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It's really petty but there's a river Rom in Romford. Romford is the location where the river used to be forwarded.
KryssTal Reply: "forded" surely.
If pushed I might guess that the ford was used on the old Colchester to London road which ran nearby but that's a guess. Anyhow Rom may mean wide, not that the River Rom is, but Romford is derived from the river name.
I did say it was petty :)
KryssTal Reply: You are right of course. It's just that the river name does mean wide.
Bag carried by women for their makeup, money etc...
Nice pages
KryssTal Reply: Thank you for your kind comments. I have added this pair also.
I am delighted to have found your website. I am teaching a class in the varieties of English to a group of exchange students here in Santa Barbara, CA at the EF School of Languages. Finding your site has made life a lot easier for me now that we have a computer lab at school.
I have linked my class page ( http://www.rain.org/~vog/dialect.html) to your site.
KryssTal Reply: Very nice of you - thank you.
I enjoyed your page on differing US/UK English usage. I suspect it has a very long way to go before it's complete, though.
KryssTal Reply: You are quite correct - I hope to build it up slowly. I travel a lot around the world and have met a lot of Americans. it's always interesting to listen to differences in our languages. Even around the UK itself there are different words in use.
I think I've seen fairly comprehensive lists of US/UK differences on the web somewhere, but I can't remember where. Have you checked the alt.usage.english FAQ list?
I gather you're not including differences which are purely spelling, such as tyre/tire and draught/draft.
KryssTal Reply: Quite correct - I also ignore pronounciation differences.
A few of your entries require comment:
US "pissed" for "angry" is really just a contraction of "pissed off", so we're the same there. We can do that because we don't use "pissed" for "drunk", so there's no ambiguity.
We still eat biscuits; they're just different from cookies. Biscuits are harder and dryer; they are literally "bis cuit", that is, twice cooked (and the German equivalent is the same, "zwei back").
KryssTal Reply: Cookies is actually a Dutch word.
We also use the noun "shop", but a "shop" is smaller than a "store", in general.
KryssTal Reply: We also use store as in large "superstores". But if we go to buy a newspaper we go to a shop wheras you would tend to go to a store.
I don't know where you got the idea that we use "uptown" for "suburbia". We use "suburbia", or, more likely, "the suburbs". I've never heard "uptown" being used to mean suburbia. You might think it would be, since the town centre is indeed called "downtown", but it isn't. In fact, the only city in which I've ever heard the word "uptown" is New York, in Manhattan, which is layed out like a grid, and in which "uptown" is the direction in which the addresses increase along the avenues (North). Since at many times in the history of New York, the uptown addresses were wealthier, the word "uptown" has a slang meaning of "ritzy".
KryssTal Reply: I stand corrected - I got my information from a New Yorker. One thing that differs of course is that we do not have our cities planned in grids so perhaps there is ambiguity there. I will remove that entry if it only applies to one city.
There is indeed an unambiguous meaning to "uptown" in New York, but even there, it certainly doesn't mean "suburban". Travelling "Uptown" in Manhattan, one remains in a heavily populated city, and eventually, after crossing 125th Street, one arrives at Harlem (a Dutch name, I think originally "Haarlem"). That's as far uptown as one can go. After crossing the Harlem River, although you're still in New York City, the direction north would no longer be considered "uptown"; that word is applied only to the island of Manhattan.
The word "uptown" DOES appear to be used in other cities, according to some responses on a.u.e. My dictionary says "In or toward the upper part of a town or city." For "downtown", it says "To, toward, or in the lower part or the business center of a city or town." Thus it seems that it is used to denote either the business center of a city (and in New York, the financial center, including Wall Street, is indeed downtown), or a section of the city which is actually physically lower. That is, the definition implies that the "up" and "down", in some cities, might be taken quite literally.
