest or curiosity). Two recent ones I came across in the local paper were 'irradiated' for 'eradicated' and 'exasperate' for 'exacerbate'. The latter was a journalist some months ago and it seems to have been adopted into the paper's lexicon, as it has subsequently appeared on several occasions.

I can easily believe that. I hate predictive text with a bottomless profundity.

[Pabmusic]

Inspired by the conversations recently about 'vicious circle' -v- 'vicious cycle', I dug out some references to genuine mistakes that have been preserved within the language. Perhaps the best known is the word 'dord', mistakenly included in Merriam's New International Dictionary (1934) as a synonym for 'density'. In fact it was a misreading of a note - "D or d, cont./density" - meant to tell the editor to add "density" to the list of abbreviations represented by D or d.

One of the ones that truly entered the language, though, was 'helpmeet'. It is found in Genesis 2:18 in the Authorised Version (King James Version): “It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him.” The last five words mean "a helper suitable for him", but we don't use 'meet' any more, so people eventually became confused and started using 'helpmeet' as one word, meaning a type of helper. Even that was a bit confusing, so 'helpmate' arose, which makes a kind of sense. But it's all from a misunderstanding.

More common still are singular nouns (usually from French) that once ended with -s, but that have lost the -s to create an artificial singular, because people assumed the -s form was a plural. For instance, 'pea' from 'pease' (pudding hot, pease pudding cold, etc.); or 'cherry' from 'cherries' (Fr. cérise). Similarly, a host of words have lost an 'n' at the beginning, the user transferring it to the indefinite article. 'A narang or norange' became 'an orange'; 'a nuncle' became 'an uncle'. Sometimes it went the other way. One I particularly like is 'a nickname', which was 'an eke-name' ('an also-name').

Then there are idiomatic expressions, such as 'a forlorn hope'. It's really a misunderstanding of the Dutch veloren hoop - 'lost troop'. It means the soldiers you send first into the attack, and who will bear the brunt of the enemy fire. (Clearly, it's from the 17th century Dutch wars - British soldiers heard it and did their own thing with it.)

Quite common are words that have been mistakenly corrected. 'Frontispiece' is one. It originally appears in English as 'frontispice' - the facade on a building, from frontispicium. 'Foremost' is actually from the Old English superlative of 'first' - formest - and thus meant 'first-est'.

Then there are those many English words deliberately altered (especially in America) because they sounded rude. 'Titbit' to 'tidbit', for instance, or 'abrecock/apricock' to 'apricot'. Sometimes new words were coined to avoid older ones - 'ass' became 'donkey' (formed by analogy with 'monkey' - and pronounced similarly at first).

[kernelbogey]

Lovely post, Pabs thank you.

I have noticed the now common use of 'in one fell swoop' to mean something like 'in one quick move', when of course Shakespeare meant something quite different by his use of 'fell' in Macbeth.

[ardcarp]

Inspired by the conversations recently about 'vicious circle' -v- 'vicious cycle', I dug out some references to genuine mistakes that have been preserved within the language. Perhaps the best known is the word 'dord', mistakenly included in Merriam's New International Dictionary (1934) as a synonym for 'density'. In fact it was a misreading of a note - "D or d, cont./density" - meant to tell the editor to add "density" to the list of abbreviations represented by D or d.

One of the ones that truly entered the language, though, was 'helpmeet'. It is found in Genesis 2:18 in the Authorised Version (King James Version): “It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him.” The last five words mean "a helper suitable for him", but we don't use 'meet' any more, so people eventually became confused and started using 'helpmeet' as one word, meaning a type of helper. Even that was a bit confusing, so 'helpmate' arose, which makes a kind of sense. But it's all from a misunderstanding.

More common still are singular nouns (usually from French) that once ended with -s, but that have lost the -s to create an artificial singular, because people assumed the -s form was a plural. For instance, 'pea' from 'pease' (pudding hot, pease pudding cold, etc.); or 'cherry' from 'cherries' (Fr. cérise). Similarly, a host of words have lost an 'n' at the beginning, the user transferring it to the indefinite article. 'A narang or norange' became 'an orange'; 'a nuncle' became 'an uncle'. Sometimes it went the other way. One I particularly like is 'a nickname', which was 'an eke-name' ('an also-name'). Then there are idiomatic expressions, such as 'a forlorn hope'. It's really a misunderstanding of the Dutch veloren hoop - 'lost troop'. It means the soldiers you send first into the attack, and who will bear the brunt of the enemy fire. (Clearly, it's from the 17th century Dutch wars - British soldiers heard it and did their own thing with it.)

Quite common are words that have been mistakenly corrected. 'Frontispiece' is one. It originally appears in English as 'frontispice' - the facade on a building, from frontispicium. 'Foremost' is actually from the Old English superlative of 'first' - formest - and thus meant 'first-est'.

Then there are those many English words deliberately altered (especially in America) because they sounded rude. 'Titbit' to 'tidbit', for instance, or 'abrecock/apricock' to 'apricot'. Sometimes new words were coined to avoid older ones - 'ass' became 'donkey' (formed by analogy with 'monkey' - and pronounced similarly at first).

