"troll" and other words with two mommies?

W Brewer brewerwa at GMAIL.COM
Sat Oct 5 09:21:03 UTC 2013


GN: <<How many other words ... that have two (or more?) distinct etyma
simultaneously present to speakers, each of which actively influences its
meaning. >>
WB: For a punster, more than for a non-punster. Formal similarity induces
semantic association to varying degrees in different people.

ass 'donkey, fool' (Latin asinus) <= ass 'buttocks' (Old English ears).
duct tape <= duck tape.
cache 'stash' [cash, cash-SHAY] <= cachet [cash-SHAY].

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