ADS-L Digest - 13 Mar 2008 to 14 Mar 2008 (#2008-75) (Coffin/also casket)

[Geraldine Hizer]

In a message dated 3/14/2008 11:04:00 P.M. Central Daylight Time,
LISTSERV at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU writes:

Date:    Fri, 14 Mar 2008 17:24:01 -0400
From:   Paul Johnston <paul.johnston at WMICH.EDU>
Subject: Re: ADS-L  Digest - 12 Mar 2008 to 13 Mar 2008 (#2008-74)
(Coughin/coffin)

It's not laziness.  Or g-dropping,  because, unless you're from parts
of Longg Island or the West Midlands of  England, there is no /g/.
Just a different dialect  system.

Yours,
Paul Johnston
On Mar 14, 2008, at 10:46 AM,  Geraldine Hizer wrote:

> ---------------------- Information from the  mail header
> -----------------------
> Sender:     American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
>  Poster:       Geraldine Hizer <Urqu at AOL.COM>
>  Subject:      Re: ADS-L Digest - 12 Mar 2008 to 13 Mar 2008  (#2008-74)
>                (Coughin/coffin)
>  ----------------------------------------------------------------------


I am neither from Long(g) Island or the 'West Midlands of England'
(ancestrally, perhaps), but there is no such word as "coughin" in my own lexicon  or
that of anyone else (unless very obscure and possibly OBE-derived).
What IS the difficulty here? Without the appended 'g', it isn't a word!
We're still talking about the act of producing a cough, right?  Cough-ing?
BTW, what happened to the /g/ in the West Midlands?
Thank goodness I have time to be specious today;)
GH
OH - in re: 'casket' - I use the words  (casket/coffin) interchangeably, now
I see it's a bit like med.  professionals who use euphemism 'discomfort'
rather than  'PAIN'!



**************It's Tax Time! Get tips, forms, and advice on AOL Money &
Finance.      (http://money.aol.com/tax?NCID=aolprf00030000000001)

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