Thanks Pabs, that's fascinating!

Talking of spell checkers (I hate the b****y things) I had a message from a musician who was coming to visit, and he wrote 'Looking forward to practising on your Stairway grand'.

[LMcD]

The majority of people discussing Br*x*t seem to believe that we've reached an OMPASS.
And there seemed to be some confusion, within last night's BBC1 10 o'clock news, as to whether the devastated East African port is BEARRUH or BUYRUH.

[kernelbogey]

Thanks Pabs, that's fascinating!

Talking of spell checkers (I hate the b****y things) I had a message from a musician who was coming to visit, and he wrote 'Looking forward to practising on your Stairway grand'.

With respect, this kind of error is not the problem of the machine spell-checker: it's that people don't read their texts before sending.

[oddoneout]

With respect, this kind of error is not the problem of the machine spell-checker: it's that people don't read their texts before sending.

Or if they do don't realise there's a mistake. That I think is the problem with predictive text; if the word someone is seeking is not one they understand properly in the first place then so long as what appears looks close enough to what they might say aloud, then it will be used.
At this point I should acknowledge those who genuinely struggle with words because of such conditions as dyslexia.

[kernelbogey]

I have noticed the now common use of 'in one fell swoop' to mean something like 'in one quick move', when of course Shakespeare meant something quite different by his use of 'fell' in Macbeth.

It seems I may be mistaken here. OED (which for some reason I couldn't access earlier) defines under swoop meaning 3
b. at one (fell, etc.) swoop, at one sudden descent, as of a bird of prey; hence, at a single blow or stroke..

I had thought here fell meant deadly as in fell meaning 4b
(b) Of an incident, portion of time, etc.: dreadful, terrible; characterized by death.

So wondering if OED ignored that more obvious glossing in favour of the modern usage. (MacDuff is likely to be saying it was a deadly swoop.)

[Bryn]

It seems I may be mistaken here. OED (which for some reason I couldn't access earlier) defines under swoop meaning 3
b. at one (fell, etc.) swoop, at one sudden descent, as of a bird of prey; hence, at a single blow or stroke..

I had thought here fell meant deadly as in fell meaning 4b
(b) Of an incident, portion of time, etc.: dreadful, terrible; characterized by death.

So wondering if OED ignored that more obvious glossing in favour of the modern usage. (MacDuff is likely to be saying it was a deadly swoop.)

But surely, a bird of prey would stoop, not swoop? My money would be on old Bill (not 'the old Bill').

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

"Fell" here as with the same origin as "felon". (And the bird of prey reference carries on the imagery from MacDuff's "hell-kite" a few words earlier - the bird swooping [old form of "sweeping"/]/plummeting down.)

[Pabmusic]

"Fell" here as with the same origin as "felon". (And the bird of prey reference carries on the imagery from MacDuff's "hell-kite" a few words earlier - the bird swooping [old form of "sweeping"/]/plummeting down.)

I do not like thee, Doctor Fell,
The reason why – I cannot tell;
But this I know, and know full well,
I do not like thee, Doctor Fell.

Tom Brown (1680)

Wikipedia is wonderful here! -

"From Middle English fel, fell (“strong, fierce, terrible, cruel, angry”), from Old English *fel, *felo, *fæle (“cruel, savage, fierce”) (only in compounds, wælfel (“bloodthirsty”), ealfelo (“evil, baleful”), ælfæle (“very dire”), etc.), from Proto-Germanic *faluz (“wicked, cruel, terrifying”), from Proto-Indo-European *pol- (“to pour, flow, swim, fly”). Cognate with Old Frisian fal (“cruel”), Middle Dutch fel (“wrathful, cruel, bad, base”), German Low German fell (“rash, swift”), Danish fæl (“disgusting, hideous, ghastly, grim”), Middle High German vālant (“imp”). See felon."

So you're right, Ferney.

[I like especially ælfæle = very dire.

Clearly an Anglo-Saxon warrior type - Ælfæle. Very dire! Of course, that could mean he was crap, but that's probably a modern usage.]

[DracoM]

And the 'fells' I live on can sometimes be ALL of those and plus, plus!

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

I do not like thee, Doctor Fell,
The reason why – I cannot tell;
But this I know, and know full well,
I do not like thee, Doctor Fell.

Tom Brown (1680)

Which always reminds me of Spike Milligan's

Dr Bell fell down a well
And broke his collar-bone.
The silly man should tend the sick
And leave the well alone.

Clearly an Anglo-Saxon warrior type - Ælfæle. Very dire! Of course, that could mean he was crap, but that's probably a modern usage.]

He was, nonetheless quite a popular figure - the origin of the phrase "Ooh, you are Ælfæle; but I like you" (which became corrupted over the centuries).

[vinteuil]

And the 'fells' I live on can sometimes be ALL of those and plus, plus!

... 'fells' are one of the few things you can mong - along with fish, cheese, and iron. Not Draco's kind of fells, of course...


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