# What's Your Username Mean? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [April 12, 2003, 9:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-username-mean/168324 "2003-04-12T21:25:29Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![Intaglio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/71e660/32.png) [@Intaglio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Intaglio)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2003, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-username-mean/168324/81 "2003-04-14T20:39:41Z")
Intaglio = A method of Offset Printing - using a plate that is etched and inked to create the printed piece - used mostly for printing Currency - Money, Stamps, etc. I am a Printer by Trade. ---
**Author:** ![Spiff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spiff/32/9852_2.png) [@Spiff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spiff)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2003, 9:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-username-mean/168324/82 "2003-04-14T21:02:21Z")
“Spiff” is chiefly a British word, it means a dandy or a gadfly. Think of Oscar Wilde minus the homosexual part – not that there’s anything wrong with that! I also like its derivation; it comes from the British “spiv,” which is slang for a slacker or somebody who lives by his own wits. A short list of the many types who could properly be called a spiv or a spiff: a racetrack tout, a petty thief, a con artist, or a grifter. Anyway, that’s the short story. Here’s the long version: There are various meanings of spiff, all are British slang: [noun] A commission, such as the kickback a salesperson gets on a making a sale. It implies a shady deal. (This is the only sense of the word that I’ve actually heard used in real life.) [noun] Someone who gets along by the seat of his pants, a bon vivant, a roustabout, a gadfly. [noun] The derevation of the above definition is the Old British word spiv, which has a slightly more sinister meaning. It refers to real shady characters such as racetrack touts, con artists, grifters, quacks, snake oil sellers, etc. [adj.] We all know that someone who is spiffy is well dressed. But did you know that someone who’s spiffed or spifflicated is drunk? [verb] To spifflicate means to astonish; bewilder; to confound; also, to beat; to stifle; to kill. I got this nickname from my college mates, who chose it just because it “sounded cool”. They didn’t know it was a real, though obscure, word (nor did I at the time). ---
**Author:** ![juji\_mojo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/7ea924/32.png) [@juji\_mojo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/juji_mojo)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2003, 10:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-username-mean/168324/83 "2003-04-14T22:19:40Z")
Juji— a childhood nickname I gave myself. My imaginary friends used it for me a lot, too. I’d almost forgotten it though, when a friends child called me that since its sort of like my own name. When I started using the internet and chat rooms, I had variations on juji as my name. Mojo is what lazy people who dont bother to ask or remember make of my married name. Yes, some of the letters are the same, but they are in totally the wrong order to be pronounced mojo. Im sort of wishing I had picked a different name though, since there is already a jomo mojo here on the board. (Sorry Jomo) ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2003, 12:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-username-mean/168324/84 "2003-04-15T00:14:13Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Hari Seldon \* > **Maybe so, but pois mangetout usually just means snow peas, aka edible-podded peas, of whatever age.** I’ll be very surprised if you’ve had anything **but** immature pea pods served as _pois mangetout_ - by the time the seeds are fully formed, the pod will be thinning and stringy. ‘Sugar snap’ is about the nearest you can reasonably get. ---
**Author:** ![ladybug](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/46a35a/32.png) [@ladybug](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ladybug)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2003, 12:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-username-mean/168324/85 "2003-04-15T00:28:41Z")
I ended up with my name because I’m a cartoonaholic. _Transformers: Beast Machines_ was on TV when I registered. One of the characters, a spider-robot named Blackarachnia, was nicknamed “ladybug” by one of her teammates. I thought it was kinda cute and decided to use it here. In retrospect, I probably should have stuck with the name I use on other message boards. ---
**Author:** ![Laughing\_Lagomorph](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/6bbea6/32.png) [@Laughing\_Lagomorph](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Laughing_Lagomorph)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2003, 12:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-username-mean/168324/86 "2003-04-15T00:50:23Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Stink Fish Pot \* > \*\*There is a reason for mine, of course. But wouldn’t it be more interesting if someone actually knew it? > … \*\* I seem to remember it from an episode of _MASH_ when they were trying to teach a group of Koreans to speak English. I think it was a name Frank Burns called Hawkeye, and the Koreans, thinking it was part of the lesson, repeated it after him in unison. “You tell him, Ferret Face” was from the same episode. BTW **Spiff** , your username was also the name of Calvin’s spaceman alter-ego in _Calvin and Hobbes_. ---
**Author:** ![Mephisto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/48db29/32.png) [@Mephisto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mephisto)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2003, 12:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-username-mean/168324/87 "2003-04-15T00:59:27Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by IEatFood! \* > \*\*I always thought he was a greek detective. No shit. The reason? I remember hearing “Mephistopheles is not my name, I know what you’re up to just the same…” in a _The Police_ song when I was a small child myself. > So, being impressionable, I naturally thouht that Meph guy was good at knowing what wayward, manipulative women were up to. Hence, a damned good detective, lol. > Funny how things from childhood are so hard to correct later on! \*\* Weird. I’ve been doing a lot of “detective work” regarding ancient Greece lately, in school. Unfortunately, whatever impression Sting might have given your impressionable young mind, the name “Mephistopheles” confers on one absolutely no special abilities when it comes to knowing what wayward, manipulative women are up to. Quite the opposite, really, judging from my experiences. 