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Discussion Groups / English Usage / January 2010Capitonym
Copied from a mailing list: Word of the day capitonym (KAP-i-toh-NIM) noun A word that changes pronunciation and meaning when it is capitalized. Usage As in the following poems: In August, an august patriarch/ Was reading an ad in Reading, Mass. Long-suffering Job secured a job/ To polish piles of Polish brass. An herb store owner, name of Herb, Moved to a rainier Mount Rainier. It would have been so nice in Nice, And even tangier in Tangier.  SignaturePeter Moylan, Newcastle, NSW, Australia. http://www.pmoylan.org For an e-mail address, see my web page. > Copied from a mailing list: > > Word of the day capitonym (KAP-i-toh-NIM) Purists will object to the combination of Latin and Greek elements. What's wrong with plain old "cephalonym"? > noun A word that changes pronunciation and meaning when it is > capitalized. [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] > An herb store owner, name of Herb, Moved to a rainier Mount Rainier. > It would have been so nice in Nice, And even tangier in Tangier. Are there any more examples? It's a tour de force to be able to make a poem of them (even if the Herb example doesn't count in the UK). SignatureJames > > Copied from a mailing list: > [quoted text clipped - 16 lines] > Are there any more examples? It's a tour de force to be able to make a > poem of them (even if the Herb example doesn't count in the UK). Lima and lima bean. Basil and basil, for many of us Americans (/'b&z@l/ and /'beIz@l/ respectively). Goes very nicely with "herb". Ion (a Polish name) and ion. John Estill (where is he now?) once posted here about his son, Ton. Post 58 at http://groups.google.com/group/uk.culture.language.english/browse_frm/thread/5bd bcecb6d101c2a/f4f144a80cd49970 or <http://preview.tinyurl.com/ybl8wuf>. My first guess for the pronunciation wouldn't be "ton". (John's wife is Mexican, which may have something to do with their son's name, and I know him more from the glory days of alt.usage.spanish.) -- Jerry Friedman >> Copied from a mailing list: >> [quoted text clipped - 16 lines] >Are there any more examples? It's a tour de force to be able to make a >poem of them (even if the Herb example doesn't count in the UK). The Liver Bird had liver for tea After the death of Mr Death (but that may not count, as the difference in pronunciation isn't invariable. I was intending to work Onions in too, but the same caveat applies.) SignatureKaty Jennison spamtrap: remove the first two letters after the @ > Copied from a mailing list: > [quoted text clipped - 12 lines] > An herb store owner, name of Herb, Moved to a rainier Mount Rainier. > It would have been so nice in Nice, And even tangier in Tangier. Cute. I say "august" and "August" the same way, and I believe most of our Friends Across The Water say "herb" and "Herb" the same way. Maybe even our Friends To The North. -- Jerry Friedman [...] > I say "august" and "August" the same way, Really? I say "august" with the stress on the second syllable and "August" with the stress on the first. SignatureLes (BrE) >[...] > >> I say "august" and "August" the same way, > >Really? I say "august" with the stress on the second syllable and "August" >with the stress on the first. Ditto. SignatureTony Cooper - Orlando, Florida > >[...] > [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > > Ditto. Your pronunciation of "august" is the first one in M-W and the only one in the NSOED. Mine (accent on the first syllable) is the second in M-W. I don't know where I picked it up. -- Jerry Friedman El Thu, 14 Jan 2010 14:30:32 -0800, Jerry Friedman escribió: >> Copied from a mailing list: >> An herb store owner, name of Herb, Moved to a rainier Mount Rainier. It >> would have been so nice in Nice, And even tangier in Tangier. > and I believe most of our > Friends Across The Water say "herb" and "Herb" the same way. Maybe even > our Friends To The North. I don't understand. How can herb be pronounced any other way? Unless the "an" is a clue ie; the h is dropped. SignaturePablo > El Thu, 14 Jan 2010 14:30:32 -0800, Jerry Friedman escribió: > [quoted text clipped - 9 lines] > I don't understand. How can herb be pronounced any other way? Unless > the "an" is a clue ie; the h is dropped. In Britain, speakers of the standard language say "a herb". There are people who say "an erb", but the same people would also say "give me an elping and". SignatureJames > > El Thu, 14 Jan 2010 14:30:32 -0800, Jerry Friedman escribió: > [quoted text clipped - 13 lines] > people who say "an erb", but the same people would also say "give me > an elping and". Whereas here in America, just about everyone says "an erb". The "an" was indeed a clue that the poem is written in American English. (I believe there's one other word with an initial "h" that us guys drop and you lot pronounce: "homage".) -- Jerry Friedman >Whereas here in America, just about everyone says "an erb". The "an" >was indeed a clue that the poem is written in American English. > >(I believe there's one other word with an initial "h" that us guys >drop and you lot pronounce: "homage".) It's true that I usually pronounce it "hommidge", but there's a luvvie tendency in the UK these days which goes with "ommahj". SignatureKaty Jennison spamtrap: remove the first two letters after the @ >> Whereas here in America, just about everyone says "an erb". The "an" >> was indeed a clue that the poem is written in American English. [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > It's true that I usually pronounce it "hommidge", but there's a luvvie > tendency in the UK these days which goes with "ommahj". I have two pronunciations for "homage": the "reverence" one is Angled, and the "artistic tribute" one Frogged. SignatureMike. [...] > I say "august" and "August" the same way, I also say "may" and "May" / the same way >[...] > >> I say "august" and "August" the same way, > >I also say "may" and "May" / the same way As long as you don't forget the roux in February, you're doing fine. SignatureRegards, Chuck Riggs, An American who lives near Dublin, Ireland and usually spells in BrE > Copied from a mailing list: > [quoted text clipped - 12 lines] > An herb store owner, name of Herb, Moved to a rainier Mount Rainier. > It would have been so nice in Nice, And even tangier in Tangier. Both available at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capitonym where the definition is words that change pronunciation *or* meaning. Outside a Mousehole mousehole sat a patient Cornish kitty Its owner's natal celebrations were the talk of Natal city. SignatureJohn Dean Oxford Peter Moylan: > Copied from a mailing list: > [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > noun > A word that changes pronunciation and meaning when it is capitalized. I disagree. Only the meaning must change. SignatureMark Brader, Toronto | "Every new technology carries with it an opportunity msb@vex.net | to invent a new crime" -- Laurence A. Urgenson > Peter Moylan: >> Copied from a mailing list: [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] > > I disagree. Only the meaning must change. That makes it too easy. The possibilities are endless: jersey, welsh, manx, monty, italic, greek, arabic, roman, may, march... Signatureathel > > Peter Moylan: > >> Copied from a mailing list: [quoted text clipped - 9 lines] > That makes it too easy. The possibilities are endless: jersey, welsh, > manx, Why leave out scot, scotch, english, and irish? (As for the last, maybe because it's un-PC and deservedly obsolescent, as far as I know.) And guernsey and wight? Even if you limit it by requiring that the meanings be etymologically unrelated, the game might be too easy. On the other hand, no law says categories of words have to have so few members that it's fun to list them. > monty, italic, greek, arabic, roman, may, march... -- Jerry Friedman >>> Peter Moylan: >>>> Copied from a mailing list: [quoted text clipped - 11 lines] > > Why leave out scot, scotch, I thought I had that, but you're right, I didn't have it. However, the list wasn't intended to be exhaustive; indeed, that was the point. > english, and irish? Don't know these two! > (As for the last, > maybe because it's un-PC and deservedly obsolescent, as far as I > know. As with jew, which I left out intentionally > ) And guernsey and wight? much less used than jersey, I think > Even if you limit it by requiring that the meanings be etymologically > unrelated, the game might be too easy. On the other hand, no law says > categories of words have to have so few members that it's fun to list > them. > >> monty, italic, greek, arabic, roman, may, march... Signatureathel Athel Cornish-Bowden filted: >> english, and irish? > >Don't know these two! With a small "e", "english" means "spin put on a billiard ball so that it