your favourite English/mothertongue word

[wanneszinnig]

what is your favorite word:

* in English
* in your mothertongue and what does it mean?

My favourite selection:

* stocking: It's not a kinky thing..I just like the way it is pronounced
* goesting: (pronounce it as gusting with a soft 'g') it is hard to translate but it is dirrived from the spanish word 'me gusto'...let say it means 'desire'...You use it when after a hard day of working you realy want a glass of beer. that kind of feeling :)

[cosmictraveler]

Credit! ;)

[Orleander]

epiphany is my favorite

[OilIsMastery]

Lucubration.

It means to study at night by lamp or candlelight.

[Fraggle Rocker]

goesting: (pronounce it as gusting with a soft 'g')I assume that's Dutch. Most Americans don't know what a "soft G" is in Dutch. It's the same as a soft G or a J in Spanish general or Juan, the CH in German bach, or the KH in Russian Mikhail. Dutch puts an H after a G to make it a "hard G." The correct pronunciation of the name Van Gogh is actually van khog.
It is derived from the Spanish word me gusto...let's say it means 'desire'.Not quite right. First off, a grammatical error, it's Me gusta. (More on that in a moment.) The phrase is simply translated as "I like." However, the subject and verb are reversed, since gustar means "to please." Me gusta esta canción literally means "this song pleases me," but since we don't speak that way in English we render it as "I like this song." Therefore, to put gustar in the first person and say (yo) me gusto is to say "I please myself," or in our English way of speaking, "I like myself." :)

"To like" is not an English verb that translates easily. The French say s'il vous plait, literally "if it pleases you." Germans say "ich habe es gern," which is really a difficult equivalent, with a literal meaning something like "I have it endeared."
You use it when after a hard day of working you really want a glass of beer.What a coincidence. Gusto is also a noun often heard in the ritual expression (con) mucho gusto, as in mucho gusto de conocerle a usted, "(It is a) great pleasure to meet you." We use the word in American English slang, anglicized with a short U sound. Many years ago a beer commercial admonished us, "You only go around once in life, so grab all the gusto you can."

Beer: the universal language. :)

[nietzschefan]

Oh comon, it's gotta be fuck, that one will outlast all the rest. Frankly nothing compares to English swears.

I favor my mother's side - Norwegian. Favorite word - "Lagom". No English equivalent.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lagom

I was told it was part of the general Danish/Norway philosophy of "Jante Law" - Do not think you are so special.

[wanneszinnig]

Fragle...I understand you wanna show you speak and understand a lot of languages...but Van Gogh is deffenatly not pronounced with a 'k' somewhere. it is even a softer sound than the 'j' in Juan'. To pronounce a Dutch 'g' you have to put the tip of your tongue to the tip of your 'underteeth' and puch a little air trough your mounth.

And when you say " s'il vous plait' in French you are asking something. If you wanna say you like something in French, to translate 'to like', then you better use the verb 'aimer'.

I agree with the beer though! :)

[wanneszinnig]

Oh comon, it's gotta be fuck, that one will outlast all the rest. Frankly nothing compares to English swears.

I favor my mother's side - Norwegian. Favorite word - "Lagom". No English equivalent.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lagom

I was told it was part of the general Danish/Norway philosophy of "Jante Law" - Do not think you are so special.

I checked the link...cool word! I guess I am going to add it to my daily vocabulairy :)

[Fraggle Rocker]

Oh comon, it's gotta be fuck, that one will outlast all the rest. Frankly nothing compares to English swears.I think most foreigners would disagree with that. We have a very small set of "cuss words." Listen to an angry American swear and you'll hear the same six or eight words over and over. I once heard a guy say, "I'm so fucking tired of all this fucking shitty... shit. And I'm really feeling limited by my vocabulary at the moment." Spanish has two perfectly obscene unprintable words for "fuck"; our alternatives like "ball" and "screw" are so mild that you can say them on TV. Spanish has two perfectly obscene unprintable words for "penis"; we don't have any. Every slang word for male genitalia has a respectable alternative meaning that allows it to get through every obscenity filter. Spanish even has an obscene unprintable word for "hell," derived roughly from the idea that it's the place where you go when you're really, really fucked.
Fragle...I understand you wanna show you speak and understand a lot of languages...but Van Gogh is definately not pronounced with a 'k' somewhere. It is even a softer sound than the 'j' in Juan'. To pronounce a Dutch 'g' you have to put the tip of your tongue to the tip of your 'underteeth' and puch a little air trough your mouth.Since we don't have that sound in English or in any other familiar language like German or Spanish, Dutch people generally tell us to use the KH sound. I can't pick out the phoneme on the rare occasions that I hear Dutch spoken by a native so I don't know what it sounds like. Is it perhaps the voiced fricative of Spanish G between two vowels, a voiced HK sound? That is a sound that anglophones simply don't hear. Everybody pronounces agua with the G of "gold," when in fact it's so soft that in colloquial speech it almost disappears. We know that intuitively, we pronounce the saguaro cactus as sa-wa-ro, but we don't think about it and realize that agua has the same consonant.

