Coffeehouse?!

[Victor Steinbok]

Although the OED definition does not exclude it, the Dutch use of
"coffeehouse" to mean "an officially sanctioned supplier of legal
cannabis" does not appear (of course, they were not around in 1876).
There is also an occasional use of "coffeehouse" to represent an
organized but informal gathering where musical performance is featured
(usually guitar-based or other "folk" music). In neither instance is
coffee served or featured in any other way.

     VS-)

On 1/10/2012 4:39 PM, Benjamin Barrett wrote:
> Grammar Girl decides to use "coffeehouse" (http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/hyphens-in-compound-words.aspx) while I'm like "What?" She claims that different dictionaries variously hyphenate, open or close this compound.
>
> Sure enough, Wiktionary gives the open and hyphenated forms as alternatives to "coffeehouse" (http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/coffeehouse) and the AHD has the open form as an alternative to "coffeehouse" (http://ahdictionary.com/word/search.html?q=coffeehouse&submit.x=0&submit.y=0). My Mac spell checker doesn't mind the closed form.
>
> The Mac dictionary has the closed form and provides the Wikipedia article that is also closed.
>
> The OED has citations only through 1876; all but one are hyphenated. (Also, the OED definition and comment are also outdated.)
>
> I don't see myself using the hyphenated or closed form soon, but, to coin a phrase, YouNeverKnow.
>
> Benjamin Barrett
> Seattle, WA

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