# Some "Facts" About The English Language **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [July 17, 2000, 2:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/some-facts-about-the-english-language/25848 "2000-07-17T14:56:59Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Gary\_Kumquat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/4491bb/32.png) [@Gary\_Kumquat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_Kumquat)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2000, 2:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/some-facts-about-the-english-language/25848/41 "2000-09-15T14:03:41Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Snooooopy \* > Could I call your wife Stella? \*\* I’d have to ask her permission first, or its another beating for me. ---
**Author:** ![Shaky\_Jake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/90db22/32.png) [@Shaky\_Jake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shaky_Jake)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2000, 2:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/some-facts-about-the-english-language/25848/42 "2000-09-15T14:51:58Z")
> [@](#): > > _Originally posted by Annie-Xmas \* > Also, the Brits use the word c_nt to mean arse. They also > drive on the wrong side of the road. Could Annie have been perhaps thinking of “fanny”? Here in the states, it means ones’ backside. I believe in England it refers to the female pudenda. Shaky Jake ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2000, 3:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/some-facts-about-the-english-language/25848/43 "2000-09-15T15:27:55Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Shaky Jake \* > \*\* > > > [@](#): > > > > _Originally posted by Annie-Xmas \* > > Also, the Brits use the word c_nt to mean arse. They also > > drive on the wrong side of the road. > > Could Annie have been perhaps thinking of “fanny”? Here in the states, it means ones’ backside. I believe in England it refers to the female pudenda. > Shaky Jake \*\* No, I read that in one of Willard Espry’s 'Words at Play" books. He is usually pretty reliable, so I trust him. Is there a 6 letter word that can be typed with your right hand. There are a lot of 5 letter ones (my favorite–hinky), but the only six letter ones I could find use --in’ for --ing. Anyone know a real one? ---
**Author:** ![Gary\_Kumquat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/4491bb/32.png) [@Gary\_Kumquat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_Kumquat)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2000, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/some-facts-about-the-english-language/25848/44 "2000-09-15T15:40:13Z")
Espry is wrong. Cvnt is not a term for arse in Britain. Fanny is. That’s why we love it when you talk about fanny packs, falling on your fanny, ask if your fanny looks big in these jeans, etc. Remember, this is the country that created Benny Hill, so imagine how funny we find smutty language inconsistencies. ---
**Author:** ![Occam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Occam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Occam)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2000, 3:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/some-facts-about-the-english-language/25848/45 "2000-09-15T15:52:04Z")
G. B. Shaw once made the observation that “fish” could be spelled: photi The ph in PHone the o in wOmen and the ti from naTIon ---
**Author:** ![matt\_mcl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@matt\_mcl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/matt_mcl)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2000, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/some-facts-about-the-english-language/25848/46 "2000-09-15T17:08:58Z")
It couldn’t. ti is only /S/ immediately before a vowel. This has been your Boring Phonology session for the day. ---
**Author:** ![NicePete](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ee7513/32.png) [@NicePete](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NicePete)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2000, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/some-facts-about-the-english-language/25848/47 "2000-09-15T17:25:23Z")
Actually, I thought Shaw said “fish” could be spelled “ghoti”: GH as in couGH O as in wOmen; and TI as in naTIon ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2000, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/some-facts-about-the-english-language/25848/48 "2000-09-15T17:57:59Z")
I’ve also seen “Oh, Calcutta” translated into the English “Oh, what an ass you have.” The phase is actually an English-ization of the French “Oh, quelle c\*nt tu a.” So maybe I’m mixing up French and British. ---
**Author:** ![Cervaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cervaise/32/16693_2.png) [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2000, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/some-facts-about-the-english-language/25848/49 "2000-09-15T20:10:34Z")
Another “four vowels in a row” word: obsequious And here’s another 9-letter single-syllable word: straights Not as in “dire,” but as in poker. ---
**Author:** ![Cervaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cervaise/32/16693_2.png) [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2000, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/some-facts-about-the-english-language/25848/50 "2000-09-15T20:14:29Z")
Another four-vowels-in-a-row word: **obsequious** And another nine-letter single-syllable word: **straights** Not as in “dire” or “of Magellan,” but as in poker. ---
**Author:** ![Cervaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cervaise/32/16693_2.png) [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2000, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/some-facts-about-the-english-language/25848/51 "2000-09-15T20:38:48Z")
I had a CGI problem, I backed out and re-previewed and everything, and I **still** get a double-post. :mad: ---
**Author:** ![malden](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7bcc69/32.png) [@malden](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/malden)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2000, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/some-facts-about-the-english-language/25848/52 "2000-09-15T20:54:16Z")
1. What about **underfund**? The city council decided to underfund the investigation to prevent the DA from discovering their corruption. ---