But to my knowledge, it NEVER means "suburban" in modern usage. It is true that once in the past, when New York was a small city at the southern tip of Manhattan, one could drive (one's horse and carriage) uptown into the suburbs. Then the city spread out as the avenues, starting with Fifth Avenue, were extended to the north. Eventually, the entire island was covered, and uptown was suburban no longer.
KryssTal Reply: I bow to your superior knowledge and have removed the entry from the table.
We also use "cop" fairly routinely for a policeman. "Copper" is rare, heard mostly in gangster movies depicting the 1920's.
KryssTal Reply: Cop should be the American term. Our terms include copper, rozzer, the filth, and many others.
"Fag" and "queen" both have the same primary meanings here as in the UK. As slang, they do have the meanings you gave, in the right context, except that "queen" refers not to just any male homosexual, but to a male homosexual with markedly effeminate mannerisms.
KryssTal Reply: I once saw an American fall about laughing when a Brit said he was "going out for a fag" !
Thank you very much for your comments - I'll be adding and removing items as I get to know more, ol' chap.
Toodle pip and tata.
Good Afternoon. I was looking for some information on language and came across your site. It was quite informative and very interesting. I was wondering, though, if you might answer a question for me since I've been unable to find the answer on any site.
In what Indo European language would the letter U be depicted as a V?
Example: RUDWALL spelled as RVDWALL
KryssTal Reply: Thank you for your kind comments. The original Latin alphabet used V and U interchangeably. For example, "Dominus" might be written DOMINVS.
Kryss --
One of the biggest frustrations for me when I was teaching EFL in Eastern Europe was the prevalence of lists that purport to show the "differences" between UK and US English. While there are differences between the two varieties, these lists never really show them truthfully. Yours is characteristically misleading.
KryssTal Reply: As you know there are several 'proper' dictionaries covering this interesting topic so my table intends to be a little more tongue in cheek. The humourous aspect is more important than strict accuracy although I want to be more accurate on my other language pages.
Here goes:
Definition : UK Word : USA Word
payment in a restaurant : bill : check
In the US, both "bill" and "check" are used with about equal frequency. This is not new usage, so I don't know where people found this "difference".
KryssTal Reply: We NEVER say 'check' for this.
unit of paper currency : note : bill
In the US: "a 50-pound note" but "a 50-dollar bill". We say note all the time, but not about our own currency.
KryssTal Reply: We never use the generic 'bill' except in terms like 'doller bill'.
Ah! The situation's reversed here, it's obviously because of what we call our local currencies. I should ask my Australian boss what they call their dollars and their old pounds.
third piece of a male's suit that goes between the jacket and the shirt : waist coat : vest
This is accurate.
angry : pissed off : pissed
In the US, "pissed" is short for "pissed off", so both are used.
KryssTal Reply: For us 'pissed' ALWAYS means 'drunk'. In cockney rhyming slang we would say 'Brahms and Liszt' to mean 'pissed' (ie drunk)!
You see, both terms can mean "angry" for us, because "pissed" cannot mean drunk.
the area next to a street where pedestrians walk : pavement : sidewalk
"Pavement" in the US is the actual substance used to pave the street or sidewalk.
KryssTal Reply: A 'paved' road is one that is not dirt, but sidewalk is NEVER used instead of pavement.
what you eat with milk, tea or coffee : biscuit : cookie
Correct.
place from where goods are bought : shop : store
Both terms have long been used in the US with equal frequency. This is not a "difference", except that the British probably don't say "store". In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if some of them really do say "store", since most of our dialect usage has its origin somewhere in Britain.
KryssTal Reply: On TV they always seem to talk about going down to the store on American dramas. Here, 'store' is more of a larger 'superstore' type place (mall?) whereas shop is used over 95% of the time.
But in the States it would sound very strange to say "stationery store", "novelty store", "thrift store". You'd have to say "shop" for all of these and some others. I think for us a "shop" indicates something smaller, often privately owned.
what there was before email : post : mail
True and not true. Too complex to characterize here. Remember, we have "post offices", not "mail offices".
