|
wandersalone -> RE: What are some Words you never knew existed? (9/1/2008 8:30:22 AM)
|
quote:
ORIGINAL: sujuguete
quote:
ORIGINAL: stella41b
floccipaucinihilipilification - rubbishing something
I spent 13 years in Poland, mainly speaking Polish and suffered on both sides because of the spread in popularity of e-mails, texts and the Internet. Many Poles were learning English and as a sort of intellectual snobbery they would start interjecting Polish with English words, but the English word they used would have a completely different meaning to what it actually mean in English.
I come back to the UK after 5-6 years away (apart from visits) and yes I did lose a bit of English and was confused with words like 'wheelie bin', 'chav' and 'innit'.
I mean, what does 'innit' mean?
But where I was completely snookered was the acronyms in the e-mails and Internet. I can work them out if they are two, three or four letters long, but more than this and I'm lost.
The first time I encountered textspeak in an e-mail I thought that someone was trying to write with a knackered keyboard. Now I am of the opinion that it's more likely due to a knackered brain.
There are six more words I didn't know existed. Well, okay, "snookered" I had heard before.
Can you translate those from British to American? [;)]
I can try and help with a few but may be wrong...
wheelie bin - they are the rubbish bins on wheels that people have - we have a yellow one for recycling and a dark green one for other rubbish (or trash for the yanks [:D] )
innit - I have always thought it was slang for isn't it...but may have made that up
knackered - buggered, stuffed, screwed up.....eg as Stella said ...their keyboard is broken/not working ...we also use it as a synonym for tired ...eg. damn I am knackered.
|
|
|
|
