# Borborygmus? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [January 12, 2000, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/borborygmus/12697 "2000-01-12T17:42:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![UncleBeer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/977dab/32.png) [@UncleBeer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UncleBeer)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2000, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/borborygmus/12697/1 "2000-01-12T17:42:00Z")
Nice word, eh? Coldfire, go get your dictionary. So, what actually causes intestinal rumbling? * * * What do I believe in? Not much that isn’t explained by logic and scientific experiment. And, you better believe, I want to see the logic and the laboratory equipment. –P.J. O’Rourke– ---
**Author:** ![system](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/original/2X/e/e489c3b7d8fce19c4b355dd4fc3f88cc39c34b87.png) [@system](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/system)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2000, 6:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/borborygmus/12697/2 "2000-01-13T06:01:00Z")
Well, personally I have problems with borecole, borage, borsch, and often Bordelaise. (Pardon the borak of me bordereau.) Dr. Watson “Bored with this borasca, and headed for the bordello borough to borrow some borneol.” ---
**Author:** ![TomH](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/90db22/32.png) [@TomH](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TomH)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2000, 6:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/borborygmus/12697/3 "2000-01-13T06:32:00Z")
Sorry, I couldn’t resist posting this: “Elephant hunters say that they can tell the proximity of a herd by the borborygmic noises the poor brutes emit.” –H. G. Wells writing in the _Sunday Express_, 1 May 1927. ---
**Author:** ![Coldfire](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a587f6/32.png) [@Coldfire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Coldfire)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2000, 9:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/borborygmus/12697/4 "2000-01-12T21:08:00Z")
Hey UncleBeer, You think I’m the only one that doesn’t know that word, just because I am not a native speaker of English ? Think again pal. From what I’ve heard, there are also a lot of Americans posting on these boards. ## (OK. Guaranteed to collect some flack, but I couldn’t resist. Sorry 😉 ) * * * Coldfire: second to none but Satan. * * * “You know how complex women are” - Neil Peart, Rush (1993) ---
**Author:** ![UncleBeer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/977dab/32.png) [@UncleBeer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UncleBeer)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2000, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/borborygmus/12697/5 "2000-01-12T22:38:00Z")
Naw, Coldy. It’s just a little wisecrack. I’m a smartass; what can I say? I remember you saying a while back that rarely had to dig out your English dictionary to find word meanings here. I think I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, your command of the English language is superb, idiom, jargon, argot, slang… It doesn’t seem to matter. By the way, are you this fluent in the other languages you speak? I think you said before you speak French and German? * * * What do I believe in? Not much that isn’t explained by logic and scientific experiment. And, you better believe, I want to see the logic and the laboratory equipment. –P.J. O’Rourke– ---
**Author:** ![Coldfire](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a587f6/32.png) [@Coldfire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Coldfire)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2000, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/borborygmus/12697/6 "2000-01-12T23:08:00Z")
Why, thanks Unc 😉 I speak Dutch, English, French and German. I’m only fluent in Dutch. I dare say that I am near-fluent in English - the premise being that a non-native speaker can only become fully fluent after spending some years speaking the language daily. My German is pretty good, enough to get me around, but my grammar might be a little rusty. With French, I’ll manage to get my way around as well, but it requires MUCH more concentration. I’m hoping that one day, I’ll be able to say I’m fluent at all these languages. Right now, it looks like English might be the one: in my job, English is the main language 95% of the day. My boss is English, his boss is American, I have an Indian (feathers) and a Sri Lankese colleague, etc. Damn, I know some accents you’ll probably never hear 😉 My next posting might take me abroad to who-knows-where… I’ll keep you posted on the language skills… ## BTW Unc, your English is pretty good too, for an American 🙂 * * * Coldfire: second to none but Satan. * * * “You know how complex women are” - Neil Peart, Rush (1993) ---
**Author:** ![Arnold\_Winkelried](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Arnold\_Winkelried](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arnold_Winkelried)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2000, 11:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/borborygmus/12697/7 "2000-01-12T23:13:00Z")
One cause for borborygmus is its potential for side-splitting comedy. See Charlie Chaplin’s Modern Times.