KryssTal Reply: We never use 'mailman', or 'mail a letter'. We always say 'post' in those situations. Our email servers tend to begin with post rather than mail so the software defaults to this in the UK.
the business part of a city : town centre : downtown
"Downtown" is the most frequent term, but we're liable to say "town center" in some rare instances.
KryssTal Reply: We NEVER say 'downtown'. In London, either term is meaningless since there is no real centre (sorry ' center'). We make our money in The City, spend it in the West End and get governed from Westminster!
front of a car : bonnet : hood
back of a car : boot : trunk
Yup! And "windscreen" / "windshield", etc.
KryssTal Reply: I forgot that one, thanks.
Another interesting new one: A student of mine from Britain has a husband who is an automotive engineer, and he indicated there's been a change in the technical meaning of "bumper". I guess that before the plastic fascia appeared over the bumpers a bumper was a bumper was a bumper in both countries. Now, in America, the bumper is the metal beam that is covered by the fascia, and in the UK the bumper is the entire bumper-fascia assembly. The British engineers' distinction would correspond more to American street parlance. I also get indications that what we call the "bumper" was once called the "fender" in the UK, which for us has always meant the metal covering the wheel well.
city vehicle running on rails : tram : street car
If it's an American vehicle it's a streetcar for us. If it's British or German we call it a "tram".
what you put on bread : jam : jelly
Not true. Jam is thicker and has fruit pulp in it (but not as solid as in marmelade). Jelly has no pulp. Both things are eaten in America, and you'll see both substances in the store.
a type of dessert : jelly : jello
REALLY???????? I didn't know that. The generic word for jello is gelatin.
KryssTal Reply: When I was young I used to marvel at Charlie Brown eating 'peanut butter and jelly sandwiches' since jelly is our generic word for the gelatine based dessert. We don't really have your 'jelly'. I like jam and the thicker 'preserve'.
That's interesting, because I used to see what we call "jelly" in Germany and France all the time.
law enforcement officer : copper : cop
"So long, copper!" Right out of a typical American gangster film.
KryssTal Reply: 'I'm a cop' - we NEVER use that.
a large vessel for juice or water : jug : pitcher
Which type of vessel do you mean? We have both jugs and pitchers, but they aren't the same thing.
KryssTal Reply: We NEVER put water in a pitcher.
Wait. Are we talking about the same thing? For us, a "jug" is a large, fat bottle, usually holding about a gallon. It has a narrow mouth and a cap, but it also has a handle. A pitcher is a fat-looking vessel that is wide open at the top and its rim gathers into a pointed lip to facilitate pouring. I've just looked at my Oxford dictionary and seen that in the UK a "pitcher" is the same thing as a pitcher in the US, but so is a "jug". What do you call our "jug", then?
player who throws a ball at another player holding a bat : bowler : pitcher
If he's playing cricket he's still a bowler in America.
KryssTal Reply: I didn't know that but it does make a nice joke.
Don't forget too, though, that a bowler here generally engages in "bowling" (i.e., ten-pins).
multi-lane road for cars : motorway : freeway
Both, depending on the context.
container carried by females for money : purse : pocket book
Both terms are very common here.
KryssTal Reply: 'Purse' here is only the little money container, the larger bag carried by (usually) females is called a 'hand bag'.
Here purses can be big or small, but handbags are always big. It looks like we're dealing with overlapping semantic fields here a lot of the time, rather than with actually separate terminology.
device for obtaining water : tap : faucet
Both are normal terms in America, except that if you get technical a "tap" tends to refer to the tube the water flows out of, while the "faucet" is the whole assembly, handles and all. In ordinary speech we don't make a distinction between the two, and say "tap" or "faucet" as we please.
KryssTal Reply: We NEVER use 'faucet'. I didn't know what a faucet was when I was young and reading DC Comics, old chap!
This is interesting, because "faucet" came to us from French by way of Middle English, so it must have died out in most or all of Britain. Just like "gotten".
