# Newsflash! Latin phrases don't make your argument stronger. **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [April 8, 2011, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/newsflash-latin-phrases-dont-make-your-argument-stronger/577704 "2011-04-08T19:25:50Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/newsflash-latin-phrases-dont-make-your-argument-stronger/577704/21 "2011-04-08T20:40:22Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > If you want – I just made a minor variation on an old joke that originally used “Mongoose”, so I don’t think I “own” it. > > Use away. It’s like that joke about the guy calling into 911 that his girlfriend is hurt on the street, at the corner of Eucalyptus and Main. The 911 operator asks him to spell the street name, and he takes a long time responding…“I’ll just drag her over to Oak Street.” ---
**Author:** ![Ogre](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ecb155/32.png) [@Ogre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ogre)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/newsflash-latin-phrases-dont-make-your-argument-stronger/577704/22 "2011-04-08T20:40:23Z")
> [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](#): > > And what exactly is wrong with the word _y’all_? It’s simply the plural form of the second person pronoun. It’s less ambiguous than _you_; it’s conversational in tone. What have you against it? > > Is there something innately superior in the Northern American way of speaking? Ya’ll, not y’all. Note the misspelling. ---
**Author:** ![Enderw24](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ba9def/32.png) [@Enderw24](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enderw24)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/newsflash-latin-phrases-dont-make-your-argument-stronger/577704/23 "2011-04-08T20:40:34Z")
I’m going to create a line of legal audio books titled “res ipsa loquitor” ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/newsflash-latin-phrases-dont-make-your-argument-stronger/577704/24 "2011-04-08T20:41:01Z")
> [@Ogre](#): > > It’s “_ad nauseam_”. Isn’t that Latin for “Commercials make me vomit?” People who use Latin for no reason are pretentious assholes. ---
**Author:** ![Malthus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/85f322/32.png) [@Malthus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malthus)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/newsflash-latin-phrases-dont-make-your-argument-stronger/577704/25 "2011-04-08T20:41:26Z")
> [@olivesmarch4th](#): > > Permission to use this as a sig? It’s just too right. Only if combined with a Japanese school-girl avatar. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/newsflash-latin-phrases-dont-make-your-argument-stronger/577704/26 "2011-04-08T20:43:02Z")
> [@Ogre](#): > > Ya’ll, not y’all. Note the misspelling. And now the OP shall insist it is impossible to misspell _y’all_, since it is not a “real” word. We wouldn’t have these problems if y’all had let me keep the flail. ---
**Author:** ![PoorYorick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ecccb3/32.png) [@PoorYorick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PoorYorick)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/newsflash-latin-phrases-dont-make-your-argument-stronger/577704/27 "2011-04-08T20:43:24Z")
My nomination for the most misused logic term – and it’s even in English – is “begging the question.” Although I admit that the phrase doesn’t describe [the proposition to be proven is assumed implicitly or explicitly in the premise](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Begging_the_question) very well. Oh, well, Illegitimi non carborundum. ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/newsflash-latin-phrases-dont-make-your-argument-stronger/577704/28 "2011-04-08T20:46:40Z")
> [@PoorYorick](#): > > My nomination for the most misused logic term – and it’s even in English – is “begging the question.” Although I admit that the phrase doesn’t describe [the proposition to be proven is assumed implicitly or explicitly in the premise](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Begging_the_question) very well. > > Oh, well, Illegitimi non carborundum. I used to be with you on _begging the question_, but I’ve loosened up a tad. Using that term to mean that an assertion naturally causes those who hear it to be curious for specific additional information seems to naturally flow from the literal meanings of _beg_ and _question_. I’d call that usage a non-idiomatic meaning, while the “proper” meaning in logic is quite idiomatic and far from intuitive. ---
**Author:** ![Spice\_Weasel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spice_weasel/32/5435_2.png) [@Spice\_Weasel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spice_Weasel)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/newsflash-latin-phrases-dont-make-your-argument-stronger/577704/29 "2011-04-08T20:47:45Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > If you want – I just made a minor variation on an old joke that originally used “Mongoose”, so I don’t think I “own” it. > > Use away. Tah dah! ---
**Author:** ![Spavined\_Gelding](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/958977/32.png) [@Spavined\_Gelding](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spavined_Gelding)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/newsflash-latin-phrases-dont-make-your-argument-stronger/577704/30 "2011-04-08T20:49:58Z")
Cave canius! ---
