Query for Charlie-nim

[Wilson Gray]

Are y'all familiar with the term that's pronounced something like
"tee-NINE-shee"? It means "very small" and is used instead of
"itty-bitty" or "teeny-tiny." When I was in the Army, I heard this
used by Texans of all races, creeds, and colors from all over the
state. I learned it from my mother and my grandmother - I hated any
story that  began, "Whin yew wuh jes' a tee-nine-shee baby ..." Until
my Army days, I was under the impression that this word was peculiar
to the women in my family. You can imagine my shock when I first heard
it fall tripppingly from the tongue of a white farm boy from Mundy,
Texas. Later, I heard it used by GI's from Weslaco, Dallas, Odessa,
Midland, Tyler, Galveston, etc., etc. But that was fifty years ago.

So, I was wondering whether any y'all were familiar with this term? Is
it peculiar to Texas or is it also used elsewhere?

-Wilson
--
All say, "How hard it is that we have to die"---a strange complaint to
come from the mouths of people who have had to live.
-----
                                                      -Sam'l Clemens

"Experience" is the ability to recognize a mistake when you make it, again.

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