KryssTal Reply: Many words have come to the US from England and have developed in different ways sometimes falling out of use in the UK.
I got plenty of the UK point of view from textbooks when I was teaching in the Czech Republic. However, there's also a point of view held by non-native speakers of English there (and in other countries) that doesn't understand that English has multiple, mutually intelligible standards. They would insist on something they referred to as "British" English (whatever that actually is), and claim that students learning the language from a Yank or an Australian would not be understood by "most people". I would find horrid errors in their locally produced textbooks, but they would insist these were all "British" English that I wouldn't know, because naturally a person who grew up reading British books watching British TV shows and listening to British music in America would never understand "real English" as well as someone who'd been sealed off in a communist country with little or no exposure to authentic materials. A teacher from England told me that whenever she pointed out the same errors, the Czech instructors would tell her her English must be polluted with Americanisms. It was all pretty laughable if you didn't have to deal with it on a daily basis.
KryssTal Reply: British English has many different forms and accents. In the north east for example, child is 'bairn' , the Norse word. In Scotland, a small girl is a 'wee lassie'. As for London, well:
have a butchers = take a look (rhymes with butcher's hook)
gonna give the trouble a dog = I am going to telephone my wife (trouble and strife = wife; dog and bone = phone!)
get a load of the whistle = look at that suit (whistle and flute = suit)
The one thing that did annoy me about some UK-produced textbooks, though, was their insistence on being as British as possible to the point where they taught Britishisms at the expense of expressions that would be understood all over the world.
KryssTal Reply: I agree, all forms need to be explained - I bore people all the time by pointing out and glorifying the differences.
There are some UK terms that people understand everywhere, but others, if it weren't for the fact that they emanated from England, would be considered no more than local slang. I taught at a school for hotel professions and did translations for hotels, and I encountered such resistance when I insisted that 3/4 of the native English speakers in the world don't understand terms like "half board".
KryssTal Reply: True, this is UK English. I still come across American expressions that I don't understand and some that I could never say (like "I'll get the check")
I tried them out on Australians and Canadians and realized it wasn't just us insular Americans who give blank stares when encountering such terms. So there's apparently a vocabulary that embraces the UK and all non-native speakers, but that isn't understood by most native speakers. On top of that, you have English expressions that exist ONLY among non-native speakers, like "by us" (= "in our country"), etc. A Czech I know says he and his Swiss girlfriend communicate by means of "Euro-English" by which he means basic English with a shared repertoire of French- and Czech-based mistakes.
KryssTal Reply: In my opinion, all forms of English are valid and equal - the variety is the strength of the language.
The other thing I've had trouble with is the use of the Union Jack as a graphic designation for the English language. On my first trip to Germany, I read the German instructions over the public phone, because I assumed the Union Jack indicated instructions on how to call the UK. I went for a few days doing things like this, and I would have made the same mistake had the American flag been used. This is understandable, because growing up near Detroit, where we have the English language under two national flags (three for me, because the Canadians changed their flag when I was a kid), and being constantly exposed to English-language culture from still other nations, it had never occurred to me that English can be associated with any national flag. That's why this shorthand symbol confused me.
KryssTal Reply: For me flags are about countries, languages are about regions and communication. I heard a football (ie soccer) comentator once ask a player how they said something in Belgian.
a self contained section of television : programme : show
We say "program" just as often as we say "show". Always have.
KryssTal Reply: I havn't heard that used too much but I'll accept your assertion.
So I've vented my frustration. I hope you're not insulted. It's just that this kind of thing drives me crazy sometimes. BTW, we also say "autumn" as much as we say "fall".
KryssTal Reply: No insult suffered - thanks for your response. I think the unusual aspect of this page is that it is from a UK point of view.
Thanks for not being insulted.
KryssTal Reply: I have enjoyed your thoughts.
I accessed the following URL and was dismayed at the carelessness of the spelling contained within.
to name but three. Maybe someone should have a look at your quality control!
