DIALECT AND WORD MEANINGS

[Stanley]

In the US 'momentarily' means the same as us saying shortly. So the plane would take off shortly...... (or in a moment)

[David Whipp]

"greased the doorstep"?

[PanBiker]

I wondered about that too David.

I got the US / UK bit right though, Stanley concurs.

[Stanley]

I've just used the word 'puther' for an emission of black smoke from a chimney..... How common is that? Where does it come from?

[Whyperion]

I suppose a difference between USA English and UK English is they have tended to hold on to some words that used to be English English, but in UK have dropped out of common use and been replaced by alternatives, sometimes from inward migration into UK, other times those leaving for america hailed from a slightly different part of England where one word was more common than elsewhere.

[Stanley]

American 'English' and Quebecois 'French' have something in common. They both still employ 17th century usages because that was the version imported in the first place and developed from there in a different way than home grown English.

[Tizer]

Many of the US words that annoy British language sticklers when they see them used here were, like Whippy indicates, part of our daily speech when Brits first colonised America.

Keep an eye on Trump's use of words. He likes to talk about extraditing immigrants and expediting his new laws, but I think he sometimes gets them the wrong way around. On the radio I'm sure I heard him say that when businesses wanted to expand in the US he would extradite it. He said it twice. I hope he doesn't mix his words up when talking to Putin!

[Stanley]

Don't hold your breath......

[Whyperion]

Trumpland Media (bringing the past back to life by the minute) - The definition is 'Enhanced Interrogation Techniques' I'll let you supply the word

[Stanley]

We talk about 'scalding' water. Where does scalding originate? Sounds like Old Norse to me......

[Tizer]

Collins says its from Latin `excaldare', to wash in warm water.
I came across the word `seaxe' in an archaeology magazine and couldn't understand it from the context. It wasn't in my dictionaries but I found on the Web that it's a knife in the shape of a dagger or sword used by the Saxons and the word Saxon is derived from it.

[Tripps]

If you go into an Italian bathroom - one of the taps will be marked 'C' .
Take care - this means Caldo or Hot.

[Stanley]

We learn every day......

[Tizer]

I thought Caldo & Freddo were a firm of Italian plumbers!

[Tripps]

We've all come across examples, but I doubt many knew there was a word to describe it. I certainly didn't.

Ultracrepidarianism

[Stanley]

Nice one David! I like the connection with 'a cobbler should stick to his last'. I'd also make a link with my mother saying 'get on with your knitting' if you interfered in something that didn't concern you.....

[Cathy]

The phrase 'going around the bend' comes from a lot of Asylum's (for the so called insane) built in England, that had curved driveways leading thru treed grounds up to the Asylum.
This was so that
normal people wouldn't see what was happening and they would feel safe.
When approaching the Asylum people would say they were 'going round the bend'.

[Tizer]

And we usually think `barmy' comes from barm, yeast, which gets frothy, bubbly, excited. But a different view is that it came from Oakwood mental hospital located in a place called Barming. LINK

[Big Kev]

Being 'Botley' as a derogatory term Botley Park Hospital

[Stanley]

I hadn't realised that Cathy but it makes sense! in the Indian Army 'going Doolally Tap' was a reference to the large transit camp at Deolali in India which was often the route out of India back to Britain for anyone who was showing signs of mental stress. It became shorthand for 'barmy'.

[plaques]

A word that is creeping into regular use even in England :- Oligarchy. Mentioned in Aristotle's time from the ancient Greek. oligos = few + archia =rule. Back to the future?

[Stanley]

I think it came back into common usage as the ideal word to use as a description of the Russian Robber Barons.

[Tizer]

Another useful one is `oligopoly' used to describe dominance by a small group of powerful individuals or organisations. It first came into common use to describe the powerful position of the major supermarkets. Oligomer is a word used in chemistry to describe molecules in between monomers and the much longer polymers.

Talking of oligopolies and monopolies, you might have seen the news about Tesco wanting to buy the Booker Group. Booker has a number of small food retail chains such as Budgen which are competitors for Tesco Metro. I hope the Competition Authority takes a close look at the deal.

[plaques]

Another word which could be useful in Tizer's definitions is-
cabal (kəˈbæl)
n
1. (Government, Politics & Diplomacy) a small group of intriguers, esp one formed for political purposes
2. (Government, Politics & Diplomacy) a secret plot, esp a political one; conspiracy; intrigue
3. a secret or exclusive set of people; clique

We could then have a CABAL of oligopoly.

Come to think of it we have already got them.

[Stanley]

The result would be a cartel.