rolls in a curved path".... The only other meaning I have for lowercase "irish" is "to put whiskey into a cup of coffee"....r SignatureA pessimist sees the glass as half empty. An optometrist asks whether you see the glass more full like this?...or like this? > Athel Cornish-Bowden filted: > [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > With a small "e", "english" means "spin put on a billiard ball so that it rolls > in a curved path".... Normal english results in an essentially straight path, but changes the angle that the cue ball bounces off walls and/or object balls-- it's primarily used to affect the positioning of the cue ball for the next shot. It can also "throw" the object ball slightly, an effect sometimes used when executing thin cut shots. English properly refers to sidespin; follow and draw (topspin and backspin) are sometimes loosely grouped as english, though strictly speaking I believe that's incorrect. Extreme spin can result in a curved path, but that's generally called "massé" (that's "masse" with an acute accent over the e). Massé shots are normally achieved by hitting with extreme draw as well as english, putting a significant curve into the ball's path. Strict sidespin english wouldn't cause a curved path, since the axis of rotation would be the point of the ball in contact with the table, but that's impossible to achieve in practice because friction with the table surface naturally causes some follow (increasing as the ball continues its motion across the felt). >> With a small "e", "english" means "spin put on a billiard ball so >> that it rolls in a curved path".... [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > next shot. It can also "throw" the object ball slightly, an effect > sometimes used when executing thin cut shots. I agree. > English properly refers to sidespin; follow and draw (topspin and > backspin) are sometimes loosely grouped as english, though strictly > speaking I believe that's incorrect. That is my belief also. > Extreme spin can result in a curved path, but that's generally called > "massé" (that's "masse" with an acute accent over the e). Massé shots > are normally achieved by hitting with extreme draw as well as english, > putting a significant curve into the ball's path. I have done massé by hitting almost straight down, but to the side and back of the cue ball. That makes it possible to go around an opponent's ball instead of jumping it. It is a very risky shot, but when it works, as it did for me *once*, it is spectacular. My opponent successfully hid the cue ball fairly closely behind one of his balls, preventing me from taking a good shot at the eight ball, thus almost ensuring his win (if I scratched). I calmly called the shot and went around his ball, cutting the eight ball in the corner pocket for the win. I couldn't believe it had worked. My opponent didn't want to play any more, accusing me of being a pro and a hustler. > Strict sidespin english wouldn't cause a curved path, since the axis > of rotation would be the point of the ball in contact with the table, > but that's impossible to achieve in practice because friction with the > table surface naturally causes some follow (increasing as the ball > continues its motion across the felt). SignatureSkitt (AmE) > My opponent didn't want to play any more, > accusing me of being a pro and a hustler. Nobody has ever suggested anything like about my pool play [sob]. SignatureRob Bannister > sjdevn...@yahoo.com wrote: ... > > Extreme spin can result in a curved path, but that's generally called > > "massé" (that's "masse" with an acute accent over the e). Massé shots [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > of the cue ball. That makes it possible to go around an opponent's ball > instead of jumping it. [snip impressive pool story] That's exactly what I thought "massé" meant. I believe many pool halls ban it, maybe because of the risk of damaging the table. -- Jerry Friedman > sjdevn...