Standing novation

[Laurence Horn]

At 8:05 AM -0500 11/13/07, Grant Barrett wrote:
>In my word-hunting I came across this nonce use of "standing
>novation," used to mean rising to your feet but not clapping:
>
>http://broadwayworld.com/viewcolumn.cfm?colid=22837
>
>The interesting thing, however, is how many people have spelled it
>that way without seeming to intend a joke:
>
>http://www.google.com/search?&q=%22standing+novation%22
>http://groups.google.com/groups?as_q=%22standing%20novation%22
>
>I suppose a standing novation is what you do when you wait in line to
>switch to a new mobile phone service.

Heh heh.  I would guess the serious occurrences of "standing
novation" testify to the plausible metanalysis of "an ovation" > "a
novation" (cf. "novena", "novel", etc.), just as "a whole nother" has
long testified to the reanalysis of "an + other" > "a nother".  There
actually is a word (even listed in the AHD) "novation", glossed as
'the substitution of a new obligation for an old [or should that be a
nold?] one'.  An all too frequent occurrence in academic orders as
well as religious ones.

LH

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