# Dunkin Donuts takes on Etymology **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [March 12, 2008, 7:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dunkin-donuts-takes-on-etymology/441084 "2008-03-12T07:02:47Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Happy\_Scrappy\_Hero\_Pup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/ea5d25/32.png) [@Happy\_Scrappy\_Hero\_Pup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Scrappy_Hero_Pup)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2008, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dunkin-donuts-takes-on-etymology/441084/21 "2008-03-12T15:46:06Z")
[I did a whole THREAD that was just as unsuccessful as this one a little over a year ago.](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=398228) ---
**Author:** ![Will\_Repair](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/a698b9/32.png) [@Will\_Repair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Will_Repair)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2008, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dunkin-donuts-takes-on-etymology/441084/22 "2008-03-12T15:53:29Z")
[QUOTE=John DiFool] I’m still trying to figure out the etymology of the word “Dunkin”; did the company originally sell their donuts with coffee, with the expectation that you would be “dunking” the donuts in the java? [/QUOTE] Dunkin’ Donuts no longer sell dunking donuts. They were plain donuts, delicious when hot, with a tap on one side used as a handle for dunking into coffee. The handle is no longer there. ---
**Author:** ![Southern\_Yankee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/southern_yankee/32/2800_2.png) [@Southern\_Yankee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Southern_Yankee)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2008, 3:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dunkin-donuts-takes-on-etymology/441084/23 "2008-03-12T15:58:54Z")
They do sell some kind of omelet sandwich on a **croissant**. How do their poor customers order _that_? ---
**Author:** ![hawksgirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/ed655f/32.png) [@hawksgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hawksgirl)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2008, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dunkin-donuts-takes-on-etymology/441084/24 "2008-03-12T16:11:31Z")
I just hate this commercial because it makes people think its ok to let their brains lock up when they see an unfamiliar word. I took a Central/South American lit in English class earlier this year and it was hell getting people to just TRY to pronounce the Spanish words and names instead of just skipping them. Watching this commercial just just sends me into flashbacks of my classmates skipping the names and locations in a story and pretending to be dumb. ---
**Author:** ![Bambi\_Hassenpfeffer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Bambi\_Hassenpfeffer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bambi_Hassenpfeffer)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2008, 4:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dunkin-donuts-takes-on-etymology/441084/25 "2008-03-12T16:18:53Z")
[QUOTE=Cheesesteak] > [@Brown Eyed Girl](#): > > Wait a minute…latte is English? > croissant > eclair If these words are not English, feel free to provide the English words for them. [/QUOTE] Crescent roll and long john 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Malthus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/85f322/32.png) [@Malthus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malthus)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2008, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dunkin-donuts-takes-on-etymology/441084/26 "2008-03-12T16:21:44Z")
I misread this thread as “Dunkin Donuts takes on _Entomology_”, and was wondering if they planned to expand the menu in unexpected directions. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2008, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dunkin-donuts-takes-on-etymology/441084/27 "2008-03-12T16:33:34Z")
[QUOTE=Southern Yankee] They do sell some kind of omelet sandwich on a **croissant**. How do their poor customers order _that_? [/QUOTE] Crotchburger. ---
**Author:** ![WOOKINPANUB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wookinpanub/32/132_2.png) [@WOOKINPANUB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WOOKINPANUB)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2008, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dunkin-donuts-takes-on-etymology/441084/28 "2008-03-12T16:35:01Z")
[QUOTE=hawksgirl] I just hate this commercial because it makes people think its ok to let their brains lock up when they see an unfamiliar word. I took a Central/South American lit in English class earlier this year and it was hell getting people to just TRY to pronounce the Spanish words and names instead of just skipping them. Watching this commercial just just sends me into flashbacks of my classmates skipping the names and locations in a story and pretending to be dumb. [/QUOTE] I don’t take it this way at all. I think it’s just playing up to many people’s dislike of Starbuck’s perceived pretentiousness. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2008, 4:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dunkin-donuts-takes-on-etymology/441084/29 "2008-03-12T16:50:42Z")
[QUOTE=Southern Yankee] They do sell some kind of omelet sandwich on a **croissant**. How do their poor customers order _that_? [/QUOTE] ?Usuallu in a tizzy of upcoming deliciousness. I used to live off their breakfast sandwiches. ---
**Author:** ![Frylock](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ce7236/32.png) [@Frylock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frylock)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2008, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dunkin-donuts-takes-on-etymology/441084/30 "2008-03-12T16:55:52Z")
[QUOTE=friedo] That commercial is so last year. (Seriously. It’s really old.) [/QUOTE] Where I live that commercial has only been playing for a few weeks. -FrL- ---