Anyway, I think the main thing Dutch people care about is that we stop pronouncing Van Gogh as "Van Go." :)
And when you say " s'il vous plait' in French you are asking something. If you wanna say you like something in French, to translate 'to like', then you better use the verb 'aimer'.So our verb "to like" is unusual. If I say I LIKE fried chicken, which I do more or less, it is a distinctly different opinion than to say I LOVE fried chicken, which I absolutely do not. It sounds like the French are not able to make that distinction. As usual, the Chinese can match us. To love is ai, to like is xi huan.

[cosmictraveler]

Oh comon, it's gotta be fuck, that one will outlast all the rest. Frankly nothing compares to English swears.

But here you need "credit" for a "fuck" because those that have "credit" get fucked all the time with high interest rates, 20%! .;)

[temur]

Is not Van Gogh somethinhg like "fan gogh"? I know dutch soft 'g', but I think it does not sound so soft, actually it sounds like the person is trying to destroy his throat :)

[wanneszinnig]

Is not Van Gogh somethinhg like "fan gogh"? I know dutch soft 'g', but I think it does not sound so soft, actually it sounds like the person is trying to destroy his throat :)

I must inform you that there is a difference between Dutch and Flemish. Dutch is spoken in Holland and there they tend to destroy there troath when they pronounce a 'g'...let's say you could compare it to the 'g' in Juan'.
In Flanders, and that is where I live (in fact I prefer to say I live in Belgium...But that is a political fact), we soften the 'g'. And I have been thinking of a language that also uses such a soft 'g'. It is not the 'g' you hear in Guadeloupe nor in Juan. You just don't stress the 'g' in anyway. It is a very soft sound. I'll check the net for a pronounciation.
Same story with the 'v'. Don't make it sound like a sound between 'f' and 'v'. It is the 'v' you use when saying' vacation'. now make it 'Van' like in Van Morrisson.

[wanneszinnig]

Fragle, if you wanna make the difference between liking and loving in French...you could do it this way:
If you meant 'i like to have chicken' as in an ordering way, you say: je veux du poulet.
If you meant it in a way that expresses your feelings towards the dish you would say: J'aime bien du poulet. (I like chicken)...
If you would want to express your total love and devotion to the dish you say: J'adore du poulet.
So yes in French you can express the difference between liking and loving...

[Avatar]

*English: life-form - it's kind of magical, scientific and misterious

*mothertongue: jūra - sea [ū as in fool]. It's a mystical word in Latvian mythology, there are daughters of the sea, then there is the sea itself as a personification, it's very frequently used daily, because everyone goes to relax by the sea. It's also historical, because we've been living by the Baltic sea for some thousands of years and there are many stories associated with it. And it's also personal, because I have lived by the sea and I love visiting it.
Basically it's a word where mythology, songs, history, everyday life and personal experiences come together.

[Sangamon]

Well this may sound a bit stupid, but my favorite word in English (eg the one i use the most) is 'cocksucker'. When pronounced with gusto it can convey so much. Look at the way Tony Soprano or Al Swearengen use it to understand what i mean. I'm a fan off oldskool cusswords

in my native tongue I must go with 'begankenis'. It is a word that is only used in my town and doesn't appear in any offical dictionary. Hell i don't even have a clue how to spell it properly.
When u say 'this place is a begankenis' it basically means that 'there is a hell of a lot of people coming and going in this place all being very busy doing stuff'
something like that

[cosmictraveler]

Clitoris :p

[spuriousmonkey]

Fragle...I understand you wanna show you speak and understand a lot of languages...but Van Gogh is deffenatly not pronounced with a 'k' somewhere. it is even a softer sound than the 'j' in Juan'. To pronounce a Dutch 'g' you have to put the tip of your tongue to the tip of your 'underteeth' and puch a little air trough your mounth.

that is if you want to pronounce it the correct way. Dutch people from above the big rivers give it a disgusting 'throaty coughing up mucus' sound with it.

NEVER A K THOUGH!!!!

[draqon]

"Algae" is my favorite word in english language

[wanneszinnig]

that is if you want to pronounce it the correct way. Dutch people from above the big rivers give it a disgusting 'throaty coughing up mucus' sound with it.

