LL-L: "Special expressions" LOWLANDS-L, 25.MAY.2000 (01) [E]

[Lowlands-L]

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From: john feather [johnfeather at sceptic1.freeserve.co.uk]
Subject: Special expressions

Ron

You obviously haven't watched enough bad "B" movies. It's croak or be
croaked all the time in them.

The following observation was triggered by the discussion on Morphophonology
but it's really about meaning.

I am uncomfortable with the modern phrase "to grow a business". I prefer "to
make a business grow". "Grow" is both transitive and intransitive but it
seems to me that in its traditional transitive use it does not have the
sense of "make bigger". This contrasts with the intransitive use. Of course,
one can say "He grew a foot" which is nominally transitive but actually
intransitive (unless he's a lizard) because "a foot" has adverbial force.

Does anybody know how widespread the pronunciation "growen" for "grown" is?
Any ideas about regions or sociolects? The only examples I can immediately
bring to mind are upper-middle-class British English.

John Feather johnfeather at sceptic1.freeserve.co.uk

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From: Andries Onsman [A.Onsman at utas.edu.au]
Subject: LL-L: "Special expressions" LOWLANDS-L, 24.MAY.2000 (01) [E]

Subject: Aussie slang
In reply to Tom and Reinard

To cark it is also pretty common down in Tasmania. I had always assumed it
was short for carcass.

Andries Onsman

Dr Andrys Onsman
Riawunna
Centre for Aboriginal Education
University of Tasmania

Phone           + 61.3.6226 2539
Fax             + 61.3.62262575
E-mail          A.Onsman at utas.edu.au
Website http://www.utas.edu.au/docs/riawunna/RiawunnaWebPages/Andries.html

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From: Kent Randau [kentr at tripnet.se]
Subject: LL-L: "Special expressions" LOWLANDS-L, 24.MAY.2000 (01) [E]

>From: Thomas [t.mcrae at uq.net.au]
>Subject: Aussie Slang
>
>A slang word for dying here in Queensland is 'cark' something I've never
>come across in the British Isles and I served with soldiers from all over
>the country and listened to their dialects. I'm currently re-reading 'Sir
>Gawain and the Green Knight' after many years and was surprised to find that
>The Knight '...gave a great hacking cough. Carked his throat clear.....'.
>It's obviously onamatopoeic and in the Oz sense refers to the final noise
>made by some dying people. Problem is how come it's here but I never came
>across it in U.K. ? I suspect it's Scandanavian in origin and it was
>obviously used in Anglo-Saxon, any comments?

"Harkla" is the Swedish word for clearing ones throat (and the sound
that comes with that activity). Maybe it is the same word that has
undergone slight mutation?

Kent Randau
Mölndal, Sweden

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From: Ian James Parsley [parsley at highbury.fsnet.co.uk]
Subject: "Special expressions" LOWLANDS-L, 24.MAY.2000 (01) [E]

Tom,

I must say I wonder what was wrong with those British soldiers (!) - 'cark
it' is a very common slang term in England meaning 'die' (as in 'the old
bloke carked it last week'), and although I've an idea it's more common in
the north of England than the south, it's certainly used by the younger
generation even today. It is not, however, found in Northern Ireland to my
knowledge. I suppose it is not impossible that it has been re-established in
England via Australian soap operas, but that would be unusual (the English
would have plenty of uses for 'larrikin' but never adopted it!!)

Best,
-------------------------------
Ian James Parsley
http://www.gcty.com/parsleyij
0772 0951736
"JOY - Jesus, Others, You"

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