**Author:** ![MOIDALIZE](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e274bd/32.png) [@MOIDALIZE](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MOIDALIZE)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/newsflash-latin-phrases-dont-make-your-argument-stronger/577704/31 "2011-04-08T20:51:21Z")
Yeah, well… _Feliz Navidad, próspero año y felicidad_. ---
**Author:** ![Walmarticus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Walmarticus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Walmarticus)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/newsflash-latin-phrases-dont-make-your-argument-stronger/577704/32 "2011-04-08T20:57:26Z")
like caps lock is cruise control for cool, italicized Latin is cruise control for smart. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Angel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/d26b3c/32.png) [@Johnny\_Angel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Angel)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/newsflash-latin-phrases-dont-make-your-argument-stronger/577704/33 "2011-04-08T20:58:17Z")
> [@PoorYorick](#): > > My nomination for the most misused logic term – and it’s even in English – is “begging the question.” Although I admit that the phrase doesn’t describe [the proposition to be proven is assumed implicitly or explicitly in the premise](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Begging_the_question) very well. > > Oh, well, Illegitimi non carborundum. That’s why you should instead use _petītiō prīncipiī_. > [@Spavined\_Gelding](#): > > Cave canius! Beware, greyish-man? ---
**Author:** ![Slithy\_Tove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slithy_tove/32/18248_2.png) [@Slithy\_Tove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slithy_Tove)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/newsflash-latin-phrases-dont-make-your-argument-stronger/577704/34 "2011-04-08T21:03:57Z")
I don’t speak Latin, but I do wipe with a communal sponge on the end of a stick and brush my teeth with the urine of Lusitanian virgins, so can I still get some cred here? ---
**Author:** ![Derleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/newsflash-latin-phrases-dont-make-your-argument-stronger/577704/35 "2011-04-08T21:11:13Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > I just encountered this the other day on another forum. Someone was using _argumentum ad major **a** m_ without having a clue what it meant. I’ve always preferred _argmentum ad marjoram_ myself. The spice rack agrees with me, so there! ---
**Author:** ![aldiboronti](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9fc348/32.png) [@aldiboronti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aldiboronti)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/newsflash-latin-phrases-dont-make-your-argument-stronger/577704/36 "2011-04-08T21:16:55Z")
> [@CitizenPained](#): > > I do use “ad nauseum” when I’m feeling sarcastic or trying to convey a certain feeling … You might find your sarcasm falling flat. It’s _ad nauseam_. ---
**Author:** ![Derleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 9:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/newsflash-latin-phrases-dont-make-your-argument-stronger/577704/37 "2011-04-08T21:19:16Z")
> [@aldiboronti](#): > > You might find your sarcasm falling flat. It’s _ad nauseam_. As originally spelled, it referred to a very unpopular vacation spot. ---
**Author:** ![FoieGrasIsEvil](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foiegrasisevil/32/16638_2.png) [@FoieGrasIsEvil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FoieGrasIsEvil)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 9:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/newsflash-latin-phrases-dont-make-your-argument-stronger/577704/38 "2011-04-08T21:25:39Z")
“_Sic transit gloria_.” “I didn’t know Gloria was sick!” ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 9:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/newsflash-latin-phrases-dont-make-your-argument-stronger/577704/39 "2011-04-08T21:28:01Z")
> [@FoieGrasIsEvil](#): > > “_Sic transit gloria_.” > > “I didn’t know Gloria was sick!” And on the bus, no less! ---
**Author:** ![Farmer\_Jane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Farmer\_Jane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Farmer_Jane)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2011, 9:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/newsflash-latin-phrases-dont-make-your-argument-stronger/577704/40 "2011-04-08T21:32:19Z")
> [@Ogre](#): > > It’s “_ad nauseam_”. 🙂 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/newsflash-latin-phrases-dont-make-your-argument-stronger/577704.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/newsflash-latin-phrases-dont-make-your-argument-stronger/577704.md?page=3)