family euphemisms

[arthurdent]

To arthur:

Arthur? We're splitting hairs. You seem like a terribly nice fellow but I think you get the gist of the upbeat light weight nature of this thread. We needn't work it to death.

Can we simply address the topic at hand?

I wasn't expecting to be landed on for posting my first thread in a very long time.

Again. It's very nice to meet you.

Hi Stronzo,

Nice to meet you. I agree with your definition of a euphemism but so far I would say that less than half of the phrases mentioned, fit the definition. I think most are just colloquialisms and aphorisms. However, as the nature of this thread is light-hearted, I'll turn a blind eye to rigorous definitions. Did you see what I did there?

 

[arthurdent]

I have never seen a green one in my life, they have always been black, even when I made my for my children, the only option for the paint used was black, maybe that is a UK thing, but that is why they were always called black boards at least here.

I grew up in Bristol (well, Alveston a few miles north) and I remember some boards being green and some black. Apart from the hard kind of boards, numerous classrooms also had flexible ones, made of rubber-like material, which were supported on rollers at top and bottom, so they could be rolled round to reveal a fresh surface, without having to erase what had already been written. In the science/maths rooms, part of the flexible sheet was pre-marked in a grid for making graphs easier to draw. Perhaps it was only the flexible ones which were green. It's 30 years ago now, so I can't remember the details.

 

[HazelGod]

Those are not euphemisms; they're just phrases, expressions or sayings.

A euphemism is an inoffensive word or phrase used to play-down another word or phrase.

You're 100% correct, Mr. Dent. A timely example would be the use of the phrase "enhanced interrogation techniques" when discussing torture.

I wouldn't waste your time belaboring the point to the OP, however. This person has a long history of misusing terms that he's not familiar with in amusing attempts to make himself appear more articulate than he actually is.

When corrected, he'll usually cite some formal definition without understanding that it doesn't support his case at all (as in this instance).

Not that he'll admit it, but the word he was looking for is colloquialism.

 

[Principessa]

Nana
Surprise package - that was her name for me because I was unexpected. :smile: She hated to hear children called accidents because nobody likes or wants an accident. But everbody loves a surprise package. I was definetely loved by her, I miss her madly.

Dad
Miss Ann - He uses this to let me know I am acting uppity, like a rich white girl. FWIW - My name is not Ann. :tongue:

Mom
Water seeks it's own level - Kinda like you can't make a silk purse from a sows ear.
Blood will tell - Has something to do with class distinctions. Mom's family is big on those. No, a DNA test is not required.
Lord love a duck - exclamation

Aunt Louise
More nerve than a brass-assed monkey! - someone with A LOT of Chutzpah

Great Aunt Joan (God rest her soul)
Would threaten her often unruly grandchildren with:
"If y'all chil'ren don't settle down I will beat the black off yer ass!"
"Don't make me beat yer ass til it bleeds!"

Uncle Vernon
Sugar Tit: pronounced Shu gaaar Teeeee it - this was dragged out to at least 4 syllables. He used it instead of saying shit around his mother and my grandmother. I have no idea why this was more acceptable.

Great Aunt Jean
That Nasty Heifer - That skanky bitch

I remember when I was very young the chalkboards were black and a short time later they were green, I had completely forgot about that until your post.
In NY many people ask if you want your coffee light or dark.

Wow, I had forgotten about when we switched to green boards. :smile: Our teacher insisted we call them chalkboards rather than black boards for the obvious reason.

There are times when being PC can be taken too far.

I ran into a white guy out on the floor with a problem he needed to have resolved. He mentioned that he'd given the details to a guy who worked with me, but couldn't remember the guy's name. He kept hemming and hawing, describing the guy about so tall, and black hair, mid-20's to mid-30's, etc. I kept naming names and he kept saying "no, no, that's not right. "

I later found out that he meant the black guy who worked with me (and he was the ONLY black guy who worked with me), but couldn't bring himself to describe him as "black." Oh, well. We eventually got ONE of his problems resolved! Lol

:rofl: ROTFLMAO I have heard of this happening many times. It's ludicrous. I have had it happen where I was you and after a while it would come to me and I would say, "Oh, you mean that tall black guy?" Or you mean that chubby black girl who wears loud prints all the time? or whatever. :tongue: We could both then have a chuckle as I clearly didn't know their name either. :lmao:

 

[arthurdent]

When I first left home, I shared a room in lodgings with a guy who worked at the same company. At the end of an evening watching TV, he would say "I'm just going to turn my bike round" and then leave the room for some time. It was months before I realised he didn't have a bike and was just going for a number two!