KryssTal Reply: My spelling has shamed me. It has been corrected.
Dear Linguists and etymologists,
I sent the following information to Webster's Dictionary and Oxford English Dictionary. They rejected it. In some cases (RIP, especially), the information clarifies blank spots in their knowledge; in others, it shows some of their errors. Let the article speak for itself. The question is, what is wrong with it and why are they so stubborn? Feel free to e-mail me.
In the field of etymology, it is inevitable that one eventually encounters the concept of convergence (coincidence), wherein words from two widely separated languages (Primarily Anglo-Germanic and Sanskrit, in this case) have similar spellings and meanings without any intermediate language between them to act as a go-between bridge. A few examples might be
considered convergence, but the question is: how many examples if apparent convergence are necessary to suggest, rather, a new explanation or pattern?
(A note in advance: I am aware that Sanskrit went out of use around 300 a.d., and technically I should be quoting various Sanskritic dialects instead. However, since my sources regarding them are extremely limited, I am quoting from Sanskrit to prove my point. My sources are
OXFORD ENGLISH DICTIONARY [OED],
With regards to diacritical marks, transliterated letters usually written with marks above the letters are followed by apostrophes in this paper: a, s [=sh]).
--Eng. LAD/LADDIE: WEBSTER'S and OED trace this word back to only ME. LADDE, "servant, boy", of obscure origin. Cf. Skt. LADIKA or LADIKA, "boy, servant".
--Eng. Verb ACHE/AKE, mental or physical anguish : AS. ACAN . WEBSTERS mentions Gr. AGOS and Skt. A'GAS, "sin, injury", as uncertain etymologies, but it is obvious that the Skt. word is related to transgression and not physical or mental pain. I would suggest Skt. A-KA, unhappiness, pain, trouble.
--Eng. TWITCH, "to jerk suddenly"; later, (noun) "sharp mental or physical pain" : OE. TWICCIAN (Cf. Skt. TVISH/TVESHATI [TV is pronounced as TW], "be violently agitated, moved or troubled"; TVISH, "violent agitation"). It might be said that TWITCH does not resemble TVISH enough. There is the related word TVIT-PATI. However, admittedly, it means "light-lord, sun"
since TVISH also means "shine".
--Eng. ASH and German-Scandinavian cognates: Prior to 1000, there is OE. ASCE (singular) and ASCAN (plural), wherein "SC" is pronounced like "SH". Cf. Skt. A'SA/AS, "ashes". There is Goth. AZGO from theoretical Old Teutonic root *AZGON, which should be the earlier, preceding root word, yet it is the later Anglo, Germanic and Scandinavian forms which are closer to the
Sanskrit. Graham Caie of Glasgow University says maybe I am right on this one.
---Eng. TWANG (OED, 1567): "a ringing note of a stringed instrument", therefore a resonance or reverberation. WEBSTER'S compares it to the idea of vibrating, throbbing, or twitching (of tension or pain). Cf. Skt. TVANG, "tremble, wave". Note: In Skt., TV is pronounced as TW. TWANG can also refer to "letting fly" (an arrow), often with the idea of force or speed. Quotes: 1) "1600. And set in his mightie bowe, new bent, twanged the string, out flew the quarell long". 2)"Where Scythia's shepherd peoples dwell aloft...And twang the rapid arrow past the bow" (OED). Cf. a secondary definition of TVANG, jump, leap, gallop.