🙂 Damn wayward, manipulative women . . . “You’ll be . . . wrapped around my finger . . . .” _Walks off muttering half remembered Police lyrics under breath_ ---
**Author:** ![Horatio\_Hellpop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Horatio\_Hellpop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatio_Hellpop)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2003, 1:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-username-mean/168324/88 "2003-04-15T01:08:13Z")
**Krokodil** is (or was) the name of a Russian humor magazine. Lenin was allegedly its editor at some point. I bought a book of cartoons from **Krokodil** about ten years ago and was blown away at how funny and well-drawn they were, and how many fine art and classical Greek images they incorporated. ---
**Author:** ![Skydive101](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f07891/32.png) [@Skydive101](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skydive101)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2003, 1:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-username-mean/168324/89 "2003-04-15T01:30:52Z")
I love to go skydiving, but I’m still a complete novice at it. So I took the 101 from a beginning level college class. Not the most creative! 😉 ---
**Author:** ![dono](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e0b2c6/32.png) [@dono](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dono)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2003, 3:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-username-mean/168324/90 "2003-04-15T03:50:00Z")
It’s based on my real name, and it’s a nickname that a lot of people use on me. Creative, imaginative guy that I am. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![iidkyimys](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/d6d6ee/32.png) [@iidkyimys](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iidkyimys)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2003, 6:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-username-mean/168324/91 "2003-04-15T06:05:44Z")
An anagram for ‘If It Doesn’t Kill You It Makes You Stronger’. ---
**Author:** ![Qixotica](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/5fc32e/32.png) [@Qixotica](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qixotica)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2003, 7:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-username-mean/168324/92 "2003-04-15T07:47:54Z")
Since I don’t believe I’ve ever posted to one of these threads… It’s a corruption of the word [quixotic](http://www.m-w.com/cgi-bin/dictionary?book=Dictionary&va=quixotic), which is derived from Don Quixote, from _Man of La Mancha_. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2003, 7:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-username-mean/168324/93 "2003-04-15T07:54:51Z")
[nitpick]I think you mean _acronym_. An anagram of ‘If It Doesn’t Kill You It Makes You Stronger’ would be something like: **My generous task or fidelity solution kit** But that would be too long.[/nitpick] ---
**Author:** ![ChalkPit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a88e4f/32.png) [@ChalkPit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ChalkPit)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2003, 9:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-username-mean/168324/94 "2003-04-15T09:29:06Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Mangetout \* > \*\*Farley Mount. You’re not far from me, I live in Botley (have I said this before?). \*\* That’s the one. Romsey here. ---
**Author:** ![Spiff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spiff/32/9852_2.png) [@Spiff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spiff)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2003, 12:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-username-mean/168324/95 "2003-04-15T12:38:24Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Laughing Lagomorph \* > \*\*BTW **Spiff** , your username was also the name of Calvin’s spaceman alter-ego in _Calvin and Hobbes_. \*\* Bah! A Johnny-Come-Lately if there ever was one … ---
**Author:** ![Kiger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Kiger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kiger)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2003, 1:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-username-mean/168324/96 "2003-04-15T13:14:54Z")
I own a Kiger Mustang…horse, not car. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Satchmo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/satchmo/32/4223_2.png) [@Satchmo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Satchmo)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2003, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-username-mean/168324/97 "2003-04-15T15:00:20Z")
My username is a nickname given me by my favorite stepfather. (I’ve had three.) He said I sounded like Louis Armstrong when I sing. I think I make noise that sounds like it’s coming through a bucket of gravel and frightens children and dogs. But it’s a name I like. 🆒 ---
**Author:** ![T.Slothrop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3e96dc/32.png) [@T.Slothrop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/T.Slothrop)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2003, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-username-mean/168324/98 "2003-04-15T19:40:05Z")
Mine is the main character in the book Gravity’s Rainbow by Thomas Pynchon, Tyrone Slothrop. ---
**Author:** ![Honey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/honey/32/5074_2.png) [@Honey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Honey)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2003, 7:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-username-mean/168324/99 "2003-04-15T19:52:00Z")
Mine is a nickname given to me by friends. I call everyone honey. Friends, strangers, clients, etc… My real name is actually Jill. ---
**Author:** ![greck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/7ab992/32.png) [@greck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/greck)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2003, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-username-mean/168324/100 "2003-04-15T19:59:28Z")
mine is my real name when mangled by my wife’s mexican accent. Funny story, it was written that way on the tag when I picked up my tux for our wedding (in mexico). [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-username-mean/168324.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-your-username-mean/168324.md?page=6)