[Ads-l] "Bullshit" ca1879

[Ben Zimmer]

I've summarized my findings (with a tip of the hat to JL) on the Strong
Language blog:

https://stronglang.wordpress.com/2017/08/17/the-curious-case-of-bull-shit-jack/

--bgz

On Thu, Aug 17, 2017 at 6:29 PM, Jonathan Lighter <wuxxmupp2000 at gmail.com>
wrote:

> Great work, Ben.
>
> And we see 1879 exx. of "B.S." as well.  Cf. spoken "G.D.," "S.O.B.,"
> "M.F." (And obsolete "D.F." 'damned fool.')
>
> If "bull shit" had been a neologism, I'd expect the typesetters to have
> employed "Bull S---" rather than letter-expurgating both words, printable
> "bull" being contaminated by unprintable "shit."
>
> JL
>
> On Thu, Aug 17, 2017 at 4:10 PM, Shapiro, Fred <fred.shapiro at yale.edu>
> wrote:
>
> > So much for the idea that T. S. Eliot was the coiner of the word
> > "bullshit" ...
> >
>

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