Terror Dome; Dallas Morning News (1885-present?)

[Jonathan Lighter]

I noticed the "novel" sense of "argue" because TV news people and their associates use it all the time.  At least they have been in recent years.

JL

Fred Shapiro <fred.shapiro at YALE.EDU> wrote:
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Sender: American Dialect Society
Poster: Fred Shapiro
Subject: Re: Terror Dome; Dallas Morning News (1885-present?)
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On Mon, 5 Sep 2005, Jonathan Lighter wrote:

> Shouldn't that be, "that there has been *no* terror" ? Or are we using
> different senses of "argue" ?
>
> "things other than terrorism. Few would argue that there has been terror
> in the Superdome."

Interesting. My first reaction is that I typed the last sentence above
erroneously, meaning to say "Few would argue with the statement that there
has been terror in the Superdome." But I suspect I was actually using a
popular, but perhaps unrecorded, sense of the word "argue." Compare the
following citations:

Funding new stadiums - or providing the means by which stadiums can fund
themselves - is rightly the province of the Legislature. A state as
vibrant as Minnesota is best served when excellence in all endeavors is
the goal, and few would argue the importance of big-time sports.
Minneapolis Star-Tribune, August 26, 2005

The Rolling Stones took the stage last night at Boston's Fenway Park to
kick off their A Bigger Bang tour and strengthen their claim to the title
The World's Greatest Rock 'n' Roll Band.
Few could argue the point.
Hamilton (Ontario) Spectator, August 22, 2005

This meaning of "argue" is synonymous with "argue against" or "doubt."

Fred Shapiro


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Fred R. Shapiro Editor
Associate Librarian for Collections and YALE DICTIONARY OF QUOTATIONS
Access and Lecturer in Legal Research Yale University Press,
Yale Law School forthcoming
e-mail: fred.shapiro at yale.edu http://quotationdictionary.com
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