factoid

[Joel S. Berson]

At 11/16/2012 01:29 AM, Laurence Horn wrote:
>On Nov 15, 2012, at 7:01 PM, Dave Wilton wrote:
>
> > Urban dictionary has a decent breakdown of the senses that I've heard:
> > http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=factoid
> >
> > In my experience, their sense #2 is the more common: "A fact that
> may or may
> > not be true, but is trivial in nature."
>
>Interesting.  Back in our old unsophisticated days we used to think
>that if it wasn't true, it wasn't a fact (however trivial it might (not) be.
>
>LH

Not a dilemma, Larry.  -oid = "resembling", so not necessarily having
the actual nature of.  Like the suffix -iness.

P.S.  My perception is the same as Dave's and Wilson's:  Possibly
true, but small.

Joel

> >
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: American Dialect Society [mailto:ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU] On Behalf Of
> > James Harbeck
> > Sent: Thursday, November 15, 2012 8:11 PM
> > To: ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU
> > Subject: factoid
> >
> > I had a debate today about the meaning of "factoid". I'm wondering whether
> > my sense of what more or less everyone uses it to mean is in fact accurate.
> > Tell me: what, in your world, does "factoid" mean?
> >
> > Thanks,
> > James Harbeck.
> >
> > ------------------------------------------------------------
> > The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
> >
> > ------------------------------------------------------------
> > The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
>
>------------------------------------------------------------
>The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org

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