Say what?

Charles Doyle cdoyle at UGA.EDU
Wed Oct 17 12:18:32 UTC 2007


Yes, Wilson, I rememeber a grade-school teacher's carefully explaining the referential distinction between the homonyms "lavatory" and "laboratory." Well, they weren't exactly homonyms, but confusion did occur.

--Charlie
_____________________________________________________________

---- Original message ----
>Date: Tue, 16 Oct 2007 17:06:53 -0400
>From: Wilson Gray <hwgray at GMAIL.COM>
>
>Don't we Southrons usually say "labbatory," causing a certain amountof confusion with "lavatory," Charlie? :-)
>
>-Wilson
>
>On 10/16/07, Charles Doyle <cdoyle at uga.edu> wrote:
>>
>> Did the attack occur in a larvatory?
>>
>> --Charlie
>> _____________________________________________________________
>>
>> ---- Original message ----
>> >Date: Tue, 16 Oct 2007 15:00:56 -0400
>> >From: Wilson Gray <hwgray at GMAIL.COM>
>> >
>> >Heard on TLC, spoken by voice-over guy:
>> >
>> >"It's like you were being attacked by _lavra_!"
>> >
>> >This is the second time that I've heard "lavra," but it may have been the the same speaker, both times. I wasn't paying attention, the first time. IAC, he not only uses metathesis, but he also uses the singular like a non-count noun.
>> >
>> >-Wilson

------------------------------------------------------------
The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org



More information about the Ads-l mailing list