Young Mr Sunak and Ursula von der Leyen, batting eyes at each other in Northern Ireland earlier in the week, made me think. And not only because I didn’t know Blind Date had been resurrected without Cilla Black.
I was struck by a TV reporter’s insistence the details of the latest episode in the Brexit saga were being “gone through with a fine-tooth comb”. I prefer “fine-toothed comb”.
This is merely my interpretation, I hasten to add. You might disagree. A fine-tooth comb says (to me) the teeth are narrow. But a fine-toothed comb suggests many teeth, which are narrow and close together. It is, I admit, a fine distinction (see what I did there).
Substitute the comb for a fork. I’d say a “narrow-tined fork” not a “narrow-tine fork”. Narrow-bristled brush, not narrow-bristle brush.
You can make up your own mind. I merely illustrate that each of us has slightly, perhaps minutely, different definitions of words and phrases.
I’m never comfortable with drawn football matches being called a stalemate. A stalemate means “no possible move to make”. The teams could have “possibly” made a move to score a goal (though this is an unlikely scenario with my team at the moment!)
Do chickens count among the “livestock” on a farm or just cattle and pigs? Is a castle really a castle if it has large modern windows? A frame is always four-sided, isn’t it? You can’t have a circular frame.
Is surefire more sure than sure? Which is more asleep: fast or sound? Is a female cat more aptly called a pussycat than a male cat? Is a long-haired cat more of a pussycat than a short-haired one?
A conundrum, to my mind, is difficult but can be unravelled. A Gordian knot can’t be undone. It must be cut.
Is “vuja de” an acceptable term? It is the opposite of the French borrowing déjà vu. Vuja de, I am assured, means experiencing something familiar but thinking it strange and unknown.
What does “gluggy” mean? I’ve known a curry described as “gluggy” if the consistency is too watery. I heard a woman describe her wine as “gluggy”, meaning she could drink a lot of it. One of my great friends, David, said recently he’d drunk so much his amply-proportioned belly felt “gluggy” with beer sloshing in it. I’ve heard a sink drain described as “gluggy” because it made odd noises when liquid was poured down it.
Do you even accept gluggy as a word in English? If so, what is its primary meaning?
English is confusing sometimes, isn’t it.
Word of the week
Ludic (adjective)
Playful, often playful with no reason. EG: “Sometimes, in these serious and worrying times, we all should enjoy a ludic interlude even if just to break the monotony.”
Read the latest Oh my word! every Saturday in The Courier. Contact me at sfinan@dctmedia.co.uk