--Eng. SHRIVELLED, "having wrinkles as if dried up"; SHRIVELDY, "withered"; SHRIVEL, "be reduced to inefficient condition, shrink physically or mentally". (Cf. Skt. SHRI'V/SRIV/SRI'V, "to go/become dry, frustrate, thwart" related to SRU'TA, "withered"). Earliest English form is during the 1500's, but there is mention of Swedish dialect SKRYVLA (SK is pronounced as
SH, I believe), "wrinkle". --SITA and SHITA (Furrow) change into SAITA and SHAITA, worshipper of Sita, pertaining to Sita. SITA and can also used to denote a parting of the hair or vagina (Cornelia Dimmitt, Sita: Fertility Goddess and Sakti, in THE DIVINE CONSORT, J.S. Hawley and D.M. Wulff, eds., p. 211 ). Consider German SCHEITELN, to part (hair); SCHEITEL, parting of hair; SCHEIDE, parting, vagina, akin to M.E. SCHEDE/SCHETE : O.E. SCEATH, vagina. Another possibility is J. SHIWA, wrinkle , furrow, both of the face. However, I am unable to point to any actual relationship between SITA and wrinkle.
Some words, primarily Anglo-Germanic, seem to be a hybrid of Sanskrit (or perhaps a more recent dialect like Hindi or Urdu) and other languages:
--Eng. MASTER, "leader, ruler", with French, German and Scandinavian cognates. Originally, prior to 1000, the word was spelled "maegister" from Latin. Around 1200-1300, it changed to MEISTER and MAISTER; circa 1300,if not sooner, it assumes the meaning of "head" (of an organization. Cf. Fr.-Eng. CHIEF/CHIEVE, head). There is mention of MAST, shortened form of
MASTER (1460), and in 1420, there is also mention of MAST, a weight of 2.5 pounds Troy. Cf. Skt. MASTA, "measured, head"; MASTI, a noun meaning "a weighing, measuring".
As we have seen in case of MASTA, a word can have radically-different definitions. My guess is that this word actually has a multiple etymology, a blending, of two different words, the etymology of which is lost in the past due to Sanskrit's antiquity. Here are some examples of English multi-etymology:
--Originally, prior to 1000, the main definitions of MURK/MIRK and related words referred to dark(ness). OED says that the possible source of the words could lie in the sense of BECOMING dark. Then around 1300, there also appears the concept of thick(ness), said of air or vapor, in the sense of becoming so. OED says there are no viable cognates out of Teutonic. Cf. Skt. MURCH/MU'RCH, "to thicken, become strong, increase in intensity, pervade, spread over, become senseless, swoon". Related forms of this word are MU'RKHI' and MU'RKHA, which deal with stupidity, i.e., thick-headedness. Eng. MURK can also mean "unenlightened, hard to understand".
--Eng. MAD, "angry, insane" : OE. GEMAED (pre-1000), which changes to ME. MEDDE / MADDE (circa 1300). Akin to OS. GIMED, "foolish" and Goth. GAMAITHS, "crippled". OED mentions theoretical root *GAMAIDO- and pre-Teutonic *MOITO- : Indogermanic root *MEI-, "to change". OED also mentions the related AMAD (1200) : OE., GEMAEDAN, "to madden", akin to the idea of "bruised, crazed, to maim".
The point of all this is: the further one goes back in time from about 1200-1300, the less that words resemble Eng. MAD in spelling or meaning. After about 1200-1300, definitions occur which further resemble Skt. MAD, "rejoice, exhilarate, intoxicate", which has such verb forms as AMA'DISHUH and AMATTA. It is akin to Skt. MATTA, "excited, intoxicated, angry, mad,
insane" (Cf. Hindi-Urdu MATT, mad; MATTA, intoxicated woman; It. MATTA, crazy woman; akin to MATTO, "insane").
Admittedly, the Sanskrit word engendered Latin MADERE, which deals with intoxification, but it does not refer to anger or insanity.
1)--Eng. REP/RIP (=OED SB2): "person of loose or worthless character", of obscure origin (1747). It also refers to an inferior or worthless object (1786). Another separate word is Eng. verb RIP/RIPE, "to rob" (cf. RIP-OFF, steal, cheat, deceive), : OE. RYPAN (950), akin apparently to Goth. RAUPJAN, "pluck". Cf. Skt. verb RIP, "deceive, cheat; akin to Skt. noun RIP,
"fraud, deceit, deceiver; RIPU, "cheat, rogue, treachery"; RIPRA, "dirt, impurity, vile"; REPA, "low, vile"; REPAS, fault. Again, note that the English spelling is the one closest to the Sanskrit.
