Language desk | ||
---|---|---|
< November 29 | << Oct | November | Dec >> | December 1 > |
Welcome to the Wikipedia Language Reference Desk Archives |
---|
The page you are currently viewing is an archive page. While you can leave answers for any questions shown below, please ask new questions on one of the current reference desk pages. |
How would the phrase "go to bed" translate into Hebrew? Mo-Al 04:14, 30 November 2006 (UTC)
Which are the closest of Romance languages? It seems to me, as if Romanian and French are more related, as are Spanish are Portuguese, with Italian being somewhere in the middle. What do you think? Vikramkr 04:56, 30 November 2006 (UTC)
Hello - We're looking for insult and swearwords in english that don't refer to anything religious or anything scatologic or to do with sex. It's hard. So far we've got "blast", "shoot" (adaptation from "shit"?) and we're not sure about "bloody ...". Thank you - Keria 08:49, 30 November 2006 (UTC)
"Cor lumme", though I've never actually heard anyone say that. "For Pete's sake". "Gordon Walters" and "Gordon Bennett". -- Dweller 09:39, 30 November 2006 (UTC)
I've always been a fan of "shucks," which looks like a portmanteau of two other swears but probably isn't. I can't find the etymology of the interjection, so it could conceivably be indirectly sexual (as in "shuck off your clothes and let's get busy!"), but it's a pretty safe bet. LWizard @ 10:47, 30 November 2006 (UTC)
"Gordon Bennett" is my personal favourite - I find myself using it regularly. From an English perspective, git (for an irritating/contemptible person) is a common one in the south [1]; Flamin' Nora! (or "Flaming Nora!") is an expression of amazement or (frustrated) surprise in the north - possibly a bit clichéd ... and here's one from my Mum ,who is originally from a rural part of Northern Ireland ( Waterfoot, County Antrim, for info): she has always used the term skitter (presumed spelling) as a very mild, somewhat jokey term for somebody who is being naughty or a "pain in the neck". I know that other relatives who still live there use the term as well. Incidentally, have any other Wikipedians familiar with Northern Ireland heard of the term? Hassocks5489 13:05, 30 November 2006 (UTC)
I wasn't sure about the insults part of the question. Anyone imaginative can come up with zillions of non sexual, non religious, non scatological insults. -- Dweller 13:09, 30 November 2006 (UTC)
The general name for the words the questioner is looking for is minced oath - Nunh-huh 17:01, 30 November 2006 (UTC)
what about "jings geordie!" or "help ma boab" - scots? probably invented by writers of dc thomsons "oor wullie" and "the broons"
The other day I noticed that although a sentence such as "Doesn't it seem quiet?" or "Shouldn't you be in school?" or "Couldn't you try harder?" sound perfectly fine, expanding the contraction makes "Does not it sound quiet?" or "Should not you be in school?" which sounds ungrammatical and disjointed, as if it is being said by Yoda. Is this sort of structure not allowed, or is it simply that people never say "Should not you...", so it sounds alien to my ears? La ï ka 11:49, 30 November 2006 (UTC)
I think the prob is that the "not" doesn't belong in those questions in the first place. They are perfectly fine, and simpler, as "Does it seem quiet ?" or "Should you be in school ?" or "Could you try harder ?". Or, if we like to get tied up with extraneous nots, why don't we write "Isn't it not untrue that it doesn't not seem unquiet ?". StuRat 06:36, 1 December 2006 (UTC)
"Does not it sound quiet?" - a little reordering to "Does it not sound quiet?" "Should not you be in school?" - "Should you not be in school?" -- both medieval-sounding renditions of the same phrase. Theavatar3 01:51, 3 December 2006 (UTC)
Mate of mine has the surname Bibby, and is unsure of where it may come from, or what it may mean. I know -by is Nordic (I hope I've got that bit right at least, hah!). Any ideas on "Bib" ? doktorb words deeds 14:09, 30 November 2006 (UTC)
There's a track on the most recent album by Whitehouse with the above title. It looks/sounds to me like a phrase from some African language like Swahili. However, googling the phrase doesn't return anything except references to the track. Does anyone know what the phrase means, if anything? -- Richardrj talk email 15:41, 30 November 2006 (UTC)
Both seem to be in use, but is one preferred to the other? Does it have to do where in the world you live? Thanks. — Bromskloss 16:34, 30 November 2006 (UTC)
what's this mean in English: "喂,你在做什么?" ?
