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Reading an account of the big boxing match in the paper this morning I was introduced to the word 'fistic'.

I reached for my Chambers and sure enough found it listed as a facetious usage along with 'fistiana' et al.

Which made me wonder when it is that facetious idiom crosses the line of respectability enough to be listed in the big red book?

My ancient Welsh grandmother called handkerchiefs 'hankinponks'; my old father-in-law made up various words, e.g. 'problems' became 'prombles' and in our house we have 'poik', a cross between poke and point, and 'xhuhx' an expression of mild dislike or disgust.

I'm sure you clever wordy types have similar examples - it would make for cheery reading to hear of them.

Kt17

My grandma used to take great delight in comparing me to a `bullock walloper` when I was little ... I correctly didn`t think it was a term of endearment at the time and it`s not a happy memory. I preferred grandad - he kept out of the way ... usually hiding in his shed!

Tyke that's a good one for my notebook - though I've no idea what she meant by it!

Thanks


M

M
`bullock walloper` can be a gormless lad who hits bullocks with a large stick! - it can also have a ruder meaning - most of our ancestors were closer to nature than we are!

Hi Kt17, your posts got me thinking about when I was but wee young lad.

When playing in the garden with my younger siblings, we would mix clay with water to create a "pie" - I came up with the name "rumscullion" which, for some reason, I thought represented the form and texture of our culinary creation.

Imagine my surprise when I just looked it up to see "rumscullion" a dialect and American word meaning "a bad, idle, worthless fellow"!!

Thanks Brendan - from this I would mark you down as having been an imaginative and resourceful young gent!

My brief googling of the term suggests it was also in usage in the West Indies as one of a number of Rum- derived idioms.

Perhaps the word evolved separately and independently in different locations? It is certainly worth having!

M

Talking about woolgathering ... I have a liking for real ale (as well as rum) ... one of my favourite beers is from the Black Sheep Brewery ...

Riggwelter takes its name from a local Yorkshire Dales farming term which has Nordic roots; “rygg” meaning back, and “velte” meaning to overturn. A sheep is said to be rigged or ‘riggwelted’ when it has rolled onto its back and is unable to get back up without assistance. What better name for a strong beer from the Black Sheep Brewery in Yorkshire!

Tyke, I visited the BS brewery in Masham a couple of years back. Excellent tour, excellent beer !
My example of a nice word isn't from childhood, but something I heard recently. We use the word " schmaltz " to denote an overly - sentimental feature of films etc. It's taken directly from Yiddish, and means lard !

My mother-in-law used to use the word "wozzle" to mean a muddle, especially referring to knitting yarn. However, I won't be using it again, having looked it up for the purpose of this (unwozzled) thread! Sorry!

Rosalind that's a cracking word - I'll be sure to use it!

Tyke/Malcolm - a friend of mine's late father was a vicar in the Masham area, not averse to a drop of ale: he was regularly called in to the other, more famous brewery in the town to 'bless' a brew, and to enjoy some refreshment!