NEVER A K THOUGH!!!!

hum..I don't see where I ever said it is with a K...I just denied that it is with a K and that people from above the Moerdijk are masters in fucking Dutch words up. Do we agree?

[wanneszinnig]

*English: life-form - it's kind of magical, scientific and misterious

*mothertongue: jūra - sea [ū as in fool]. It's a mystical word in Latvian mythology, there are daughters of the sea, then there is the sea itself as a personification, it's very frequently used daily, because everyone goes to relax by the sea. It's also historical, because we've been living by the Baltic sea for some thousands of years and there are many stories associated with it. And it's also personal, because I have lived by the sea and I love visiting it.
Basically it's a word where mythology, songs, history, everyday life and personal experiences come together.

In what sentence would you use it? the sound of the word is beautiful and soft I guess.

[Avatar]

*Earth is inhabited by many life-forms, however it is discussed that life may have been brought to Earth enclosed in a meteor.
*All life-forms on Earth are carbon based, but some scientists as well as science-fiction writers speculate that it is possible for life on other planets to be based on silicon or another likely chemical element.

[Fraggle Rocker]

that is if you want to pronounce it the correct way. Dutch people from above the big rivers give it a disgusting 'throaty coughing up mucus' sound with it. NEVER A K THOUGH!It wasn't meant to be a K sound. In America we use KH to spell the sound of the Cyrillic letter X, and the equivalent Arabic letter. We're not consistent, we use CH for the Greek letter that has the same form and pronunciation, but then we usually pronounce that as a K, as in "psyche." Same for the Hebrew letter kheth: sholem alechem, not alekhem. We know that German ach has the same sound, but most of us don't know that the CH in ich is a different, rare phoneme. Many of us know that Spanish J is pronounced that way, but more of us pronounce it as an H. And there are probably only a hundred of us who know that Romanian spells that sound with an H.

For this reason I usually transcribe that sound, a voiceless fricative, as KH. I should have known that one day someone would misinterpret even that. :)
All life-forms on Earth are carbon based, but some scientists as well as science-fiction writers speculate that it is possible for life on other planets to be based on silicon or another likely chemical element."Hard" sci-fi writers (scientists who write fiction) have postulated alien life based on gases, liquids, crystals, and pure energy. James P. Hogan wrote about one that looked to us like a bunch of highly advanced machinery--and they had invented technology using a substance they had created artificially which looked to us like organic tissue. Each race assumed the other was the leftover artifacts from a long-dead species that resembled itself, when in fact each had proven the other's theory of abiogenesis.

I never heard the term "lifeform" used until Star Trek. Before that we got along just fine with the word "species." :)

[Avatar]

I never heard the term "lifeform" used until Star Trek.
Oh? I've never seen a StarTrek film. I think I first heard that word in a song by Enigma.

[Fraggle Rocker]

Oh? I've never seen a StarTrek film. I think I first heard that word in a song by Enigma.You haven't missed anything. Only the first one was any good IMHO. The original "Star Trek" was a TV series in the late 1960s. Although "Star Trek: The Next Generation," which ran in the late 1980s and was set about 80 years into the first one's future, had the largest audience and the greatest critical acclaim. Largely because it starred British Shakespearean actor Patrick Stewart. Never have so many women been sci-fi fans. :)

[temur]

Enterprise is also good. I like it mainly because of Seven of Nine and Captain Janeway. Seven of Nine (Jeri Ryan) is now in Shark. I don't know where Captain Janeway is.

[Learned Hand]

Wanker.

British slang for:

1. A detestable person;
2. A masturbator.

I had a real good friend from England when I was an undergrad, and nothing amazed me more than his accentual usage of the word. In American English, the idiom is never quite the same.

[Fraggle Rocker]

Enterprise is also good. I like it mainly because of Seven of Nine and Captain Janeway. Seven of Nine (Jeri Ryan) is now in Shark. I don't know where Captain Janeway is.That was Voyager. Enterprise had T'pol, the Vulcan, played by Jolene Blalock.

I liked Voyager because of the yin/yang aspect. Male starship captains are daddies, taking the kids out on exciting but risky adventures. Capt. Janeway was the mommy: all she wanted to do was bring her kids home safely--even the "orphan" she picked up along the way. When they finally made it back, it was the sweetest finale of all the Star Trek series.

[Spud Emperor]

Wizened.

withered or shrivelled

Now for the Mothertongue (Strine) Didjabringyagroggalong.

It's phonetic and self explanatory.

[Blue_UK]

I like the German word 'Schlampe' (pronouced shlamper) because it sounds so good. It sort of means 'slut' but it so offensive that a better translation would be 'nasty drunken whore'.

But I'm not German, so my English word would be 'Debauchery'.