Are there any universal trends for syllable stress or pitch accents or tones? There are many langauges that stress the first syllable, many htat stress the penultimate, many that stress the last. If somebody were to devise the ultimate "neutral" or "most universal" language, which stress or pitch or tone pattern would be easiest and most natural to use for the broadest amount of humans?-- Sonjaaa 22:46, 30 November 2006 (UTC)
Note that these things vary even from British English to US English. StuRat 06:24, 1 December 2006 (UTC)
Language desk | ||
---|---|---|
< November 29 | << Oct | November | Dec >> | December 1 > |
Welcome to the Wikipedia Language Reference Desk Archives |
---|
The page you are currently viewing is an archive page. While you can leave answers for any questions shown below, please ask new questions on one of the current reference desk pages. |
How would the phrase "go to bed" translate into Hebrew? Mo-Al 04:14, 30 November 2006 (UTC)
Which are the closest of Romance languages? It seems to me, as if Romanian and French are more related, as are Spanish are Portuguese, with Italian being somewhere in the middle. What do you think? Vikramkr 04:56, 30 November 2006 (UTC)
Hello - We're looking for insult and swearwords in english that don't refer to anything religious or anything scatologic or to do with sex. It's hard. So far we've got "blast", "shoot" (adaptation from "shit"?) and we're not sure about "bloody ...". Thank you - Keria 08:49, 30 November 2006 (UTC)
"Cor lumme", though I've never actually heard anyone say that. "For Pete's sake". "Gordon Walters" and "Gordon Bennett". -- Dweller 09:39, 30 November 2006 (UTC)
I've always been a fan of "shucks," which looks like a portmanteau of two other swears but probably isn't. I can't find the etymology of the interjection, so it could conceivably be indirectly sexual (as in "shuck off your clothes and let's get busy!"), but it's a pretty safe bet. LWizard @ 10:47, 30 November 2006 (UTC)
"Gordon Bennett" is my personal favourite - I find myself using it regularly. From an English perspective, git (for an irritating/contemptible person) is a common one in the south [1]; Flamin' Nora! (or "Flaming Nora!") is an expression of amazement or (frustrated) surprise in the north - possibly a bit clichéd ... and here's one from my Mum ,who is originally from a rural part of Northern Ireland ( Waterfoot, County Antrim, for info): she has always used the term skitter (presumed spelling) as a very mild, somewhat jokey term for somebody who is being naughty or a "pain in the neck". I know that other relatives who still live there use the term as well. Incidentally, have any other Wikipedians familiar with Northern Ireland heard of the term? Hassocks5489 13:05, 30 November 2006 (UTC)
I wasn't sure about the insults part of the question. Anyone imaginative can come up with zillions of non sexual, non religious, non scatological insults. -- Dweller 13:09, 30 November 2006 (UTC)
The general name for the words the questioner is looking for is minced oath - Nunh-huh 17:01, 30 November 2006 (UTC)
what about "jings geordie!" or "help ma boab" - scots? probably invented by writers of dc thomsons "oor wullie" and "the broons"
The other day I noticed that although a sentence such as "Doesn't it seem quiet?" or "Shouldn't you be in school?" or "Couldn't you try harder?" sound perfectly fine, expanding the contraction makes "Does not it sound quiet?" or "Should not you be in school?" which sounds ungrammatical and disjointed, as if it is being said by Yoda. Is this sort of structure not allowed, or is it simply that people never say "Should not you...", so it sounds alien to my ears? La ï ka 11:49, 30 November 2006 (UTC)
I think the prob is that the "not" doesn't belong in those questions in the first place. They are perfectly fine, and simpler, as "Does it seem quiet ?" or "Should you be in school ?" or "Could you try harder ?". Or, if we like to get tied up with extraneous nots, why don't we write "Isn't it not untrue that it doesn't not seem unquiet ?". StuRat 06:36, 1 December 2006 (UTC)
"Does not it sound quiet?" - a little reordering to "Does it not sound quiet?" "Should not you be in school?" - "Should you not be in school?" -- both medieval-sounding renditions of the same phrase. Theavatar3 01:51, 3 December 2006 (UTC)
Mate of mine has the surname Bibby, and is unsure of where it may come from, or what it may mean. I know -by is Nordic (I hope I've got that bit right at least, hah!). Any ideas on "Bib" ? doktorb words deeds 14:09, 30 November 2006 (UTC)
There's a track on the most recent album by Whitehouse with the above title. It looks/sounds to me like a phrase from some African language like Swahili. However, googling the phrase doesn't return anything except references to the track. Does anyone know what the phrase means, if anything? -- Richardrj talk email 15:41, 30 November 2006 (UTC)
Both seem to be in use, but is one preferred to the other? Does it have to do where in the world you live? Thanks. — Bromskloss 16:34, 30 November 2006 (UTC)
what's this mean in English: "喂,你在做什么?" ?
Are there any universal trends for syllable stress or pitch accents or tones? There are many langauges that stress the first syllable, many htat stress the penultimate, many that stress the last. If somebody were to devise the ultimate "neutral" or "most universal" language, which stress or pitch or tone pattern would be easiest and most natural to use for the broadest amount of humans?-- Sonjaaa 22:46, 30 November 2006 (UTC)
Note that these things vary even from British English to US English. StuRat 06:24, 1 December 2006 (UTC)