Lots of uncovered _skunk_s

[Lynne Murphy]

In researching today's blog entry
(http://separatedbyacommonlanguage.blogspot.com/2006/10/local-fauna-express
ions-part-two.html)

I found that neither AHD nor M-W record what seems to be a fairly common
(passive) use of the verb _to skunk_.  _To be/get skunked_ = to be sprayed
by a skunk.  Examples:

My dog was Skunked!  <http://www.oes.org/page2/7893~My_dog_was_Skunked.html>

In the tradition of the stinky pigs, Jamie and Adam volunteered to get
skunked in order to test various stink remedies.
www.forums.woodnet.net/ubbthreads/showflat.php?Cat=&Number=2651154&page=0&v
iew=collapsed&... -

My dog just got skunked last week so I'm ''fresh'' on skunk remedies.
parents.berkeley.edu/advice/pets/skunked.html


More meanings of _skunked_ not covered:

Passive _skunk_  to mean  'became skunky' (of a beer or wine):

Maybe bottle was skunked. Will try second bottle and hope it's better but
it may be just an overated wine that's not worth $15. andrew.fenton wrote:
...
winelibrary.com/reviewwine.asp?item=27113 - 68k

And apparently to mean 'drunk':

Oh, some hazard from Harvard was skunked on beer playin' backyard
bombardier. is a line from which Bruce Springsteen song?
www.mrgoodbeer.com/trivia/musictrivia.shtml - 36k


And then there's this from the website for Jews for the Preservation of
Firearms Ownership (who knew?!):

Experience teaches its lessons vividly. But when it comes to evaluating
information that we have no personal experience with, even many educated
adults can't tell the kitty (truth) from the skunk (propaganda and
disinformation).
...
Here are nine simple tips to avoid getting skunked by biased news.



The 'defeat' and 'con' meanings of the verb _skunk_ seem to be being
extended in all sorts of ways.

Lynne

Dr M Lynne Murphy
Senior Lecturer and Head of Department
Linguistics and English Language
Arts B135
University of Sussex
Brighton BN1 9QN

phone: +44-(0)1273-678844
http://separatedbyacommonlanguage.blogspot.com

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