**Author:** ![rjk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ed655f/32.png) [@rjk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rjk)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2000, 9:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/some-facts-about-the-english-language/25848/53 "2000-09-15T21:56:41Z")
Annie: ‘junkily’? Not really standard English, but even so … ---
**Author:** ![Geek\_Mecha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/ecae2f/32.png) [@Geek\_Mecha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Geek_Mecha)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2000, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/some-facts-about-the-english-language/25848/54 "2000-09-16T01:58:58Z")
Double i words: genii (plural of genie, although Lederer once used it as a plural of genius), Elvii (The Flying Elvii are skydiving Elvis impersonators, IIRC) Shaw’s spellings of “fish” was “ghoti”, but there’s also “phusi”, “ffes”, “ughyce”, “Pfeechsi”, “pphiapsh”, “fuise”, and “ueisci”. ---
**Author:** ![kawliga](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ea666f/32.png) [@kawliga](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kawliga)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2000, 3:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/some-facts-about-the-english-language/25848/55 "2000-09-16T03:29:49Z")
-14. The verb “cleave” is the only English word with two synonyms which are antonyms of each other: adhere and separate. What about dust? To remove dust - when one dusts furniture - and to add dust - as in “dust for fingerprints.” ---
**Author:** ![Snooooopy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ee7513/32.png) [@Snooooopy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snooooopy)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2000, 7:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/some-facts-about-the-english-language/25848/56 "2000-09-16T07:57:22Z")
A friend of mine who is Irish mentioned that the theme song to “The Nanny” had to be altered a smidge in the British Isles because of the line which talks about the titular character being thrown out on her fanny. ---
**Author:** ![KJ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/b2d939/32.png) [@KJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KJ)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2000, 8:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/some-facts-about-the-english-language/25848/57 "2000-09-16T08:01:57Z")
I’ll go in order and see how many I can debunk (or add onto): 1. According to a **really really cool program** I got off the Utilities section of [this page](http://www.advsys.net/ken/default.htm), there are 5 words that end in “mt.” Unfortunately, they are: dreamt redreamt undreamt (don’t ask me to explain THAT one) daydreamt outdreamt (“Alright everybody! This here’s a dreamin’ competishin!”) So I suppose it’s safe to say that one’s probably right. 1. This one’s probably true. I looked up “put,” but it was only about half as long as “set.” 2. Using Ken’s amazing program yet again: underfund underground 1. If “schwartz” is a verb, then what about “schwartzed?” Would that count as English even if it is a verb? 2. Whoo boy. Here we go: iodous nodous amadous\* apodous vanadous hazardous palladous decapodous horrendous octopodous stupendous tremendous diplopodous\* rhizopodous\* sauropodous gastropodous phyllopodous\* branchiopodous\* (\* these words were not listed in the previous thread.) 1. [Cecil covered it.](http://www.straightdope.com/mailbag/mantidis.html) (though the word may count as latin, not English.) 2. Ditto. 3. This one just says “there is,” not “there is only,” so it has to be true. I’m sure if we searched hard enough, we’d find something better, though. 4. From my Etymology Dictionary: > [@](#): > > **testament** : _Testament_ is one of a range of English words that go back to Latin _testis_ ‘witness.’ This was derived from a prehistoric Indo-European based \*_tris-_ ‘three,’ and so demoted etymologically a ‘third person,’ who was not party to an agreement and thus could be a disinterested witness to it. Other English members of the _testis_ family include _testicle_, (which etymologically ‘bears witness’ to a man’s virility), _testify, testimony,_ and the prefixed forms _attest, contest, detest, intestate,_ and _protest._ There’s more, but I’ll stop there, because even that is probably more than you need to know. #12 is bullshit. 1. I was skeptical, so I looked up “hiccough,” and it is a word. It said “hiccup, also hiccough.” I’ve never heard hiccough before, and predict it will be a totally dead and extinct spelling within a few years, if it isn’t already. 2. Once again, it didn’t say “only” so it’s impossible to disprove. But I did still run Ken Silverman’s Amazing Word Finder, and got the same words already mentioned here. Re. 17: It is possible to have an entire sentence where the only vowel is Y. I forgot exactly what it was, but it was the solution to a puzzle in the game, “The 7th Guest.” IIRC, it was something like: Shy gypsy shyly spryly tryst by my crypt. Re: “ii” words besides skiing. You guessed it, I’m running the amazing word-finder: piing teiid obiism skiing teiids obiisms skiings aalii (whoah. Double a and i) genii medii radii torii aaliis cooniine taxiing coniines foliicolous congii alibiing zombiism zombiisms bacchii (another with two double-letters!) denarii nauplii senarii spelii filariid reduviid filariids reduviids safariing tholeiite tholeiites tholeiitic coraciiform coraciiforms retiarii sartorii sextarii saturniid assagaiing assegaiing chivariing saturniids turfskiing euphausiid euphausiids shanghaiing waterskiing And as long as we’re talking about records, this is probably my largest SDMB post yet. And to conclude my in-depth analysis, I’m going to use a Simpsons quote: > [@](#): > > Homer: What is a wedding, anyway? Well, the Oxford English Dictionary defines a wedding as…“the process of removing weeds from one’s garden.” [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/some-facts-about-the-english-language/25848.md?page=2)