**Author:** ![Frylock](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ce7236/32.png) [@Frylock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frylock)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2008, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dunkin-donuts-takes-on-etymology/441084/31 "2008-03-12T16:59:29Z")
What I hate is that my very favorite musical group (They Might Be Giants) is participating in something I very much dislike–the sort of kneejerk unthinking snob-paranoid xenophobia-lite that commercial relies on. Oh well, I haven’t really liked their last two albums anyway. -FrL- ---
**Author:** ![Dumbguy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/2bfe46/32.png) [@Dumbguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dumbguy)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2008, 5:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dunkin-donuts-takes-on-etymology/441084/32 "2008-03-12T17:00:02Z")
[QUOTE=KneadToKnow] Not to pile on to the “this is a really old ad” replies, but [linky to a post from over a year ago mentioning this ad](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=8230166&postcount=31). [/QUOTE] Maybe it’s a regional thing. I’ve only seen them recently in LA. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2008, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dunkin-donuts-takes-on-etymology/441084/33 "2008-03-12T17:06:00Z")
[QUOTE=Dumbguy] Maybe it’s a regional thing. I’ve only seen them recently in LA. [/QUOTE] Here (FL) they ran for a while last year, and began re-airing recently after a hiatus of at least six months. Maybe you just missed the first run? ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2008, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dunkin-donuts-takes-on-etymology/441084/34 "2008-03-12T17:41:39Z")
That commercial is new to me as well. I don’t think DD invented the concept of dunking a donut. I think the place was named because of what people were already doing. I would bet that people have been eating them that way since… let’s see… How old is the NYPD, anyway? ---
**Author:** ![AskNott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asknott/32/5790_2.png) [@AskNott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AskNott)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2008, 6:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dunkin-donuts-takes-on-etymology/441084/35 "2008-03-12T18:57:39Z")
I haven’t seen the spot many times. I thought they were singing, “My mouth can’t form these words,” as in, “I don’t speak Frrrrrrranch, dude!” ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2008, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dunkin-donuts-takes-on-etymology/441084/36 "2008-03-12T19:04:22Z")
[QUOTE=AskNott] I haven’t seen the spot many times. I thought they were singing, “My mouth can’t form these words,” as in, “I don’t speak Frrrrrrranch, dude!” [/QUOTE] Is that not what they’re saying? ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2008, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dunkin-donuts-takes-on-etymology/441084/37 "2008-03-12T19:30:07Z")
[QUOTE=hawksgirl] …and pretending to be dumb. [/QUOTE] And the thing about pretending to be dumb is, if you do it often enough, you get good at it and actually become dumb! ---
**Author:** ![Plynck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3e96dc/32.png) [@Plynck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Plynck)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2008, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dunkin-donuts-takes-on-etymology/441084/38 "2008-03-12T19:37:15Z")
[QUOTE=Brown Eyed Girl] Last year when my husband took me to an expensive four-star where the menu was prix fixe, I ended up crying in the bathroom; the stress was just too great. [/QUOTE] Isn’t _prix fixe_ that herbal supplement in the late night commercials with Smiling Bob? ---
**Author:** ![Two\_and\_a\_Half\_Inches\_of\_Fun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ea666f/32.png) [@Two\_and\_a\_Half\_Inches\_of\_Fun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Two_and_a_Half_Inches_of_Fun)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2008, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dunkin-donuts-takes-on-etymology/441084/39 "2008-03-12T20:06:22Z")
[QUOTE=Dumbguy] This new series of [Dunkin Donuts commercials](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r2y_GwKzxck) offers us the opportunity to order a delicious coffee beverage without being forced to wade through a bunch of overly-voweled European foppery. On the surface the chance to order a latte in English might seem like just what the doctor ordered, but they are ignoring the fact that the word _latte_ is, in fact, unabashedly Italian. [/QUOTE] The commercial is not making fun of Starbucks for using Italian words, but for making up stupid words that sound like a mix of French and Italian. Your complaint would be apt if Dunkin’ Donuts was calling its latte a _laitte_, because DD is making fun of Starbucks for making up words, not for using Italian words. A better complaint would be to call out DD for claiming that Starbucks uses made up, French/Italian words. At Starbukcs, a small is a tall; a medium is a grande which is the Italian word for medium; and a venti is a large, 20 ounce drink and venti is Italian for 20. Starbucks does not use French/Italian words. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2008, 8:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dunkin-donuts-takes-on-etymology/441084/40 "2008-03-12T20:28:57Z")
Care to explain the logic behind tall = small, then? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dunkin-donuts-takes-on-etymology/441084.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dunkin-donuts-takes-on-etymology/441084.md?page=3)