2) There is another word, RIP, which OED considers to be one word but admits be of obscure origins. Here is why: The Eng. verb RIP, "cut or tear apart from, split" (1400s) later gets the definitions of cut away (1800s) and open up, release in 1900. Cf. RIP-CORD. Cf. Skt. REPAYATI, a causal verb form of RI' or RI, "sever, detach from, release, set free".
3) In the 1500s75, the same word means "to slash up with a sharp instrument; to open with violence". Quote: "He drewe out a shoulder knife. And ript me up the brest of him that murdred lay" (OED). Around the same time, there is also the meaning of mention for the purpose of discrediting, blaming and swear (1700). Cf. Skt. RIPH, speak, snarl, blame, hurt, kill. Akin to REPHA, guttural sound (=growl, threaten?) Also cf. SKT. RIPH, "kill, hurt, reproach".
In the 1800s RIP comes to mean rush along with violence or speed, akin to LET RIP, let fly . It is actually a mixture of 2) and 3): Cf. Skt. REPAYATI from RI/RI, become fluid, flow, let go.
It is obvious that these Sanskrit words have joined together, most likely into some more-modern dialect of Sanskrit.
--Eng. VARNISH : ME. VERNISSHE, OF. VARNIS (1200); from medieval Latin VERNIX and Greek BERNIKE and other European languages: OED admits that the origin of this word is unknown, while WEBSTER'S says it derives from the area of Bereniece in Cyrenaica, where this shellac substance was made. VARNISH can also refer to the act of applying the varnish and a "generic, artificial covering, embellishing feature, outside show. Cf. Skt. VARN, "to paint, color, spread"; VARNA, "covering, outward appearance, lustre". It is important to note that the English and French spellings are the ones closest to VARN among those found in other European languages.
--Eng. PRIDE : PRIED: originally from ON. PRYTHI, valor, ornament; AS. PRYTE, akin to PRUT, proud. But it later means sense of elation, delight. Cf. Skt. PRID, to gladden.
---Eng. SHEET : pre-1100 SCIETE (perhaps related to SCEATA) : theoretical root *SKAUT-. It originally referred to a napkin, towel or cloth. In early 1600's, it gains the definition of "sail". Cf. Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit S'[H]I'TA or Pali SI'TA, both "sail" (R.L. Turner, p. 773). Eng. SHEET can also refer to something which is thin. Cf. Skt. S'[H]ITA*, "thin, slender" (<S'O).
Eng. SHEET : OE. SCEATA, "rope", also "section of sail". Cf. Skt. S[H]ITA, rope". Admittedly ASED mentions possible doubt about this definition, but there it is.
There is the expression AS WHITE AS A SHEET. OED suggests that one should confer with WHITE. Cf. Skt. S'[H]ITA/SITA and Pali SITA, all "white, pale".
---Originally, Eng. RAP : ME. RAPPE meant "to strike" (1377); circa 1541, there is mention of "to utter, talk". Cf. Skt. RAP, "talk".
--Eng BAD : ME. BADDE (1297). According to OED, this word is related to the idea of "effeminate fellow" and "hermaphrodite". Cf. Hindi-Urdu BAD. I received this from Atul Narkhede: "BAD (pronounced like bud with a soft d) is a very common upasarga (prefix)occurring in thousands of Hindi/Urdu words. It connotes a negative/bad meaning." Another Hindu source relays basically the same idea that it is a natural Hindu word
--Eng. LADE/LOAD: Webster's mentions ME. LOD, OE. HLADAN/LADAN/LA'D, "to load, burden" : ON. HLATHA, Goth. AFHLATHAN, OSlav. HLASTI. Yet Hindi-Urdu LA'D and LA'DI', "load, lading", remain virtually unchanged. I have been unable to determine if they were borrowed from English during times of British occupation of India.
