"Word" words?

[Joel S. Berson]

At 4/25/2008 10:35 AM, LanDi Liu wrote:
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>The things I referred to are repeated nouns, not what your wife was
>looking for.
>
>ATM machine is a little more like this.  "Wok pan" gets a lot of
>google hits.  "Terrier dog" gets more.  "Scimitar sword" gets a few.
>
>I'm thinking that things like obi belt and katana sword are only
>half-redundant (nice term, huh?) though, because every sword is not a
>katana and every belt is not an obi, unless you're looking at things
>from a Japanese perspective.

And I note that you left out "kimono", because even in Japan not
every robe is one.  (There is a word for a short robe worn by men,
but I've forgotten it.)

Joel

>I wonder if you could find something
>like "scimitar katana" in Japanese?
>
>Randy
>
>On Fri, Apr 25, 2008 at 10:09 PM, LanDi Liu <strangeguitars at gmail.com> wrote:
> > ---------------------- Information from the mail header
> -----------------------
> >  Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> >  Poster:       LanDi Liu <strangeguitars at GMAIL.COM>
> >  Subject:      Re: "Word" words?
> >
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> >
> >
> >  Well, Heidi Harley wrote something about it here:
> >  http://158.130.17.5/~myl/languagelog/archives/004317.html
> >
> http://heideas.blogspot.com/2007/03/third-annual-simpsons-st-patricks-day.html
> >
> >  And I seem to remember someone else writing something more about that
> >  later on LL, but I can't seem to find it.  Ben?
> >
> >  Randy
> >
> >  On Fri, Apr 25, 2008 at 9:50 PM, Guy Letourneau
> <guy1656 at opusnet.com> wrote:
> >
> >
> > > ---------------------- Information from the mail header
> -----------------------
> >  >  Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> >  >  Poster:       Guy Letourneau <guy1656 at OPUSNET.COM>
> >  >  Subject:      "Word" words?
> >  >
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> >  >
> >  >  Richard Lederer wrote of "word words," which are nouns spoken twice to
> >  >  indicate that what is meant is the thing in its most ordinary instance.
> >  >  For example "tea-tea" might be spoken to contrast from ice tea, or
> >  >  exceptionally exotic preparations.
> >  >
> >  >  Some may remember an air freshener ad which named the product an "air
> >  >  conditioner" in which an exasperated housewife explains "it's
> not an air
> >  >  conditioner - air conditioner, it's an air CONDITIONER."
> >  >
> >  >  Anyways, my wife was wondering about writers who append an English
> >  >  equivalent after a borrowed word. She said she had read of a woman who
> >  >  'wore a kimono robe and an obi belt.' 'Robe' and 'belt'
> seemed redundant
> >  >  to her.
> >  >
> >  >  Any comments? Is there a katana sword, an ushanka hat, or borscht soup?
> >  >
> >  >  - GLL
> >  >
> >  >
> >  >  PS: And a joke for all:
> >  >
> >  >  Knock knock.
> >  >
> >  >  Who's there?
> >  >
> >  >  Objective case.
> >  >
> >  >  Objective case who?
> >  >
> >  >  No, objective case *whom*.
> >  >
> >  >  ------------------------------------------------------------
> >  >  The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
> >  >
> >
> >
> >
> >  --
> >
> > Randy Alexander
> >  Jilin City, China
> >
> >
> >
> > ------------------------------------------------------------
> >  The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
> >
>
>
>
>--
>Randy Alexander
>Jilin City, China
>
>------------------------------------------------------------
>The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org

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