@yahoo.com wrote: > >> With a small "e", "english" means "spin put on a billiard ball so [quoted text clipped - 21 lines] > I have done massé by hitting almost straight down, but to the side and back > of the cue ball. Yep, that's the standard technique for putting extreme draw and english on the cue ball. This video has a number of incredible massé shots; I'm partial to the one at the 1:43 mark: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-0ly8Ee_7jM This one has some good slow motion showing the spin involved. It also has tips on how to practice massé shots without tearing up your table's felt: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K2zgn4wK6yI&NR=1 >> english, and irish? > > Don't know these two! I know english and welsh. Scotch is, azulno, borderline. SignaturePeter Moylan, Newcastle, NSW, Australia. http://www.pmoylan.org For an e-mail address, see my web page. > >> english, and irish? > > > Don't know these two! > > I know english and welsh. Scotch is, azulno, borderline. I had to look "azulno" up in one of your posts. Anyway, I was thinking of the verb "scotch". -- Jerry Friedman > >>> Peter Moylan: > >>>> Copied from a mailing list: [quoted text clipped - 18 lines] > > Don't know these two! I was thinking of "Temper, passion", as the NSOED defines "Irish". However, the few examples I found at GB all capitalize it, so it doesn't count. > > (As for the last, > > maybe because it's un-PC and deservedly obsolescent, as far as I > > know. > > As with jew, which I left out intentionally Funny, I didn't mention it either. I think it's worse than "one's Irish", as there's a well-known university in America whose teams are called the Fighting Irish, but no team is called the Chiseling Jews. > > ) And guernsey and wight? > > much less used than jersey, I think Yes, although "wight" is well known in circles you may not travel in-- Tolkien fans and FRPG players. (And the odd Hardy fan, etc.) -- Jerry Friedman >> On 2010-01-15 16:02:36 +0100, Jerry Friedman <jerry_fried...@yahoo.com> s > aid: [ ... ] >>> ) And guernsey and wight? >> >> much less used than jersey, I think > > Yes, although "wight" is well known in circles you may not travel in-- > Tolkien fans and FRPG players. (And the odd Hardy fan, etc.) I vaguely remember it from Hardy. Tolkien I've never read, and as for FRPG I don't knowwhat it is, though doubtless Google could tell me. Signatureathel On Jan 15, 11:35 pm, Athel Cornish-Bowden <acorn...@ibsm.cnrs-mrs.fr> wrote: > >> On 2010-01-15 16:02:36 +0100, Jerry Friedman <jerry_fried...@yahoo.com> s > > aid: [quoted text clipped - 10 lines] > I vaguely remember it from Hardy. Tolkien I've never read, and as for > FRPG I don't knowwhat it is, though doubtless Google could tell me. It would come up with something like "fantasy role-playing game, such as Dungeons and Dragons (TM)". -- Jerry Friedman Peter Moylan set the following eddies spiralling through the space-time continuum: > Copied from a mailing list: > [quoted text clipped - 12 lines] > An herb store owner, name of Herb, Moved to a rainier Mount Rainier. > It would have been so nice in Nice, And even tangier in Tangier. If he came to England and lived in the Manchester area, he could make a living making a sale in Sale, perhaps selling old ham in Oldham or putting a bolt on the door in Bolton, And when he died they could bury him in Bury. Signatureξ:) Proud to be curly Interchange the alphabetic letter groups to reply > Peter Moylan set the following eddies spiralling through the > space-time continuum: [quoted text clipped - 19 lines] > putting a bolt on the door in Bolton, And when he died they could > bury him in Bury. If he went to Austria he could do as many English-speaking tourists do: visit the village of f.cking. SignatureJames >> Peter Moylan set the following eddies spiralling through the >> space-time continuum: [quoted text clipped - 22 lines] > If he went to Austria he could do as many English-speaking tourists do: > visit the village of f.cking. Damn. That reminds me that I was going to offer the French town of Condom as an example, but I forgot. Signatureathel James Hogg set the following eddies spiralling through the space-time continuum: >> Peter Moylan set the following eddies spiralling through the >> space-time continuum: [quoted text clipped - 22 lines] > If he went to Austria he could do as many English-speaking tourists do: > visit the village of f.cking. If you go to Norway in wintertime you can see Hell frozen over. Signatureξ:) Proud to be curly Interchange the alphabetic letter groups to reply > James Hogg set the following eddies spiralling through the space-time > continuum: [quoted text clipped - 27 lines] > > If you go to Norway in wintertime you can see Hell frozen over. Yes, I've been to Hell and back. Unfortunately the passport-stamp booth was closed. SignatureRay UK |
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