tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4912713243046142041.post8537681072307924863..comments2024-03-27T18:20:38.176-05:00Comments on TYWKIWDBI ("Tai-Wiki-Widbee"): 14 Quite Interesting facts about languageMinnesotastanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01382888179579245181noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4912713243046142041.post-74562728134882705052019-12-06T12:22:16.933-06:002019-12-06T12:22:16.933-06:00Mandarin is another language with no words for yes...Mandarin is another language with no words for yes or no.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4912713243046142041.post-70370292355195659212014-08-04T14:45:20.232-05:002014-08-04T14:45:20.232-05:00I thought it was called infantry because adultery ...I thought it was called infantry because adultery was already taken.<br /><br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4912713243046142041.post-59773497266731755842014-05-21T19:43:08.339-05:002014-05-21T19:43:08.339-05:00Interesting. I hadn't thought of that. Tx, B...Interesting. I hadn't thought of that. Tx, Barbwire.Minnesotastanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01382888179579245181noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4912713243046142041.post-27283091942785121182014-05-21T19:33:41.628-05:002014-05-21T19:33:41.628-05:00Infantry means those who have no say.Infantry means those who have no say.Barbwirehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17375742473254773675noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4912713243046142041.post-61697805521921016202014-01-13T03:32:44.010-06:002014-01-13T03:32:44.010-06:00It's not exactly "facts _about_ language&...It's not exactly "facts _about_ language", except maybe the first one.<br /><br />@ Anonymous (Jan 11) : answering with full phrases (which is still done in many languages* which have a yes and no)<br />- do you want some bread with your soup?<br />- thanks but i eat it without bread<br />* I'm especially thinking of portuguese "queres pao? quero" or lithuanian "nori duonos? noriu" used for "do you want bread? yes" #noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4912713243046142041.post-68125279716280549452014-01-11T10:37:24.747-06:002014-01-11T10:37:24.747-06:00An umiak is different from a kayak: it's open ...An umiak is different from a kayak: it's open at the top, like a skin canoe. I believe they were also used for different things: kayaks are for hunting sea mammals, which is probably why women didn't use them.Maiahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18358618477570574559noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4912713243046142041.post-49895241871560202552014-01-11T08:22:51.436-06:002014-01-11T08:22:51.436-06:00Not too long ago I finally found the opposite to a...Not too long ago I finally found the opposite to avuncular: materteral. Not too many people know that.<br /><br />Also, if Latin didn't have Yes or No, what did they use?<br /><br />Lurker111<br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4912713243046142041.post-10885226776215578332014-01-10T18:55:42.801-06:002014-01-10T18:55:42.801-06:00Ebriety --> Inebriated. Gotcha. I need to rem...Ebriety --> Inebriated. Gotcha. I need to remember that word sillage. There are certain people who always have a distinct and relatively strong sillage. If that is using the word right...Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4912713243046142041.post-57537339157802774362014-01-10T18:31:44.187-06:002014-01-10T18:31:44.187-06:00I was thinking about the word infant recently, and...I was thinking about the word <i>infant</i> recently, and how it differs from <i>baby</i>.<br /><br />For me, the prototypical infant is a newborn, or certainly no more than three months, whereas the prototypical baby (a more inclusive term) is a little older, perhaps six months. That is, I think of an infant as a particularly young baby, rather than as a synonym for "baby" in general.<br /><br />However, I can't find much evidence that other people see it the same way. The dictionaries certainly don't support my intuition.<br /><br />There is a tiny bit of support from the ngram viewer. If you look at the frequency ratio of the phrases "month old infant" and "month old baby" in American English, you'll find it's slightly less than the average frequency ratio of the corresponding phrases with "day" or "week" instead of "month". However, the difference is not strong. (It doesn't apply at all in British English.)<br /><br /><a href="https://books.google.com/ngrams/graph?content=month+old+infant%2Fmonth+old+baby%2C%28day+old+infant%2Bweek+old+infant%29%2F%28day+old+baby%2Bweek+old+baby%29&year_start=1938&year_end=2008&corpus=17&smoothing=2&share=&direct_url=t1%3B%2C%28month%20old%20infant%20/%20month%20old%20baby%29%3B%2Cc0%3B.t1%3B%2C%28day%20old%20infant%20%2B%20week%20old%20infant%29%20/%20%28day%20old%20baby%20%2B%20week%20old%20baby%29%3B%2Cc0" rel="nofollow">Here is the graph</a>.Adrian Morganhttp://outerhoard.wordpress.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4912713243046142041.post-20786923761643615432014-01-10T10:35:48.654-06:002014-01-10T10:35:48.654-06:00I now have a new word to work into my next book, D...I now have a new word to work into my next book, Dragon! :DW_D_Richardshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11099519910715677370noreply@blogger.com