Outburst Of Pedantry

[bilbobaggins]

Re: Suzy\'s Hijab

A girlfriend teaching in Doha introduced me, many years ago, to these controversial items of apparel. Didn't stop her from being 'one hell of a woman', driving too fast about town in her pink and white open 4 x 4, blonde curls spilling out in the wind..... Fully covered up, she was still a 'traffic stopper'.

Hijab

Wiki definition

or, supplemented by a 'niqab', here...

Niqab

 

[peterb]

Re: Give that man a prize

[ QUOTE ]
As for the bow/bows I'm happy to admit that I use them interchangeably, without being aware that one is 'right' and the other 'wrong'. If, in your terms, we take something which is stuck dead centre between the bows, like the anchor roller, it is usually called the bow roller, not the bows roller. Ditto bow sprit. Similarly, if I go to the front of my modest vessel, I'm going to the pointy bit, not to left left or right of it. In you terms I would be at the bows, in mine at the bow, but each of us would understand perfectly what the other meant. On the other hand, I would ask someone to keep a sharp lookout on the port bow, not the port bows.

[/ QUOTE ]

Interesting. "Where's John?" "He's up in the bows." "He's up on the bow." At least, that's the way I've often used the words, without thinking about them. Why do I use the plural if John's inside, but singular if he's outside?

Oh, and I was taught that "upper" and "after" were comparitive adjectives, like higher, stronger and faster. That's why we have bower anchors; the ones furthest for'ard.

 

[Lakesailor]

Re: Give that man a prize

[ QUOTE ]
for'ard

[/ QUOTE ]

Why do we still use terms like this? They were the pronunciations that dialect-ridden sailors who could hardly string two word together used.

Someone will now tell me that it's easier to hear in a Force 10 than "forward".
Maybe that was true when the same filthy old jack tars had four months of earwax blocking their lug-holes, but most people on AWBs can understand "forward" without any problem.

Substitute any abreviated mariner's term. (the term is abreviated, not the mariner)

 

[reginaldon]

Re: Give that man a prize

The prize L-S ought to be a giant size wooden spoon. ex Jack Tar (Only NS) minus ear wax

 

[Lakesailor]

Re: Give that man a prize

I think you're probably too young to qualify. I'm thinking back to Press Gang times.

It's a hobby-horse of mine.

 

[Rabbie]

I nearly fell off my chair this morning when a poster on this site asked, 'Wodya fink?' (sic) - and thats how I felt!.

 

[BlueSkyNick]

Re: Give that man a prize

[ QUOTE ]


Interesting. "Where's John?" "He's up in the bows." "He's up on the bow." At least, that's the way I've often used the words, without thinking about them. Why do I use the plural if John's inside, but singular if he's outside?

[/ QUOTE ]
never thought about it before, but it seems obvious now. As there is a port bow and a starboard bow, ie each is singular, both together are plural ie the bows.



That's on a real boat of course. On a catamaran, I suppose they refer to the outer bows of each hull as port and starboard. The inners must be the starboard bow of the port hull, and the port bow of the starboard hull. Confusing eh? Yet another good reason not to own one /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif

 

[suse]

Obviously posted by an ignorant git - of course it should be "WODJA" fink. Tsk tsk.

 

[Superstrath]

Wondered around a few posts today and wandered why some people don't realise that "wonder" and "wander" are not interchangable words.
That's another peculiar error thats seems to be very common.

I'll stop now.

 

[Tisme]

[ QUOTE ]
That's another peculiar error thats seems to be very common.

[/ QUOTE ]

Thats? /forums/images/graemlins/smirk.gif

 

[peterb]

[ QUOTE ]
Thats? /forums/images/graemlins/smirk.gif

[/ QUOTE ]
Yes. That (i)s. Apostrophe replacing the missing i

 

[Lakesailor]

I was worried. I thought it was me. All that education gone up the spout.

 

[Tisme]

No. The second "thats". The one without the apostrophe. /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif

 

[Lakesailor]

Oh bugger. It was me.

 

[Superstrath]

[ QUOTE ]
Oh bugger. It was me.

[/ QUOTE ]

Excellent!

 

[Sgeir]

Re: Ought to be - correct spellings sort.

[ QUOTE ]
yea it really really winds me up to.

I don't like common mistakes such as towards. There is no such word, it can only be toward.........

[/ QUOTE ]You missed the irony button.

 

[Superstrath]

Re: Ought to be - correct spellings sort.

One has to be so very, very careful in this kind of situation. Well spotted!

 

[Twister_Ken]

Begging to differ

Both toward and towards are permissable, although not always interchangeable.

I am sailing towards land
I am heading toward retirement

 

[Superstrath]

Re: Begging to differ

No, Ken, not that, this:

"it really really winds me up <u>to</u> ."

 

[Twister_Ken]

Re: Begging to differ

You can't be too careful when using the two forms of to.