The information included in this list of words might imply that an ethnic group speaking some Indo-Iranian language was present in Europe prior to English occupation of India and it played a minor role in shaping European languages. Perhaps one could formulate a theory that some words thought to have spread from India, through Asia and then to Europe actually went directly to Europe and then spread outward.
A SANSKRIT-ENGLISH DICTIONARY [ASED] by Monier-Williams,
WEBSTER'S, A DICTIONARY OF URDU, CLASSICAL HINDI AND ENGLISH by John Platts,
A COMPARATIVE DICTIONARY OF INDO-ARYAN LANGUAGES by R.L. Turner.
I am aghast & appalled at the way the American media, murders not only the English language, but even their own American language. Their insistence upon using the word "MURDER" and the word "KILL" synonymously.
In case You don't know good guys (soldiers, police, hunters, doctors, animals) kill; bad guys (Cain, king Herod, Sam Berkowitz, Ramirez, the Los Angeles Zodiac) murder! In the heirarchy of life killers are on a par with the animals murderers are beneath the animal level and are at the demon level. What is so complicated about this actuality?
KryssTal Reply: Very interesting
But what has this to do with me - I am neither American nor media. I would have thought that kill is a verb to do with the removal of life from anything that possesses life whereas murder is a criminal term that has to be decided by a judicial system.
My friend, I had actually considered, that You probably were neither American nor media. However I had perused Your web-site and considered that because of Your interest in vocabulary Perhaps You might be interested in a great injustice being semanticly wrought in my country by those who should know better (Like news reporters, talk show hosts, police, police officials, politicians, f.b.i. agents, and yes even families of murdered victims). And then they wonder why the American murder rate is so high.
KryssTal Relpy: I thought that was because of the number of guns around!
Just Ventingly Yours,
Professor Henry Higgins, an American Semanticist.
KryssTal Reply: Professor Higgins, eh? Hows Eliza?
Sorry but You happen to be handy and perhaps can understand. By the way check out my web page, too
KryssTal Reply: I will, old chap!
If there were zero guns in America, the murders would continue (there are other methods available), because of the "American Semantical" crises. You have bought into the C.I.A 's fallacious no guns, no killing (Their word here) hipe.
They want all of Our guns because of Our "Constitutional Preamble" (read it for enlightenment regarding Our Constitutional right, to bear arms). Incidently for the same reason (Semantics) countless children will continue having out of wedlock babies even if all the children were inundated (pardon the unavoidable pun here) with prophelactics.
By the way I am a left wing liberal (believing in the, Creative Source given human right to, Liberty). But also believing in the right, indeed NECESSITY for people to carry guns in order to protect Our freedom. But conversely in the virtue of the death penalty (it has kept me from killing, sic, many a people. especially when I was picked on in my junior high and high schools) But enough of this Philosophy, I am sure I am at this point boring You to tears, SORRY!
See Ya!
KryssTal Reply: I'm afraid we're hitting a major cultural difference between the USA and Europe here.
Most of us over here are glad guns are banned in the UK and that we have NO death penalty. There is a huge difference in our history. In the UK most left wingers or liberals are against both guns and capital punishment. No European country has the death penalty at present.
I think your views are very normal for the USA but would be considered extreme here, old chap! Ever travelled to Europe?
Vive la difference!
Just a quick note to express my admiration for your Web Page, particularly the language section.
I was surfing the Web with some of my A Level students and we found your information on slang, accent and dialect and etymology extremely useful.
My husband has seen your site (yes, I have been investigating further at home!) and he commented on the fact that the layout and colours on the website is very reader friendly.
I hope you don't mind my students referring to your site.
KryssTal Reply: Thank you for your kind comments. I enjoy people getting knowledge and information from my web site. Also I am glad you appreciate the need to make sites easy on the eye (not to mention the printer).