If you can't think how to describe someone without being offensive, take a few tips from Little Britain's Linda Flint.

 

[HazelGod]

Sweatin' like a whore in church
Someone experiencing a great deal of anxiety.

Useless as tits on a boar hog
Busier than a one-legged man in an ass-kicking contest
Self explanatory.

 

[arthurdent]

I'm sweating like a glass-blower's arse.

You're about as much use as a chocolate tea-pot.

She's all fur and no knickers.

 

[Drifterwood]

I am just going to shake hands with my best friend. I.e. go for a piss.

 

[B_Stronzo]

Hi Stronzo,

Nice to meet you. I agree with your definition of a euphemism but so far I would say that less than half of the phrases mentioned, fit the definition. I think most are just colloquialisms and aphorisms. However, as the nature of this thread is light-hearted, I'll turn a blind eye to rigorous definitions. Did you see what I did there?

Not sure what you mean by "did you see what I did there". So no. Can't say that I did.

Be that as it may;

Good. The hand of friendship. Thanks arthur.

Yes. It's a funny thing (and a nifty one I think) the way these threads swerve off topic and then back again. I didn't require (nor do I have any right to) a strict boundary that people only post true euphemisms. It was a premise. Variants like old sayings, family sayings, yes even colloquialisms.

There's no reason to mire ourselves down in semantics. It's just for fun.

I like the turn the thread's taken. It's calling people back to their youth which was my intent.

You're very kind to - as you say - "turn a blind eye to rigorous definitions".

The fun nature of the thread would be lost were we to remain strictly topical in my view.

Thanks for your kind understanding and ability to see this in the sort of perspective which was its intent. It's not always necessary I find to be "right" (whatever that means) in all things. There's room for all... room for all. :smile:

Stronzo

 

[London_Calling]

On that note, I think I'll go and see a man about a dog.:wink:

 

[arthurdent]

Not sure what you mean by "did you see what I did there". So no. Can't say that I did.

What I did there, was to use one of those little phrases, surreptitiously getting it under the radar. Lord love a duck, I did it again.

Did you know that the opposite of a euphemism is a dysphemism? That is using a word or phrase to make something sound worse or more offensive. Going back to the OP, I'd say example 4 seems more like a dysphemism than a euphemism to me!

 

[B_Stronzo]

On that note, I think I'll go and see a man about a dog.:wink:

Well done :wink:

 

[B_cigarbabe]

Stronzo I am very happy to see you here.
Welcome sexy!
C.B.:saevil:

 

[B_Stronzo]

cigarbabe -

Your kind words of welcome are apprecieated more than you know.

All the best, Stronzo :smile:

 

[b.c.]

Never heard "lord love a duck". Have heard "fuck-a-duck" (a college buddy of mine used to say it all the time...means the same as saying "aww fuck" but with a bit more levity).

 

[Wish-4-8]

I didn't grow up in Bristol, I was in a somewhat small part of Wales as a child, and granted, my junior school was, whats the polite way of saying this? Behind the times, yes, thats it. My comprehensive school however, was one of the most advanced for the area, and they were still black, and this was around 10 years ago. Maybe they just don't like green in Wales... (Our uniforms were green, and gold, it was horrid, maybe they just thought green boards was a step too far)

Do you realize you just used a euphemism? :wink:

 

[arthurdent]

Lord love a duck is very mild, like Gosh! or Good Grief!

Other exclamations of shock or surprise are:

Bugger me sideways!
Roger me with a fish-fork!

 

[Principessa]

My maternal grandmother was fond of saying - 'When I tell you the berries are ripe, you can get your basket and start pickin'.
This was usually said instead of I told you so, to let you know she was right and you were wrong. :biggrin1:

 

[SirWill]

Paternal Grandpa; "I'm agonna get a jib on ya like a chicken on a june bug."
"I reckon thatsa wholotta whipping for all that lippin"

He was a cheezy man.

 

[chicagosam]

"Get off your high horse" (Get your ego in check, get over yourself.)