Party-Colored -- Two Distinctly Different Definitions

[Doug_Harris]

I am involved -- less now than in earlier years -- in cat and dog rescue,
and belong to a Yahoo group with that orientation.
(Attrition has reduced out cat population to five, two of them with three
legs, one of _those_ deaf as well. Most of our eight dogs are bassets. We
are hoping to find one of them a new home, because as an extremely active
adolescent, he needs -- and deserves -- far more attention than we're able
to provide.
dh



Subject: Re: Party-Colored -- Two Distinctly Different Definitions

I'm mainly interested in why you got that email.

Sam Clements

> "Party colored male 7weeks old shih tzu for sale"
> That's the headline on an e-mail I received today. I was curious, so I
> googled 'party-colored'.
> 19K + hits. Not a _lot_, but a surprising number.
> More surprising was the fact that two strikingly different definitions
> exist -- one have to doing with shading something in favor of a political
> party, the other explained photographically under one of the google hits,
> this one entitled "What is a party-colored poodle?"
> The dog in question, on in answer, as it were, has irregular color spots
> that are reminiscent of a clown's suit. I guess 'party colored' sounds
> better to some ears than _clown-spotted_.
> dh
>

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