sam s lokotok, a nos s korobok

[Loren Billings]

On Sun, May 8, 2011 at 23:51, Robert Chandler <kcf19 at dial.pipex.com> wrote:
> Вот родился у нас отец, сам с локоток, а нос с коробок.
>
> I understand the lokotok as a measure of length (a cubit, I think).  But what is the point of the korobok?  Is it that his nose is square?  That it is large (in spite of the diminutive ending!)?

###The use of _s_ + accusative case is a matter of approximate
measure. If three-dimensional, then it's volume--not shape. My
dissertation, _Approximation in Russian and the single-word
constraint_ (Princeton 1995, Ann Arbor: UMI 1996, also available on
line at <roa.rutgers.edu>) discusses this construction extensively.
--Loren Billings

> I do realize that sound here is more important than sense.  Nevertheless, I would prefer to have a clearer idea of what sense might be there!
>
> All the best,
>
> Robert
>
>
>
> Robert Chandler, 42 Milson Road, London, W14 OLD
>
> tel. +44 207 603 3862



--

Loren A. Billings, Ph.D.
Associate professor of linguistics
Department of Foreign Languages and Literature
National Chi Nan University
Puli, Nantou County 545 Taiwan

My office location: Humanities room 516

E-mail: sgnillib at gmail.com

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