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Oh spare, me, so if one doesn't speak American English, he or she is speaking incorrectly? The entire field of linguistics laughs in your general direction.
When I was teaching in London, the kids laughed at me when I called a "." a period, as we do in American English. Period only has one meaning in England - the ladie's monthly visitor...they call "." a full stop.
The term flashlight was derived from an 18th century Halloween tradition. Young folks would go door to door, in protest of "trick or treat", and flash their private parts to the homeowners.
However, their amusement was very limited as the home owners had a very hard time seeing their genitals due in part to poor lighting conditions.
This is how Joshua Cowens flashlight invention, which was originally designed for lighting fixtures for potted plants, was able to finally be commercially manufactured.
Hence the term, "Flash Light".
LOL! I certainly hope your joking, because Wikipedia says differently but my main point was ..... it's just a word, is it really necessary to nitpick? Who cares? It's off topic anyway.
LOL! I certainly hope your joking, because Wikipedia says differently but my main point was ..... it's just a word, is it really necessary to nitpick? Who cares? It's off topic anyway.
Nah, I made it up. That was my point as well, it really doesn't matter.
When I was teaching in London, the kids laughed at me when I called a "." a period, as we do in American English. Period only has one meaning in England - the ladie's monthly visitor...they call "." a full stop.
I taught in the UK for three months (London area). It was a wonderful cultural education for this Chicagoan (and for the students I had, who had a lot of misconceptions about my fair city, and what it meant to be from it ... they need to stop watching gangster movies ), and the difference between American and British English was only part of it.
I spent more than a few nights going over my US/UK spelling guide so that I'd get it right when writing words on the chalkboard.
Assuming that this is primarily a linguistics debate, the use of the word 'holiday' in lieu of 'vacation' is perfectly legitimate. If you look up the word in any dictionary, you'll see that the word can indeed be defined in this way. For example: holiday - Definition from the Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary
4: a period of exemption or relief
So what's the problem? I'll be going on holiday soon myself...
You don't go on a holiday. (A holiday is not a vacation, nor is it some type of motorized craft.
What kind of drugs were you taking when you wrote that?
I'm in no way a religious person, so I NEVER have any Holy Days.
I do take advantage of not working on Holidays though, which are not Holy Days....they're HOLIDAYS. A Holiday can be a Holy Day, but it obviously doesn't have to be.
Likewise I also take advantage of the 3 weeks of vacation given to me by my company. I normally take a few days off at a time and either travel, or relax at home.
Am I incorrect in saying that holiday mean "Holy Day"?
Yes, you are.
Holiday is derived from Holy Day, but in any and all modern day English it does not MEAN Holy Day.
Should I list off the other 17,000 English words that are derived from some other word or congegation, but have nothing to do with that in the modern day?
Hmmm ... I think I'll start a new thread. I'll call it:
"Darn it, it's a TRUNK, not a BOOT, for crying out loud!"
Or maybe:
"Why can't you Limeys call it a shopping cart instead of a trolley?"
I didn't start this thread.
I responded to a comment in another thread, and so many people made an issue of it, that the moderator created this thread for others to carry on the conversation.
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