[wanneszinnig]

Wizened.

withered or shrivelled

Now for the Mothertongue (Strine) Didjabringyagroggalong.

It's phonetic and self explanatory.

What does that mean? Is Strine the name of your mothertongue? Where is it spoken?

[Fraggle Rocker]

I like the German word 'Schlampe' (pronouced shlamper) because it sounds so good.You must be British and "non-rhotic", meaning your final R's are silent. We pronounce them on this side so we'd spell that SHLAHM-puh.
It sort of means 'slut' but it so offensive that a better translation would be 'nasty drunken whore'. But I'm not German, so my English word would be 'Debauchery'.Debauchery is an activity in which both men and women can participate--and besides, it is the word for the activity, not the person performing it. It sounds like a woman my parents would have called a "tramp," but that word has been out of vogue for half a century. In America today, people tend to use terms for other regional or social classes as insults. In a group of college graduates with professional jobs, we'd probably call her "trailer trash." (A trailer is a small mobile home intended for camping vacations, but the poor park them in small communities on the outskirts of towns and live in them.)
What does that mean? Is Strine the name of your mothertongue? Where is it spoken?I know, I know! "Strine" is the word "Australian," spoken quickly by a drunken Aussie! They tend to turn their long A's into I's.

[Spud Emperor]

I know, I know! "Strine" is the word "Australian," spoken quickly by a drunken Aussie! They tend to turn their long A's into I's.


Goodonya Fraggle Rocker, The drunken Aussie crowd erupts, cries of "Struthmateyerabloodylegend" "smarderthantheaverageSeppo" etc. ring out!

I was actually being frivolous when I quoted Strine as my Mothertongue as I sadly only have one language but on reflection, it is my other language and I guarantee a couple of Australians could have a whole conversation without other English speaking folks knowing what the hell they were on about.

Strine refers to the vernacular way of stringingallthewordstogetherwithout takingabreak. Add to that the general loose usage of the language and the abbreviations and the bastardised vowels and you have Strine.

Most Australians pronounce Australia something like astraya but Ashtraya is very common as is Shtraya.

[cosmictraveler]

soliloquy

Main Entry: so·lil·o·quy
Pronunciation: \sə-ˈli-lə-kwē\
Function: noun
Inflected Form(s): plural so·lil·o·quies
Etymology: Late Latin soliloquium, from Latin solus alone + loqui to speak
Date: circa 1613
1 : the act of talking to oneself
2 : a dramatic monologue that represents a series of unspoken reflections

[Orleander]

soliloquy

ooo, that is a pretty word. it flows nicely.

[Fraggle Rocker]

soliloquyAnd its definition and origin are...?

[Frud11]

“Ostray-leeyins” don't pronounce the neutral phoneme the same as most of the other English speakers. They don't say Sid-nee, but Seed-nee, and the substituted phoneme (first ee) is shorter. They pronounce words like league (leeg), as luh-eeg too. Their vowels become diphthongs a lot.

[Fraggle Rocker]

“Ostray-leeyins” don't pronounce the neutral phoneme the same as most of the other English speakers. They don't say Sid-nee, but Seed-nee, and the substituted phoneme (first ee) is shorter.That's not a "neutral phoneme," it's an English short I, the IPA symbol of a lower-case I with no dot. (Sorry I can't use those symbols with my browser.) The neutral vowel phoneme is the schwa: the A in ultrasound, the E in bracketing, the first I in efficacious, the O in pterodactyl, the U molybdenum. The IPA symbol is the upside-down lower-case E and it's named after a vowel with the same sound in Ancient Hebrew, which in Modern Hebrew adds to the confusion by being silent.
They pronounce words like league (leeg), as luh-eeg too.Americans pronounce that as a diphthong too, but a different one, more like leeyg. Listen to a cardinal I in Spanish or French and you'll hear a monophthong, a cleaner sound than ours that doesn't shift into a semivowel at the end.
Their vowels become diphthongs a lot.English vowels are pronounced quite different in the various countries. For the most part the Australian versions are not too dissimilar from our American versions, with notable exceptions like Aus-TRI-lia, a sound you hear in some British dialects as well. In "My Fair Lady," Professor Higgins was trying to teach Liza Doolittle to say "take" instead of "tyke." It's confusing to hear a Brit say can, hock, talk, because they sound like con, hawk, toke to us.

[cosmictraveler]

cornucopia

Function: noun
Etymology: Late Latin, from Latin cornu copiae horn of plenty
Date: 1508
1 : a curved goat's horn overflowing with fruit and ears of grain that is used as a decorative motif emblematic of abundance
2 : an inexhaustible store : abundance
3 : a receptacle shaped like a horn or cone