Monday, October 26, 2015

Weather and Word Meanings.

Cold and damp weather blew in here and the high today was only in the low 70's and it got down in the low 50's over night.  The rain that we have been seeing the last couple of days has let up, but we got our share for sure.  It wasn't a torrential down pour but a steady rain over a long period of time.  I would say that the drought has been broken for sure.

On another subject, I have been wondering about words.  The English language has many strange words, meanings, and rules.  For instance, some words that are spelled the same, pronounced the same, but mean different things (Homonyms), like:

Bark, on a tree
Bark, what a dog does.

There are words that are spelled the same but are pronounced different and have different meanings (Heteronym), like:

Bass, the fish I like to catch
Bass, the low part of the music.

Wind, air movement
Wind, wind up a clock, etc.

Lead, meaning the heavy, soft metal
Lead, meaning to go first and the rest will follow. (He will lead them out of the woods.)

Then there are words that are spelled different, pronounced different, but mean the same (Synonym), like:

Assume and presume, to believe something before it happens.

There are a lot more I could post but I am going to post this now, since I didn't post anything yesterday.  Now, you all have a great day, you hear?

18 comments:

  1. I started another website were I am double checking every word I write. So many crazy spellings and rules. I have a link to my new site on my blog today. Fall is almost over in PA. The leaves will probably all be down by next weekend.

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    1. I miss the Fall in Pennsylvania. That was my special time of the year. The leaves here turn color in early to mid December.

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  2. Interesting post. Calls to mind so many words that fall right in line to those you posted. Thanks for the info, buddy!

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    1. Yew, there are a lot more like those. Thanks for stopping by Hermit.

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  3. I have never had any trouble with the kinds of words you mentioned, but I always feel bad for someone learning our language as an adult. They must think we are crazy (although we probably just continued what the Brits started :-)

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    1. I used to volunteer teaching English as a second language and your comment hit home.

      I felt so sorry for the those learning English as adults. The double meanings, the pronunciation and the spelling was a lot more than they could handle.

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    2. Gypsy, yep, if I wasn't born into this language, it would be a hard one to learn. I still don't know all the words and rules.

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    3. MsB, The English spoken in England is different than what is spoken here in the colonies.

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  4. While I can only speak for myself...I am so happy to finally be able to experience Fall...yuppie!

    Here in Del Rio we have not been as fortunate as in Houston metroplex, we are still in a drought although it is no longer a severe one.

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  5. This is off topic...all these years reading you, you have often quoted a phrase your father said..."nothing is ever so bad, that it could not get worst".

    The other day I heard that in one of my foreign soap operas and I could not help but smile and think of your dad's quote but in Spanish :)

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    1. Some of my Dad's family came from Alsace Lorraine, which, depending on the time period, was controlled by either France or Germany.

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  6. Thanks, Dizzy, these are just what I needed for 5-year-old grandson Henry. While he's in the tub, he says "Tell me some facts". He's also learning to read quite well (did you know the work crustaceous in print when you were five? Not I!), so these words will be great for next bath time at my house.
    Great to hear from you again.

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    1. Glad to help you out. . at bath time (grin). He is a bright boy and no, I didn't know the word "crustaceous" at that age.

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  7. Interesting post today. English is a very confusing language. Thankfully my computer has "spell check" to help me out. hehe

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    1. I am very good at miss-spelling words. If I am not the world's worst speller, I am a contender.

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  8. I notice all those too. And why aren't words spelled like they sound? I often do that, just cause,,,

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    1. They should be, but that wouldn't fix the problem with the same sounding words meaning different things.

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