Dodging a narrow bullet

Mark Mandel thnidu at GMAIL.COM
Mon Jul 30 19:04:42 UTC 2007


On 7/30/07, Arnold M. Zwicky <zwicky at csli.stanford.edu> wrote:
> the wikipedia definition is not great, but the phenomenon includes
> adjectives understood adverbially, not as modifying the nouns they're
> in construction with.
>
> another type: a cold cup of coffee, etc.

I see that one as direct, not transferred, with "cup" as a noun of measurement.

Is this how "comfortable" came to be applicable to both me and my
chair? For that matter, how did either of those senses develop from
"comfort" + "-able"?

m a m

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