Word Play
AKA: Things overheard while playing Scrabble...
Is topsy a word without turvey?
Is hob a word without nob?
Can the word oodles be singular?
Is pest an alternative plural for pet when you have too many of them?
Coyote is coy. His name tells us so.
I know listen and silent are the same word with the letters switched around, but semen and menses?
It makes sense that the word “evil” is “live” backwards.
My favorite letter is V. If a word has a V in it, you can be sure it’s infused with action and vitality.
It’s no mistake that “VERB” begins with the letter V.
Have you noticed that the word “astonished” has “stoned” right in it, and “embarrassed” seems to say “I’m bare assed?”
And lust and slut are so closely related that they’re the same word.
Photo: My Scrabble partner, Mara, using one of her life lines.
Comments
your bursts of activity always seem to produce such vivacious wordplay
guess you got your head back on alrightxo
Posted by: joeyk | December 12, 2005 11:04 AM
I'll never be able to play Scrabble the same way again (and that's a good thing) -- thanks! :)
Posted by: Candace | December 12, 2005 12:16 PM
Great questions you've asked...indeed
Posted by: Harmonia | December 12, 2005 1:43 PM
Wow.. I never really give much thought to words..your post changed that. I especially liked how listen and silent contain the same letters. This is all rather fascinating.
Posted by: Simply Coll | December 12, 2005 2:03 PM
I love words too! The other day I was writing about commitment, which is essentially a promise to ourselves. When we break a commitment , or promise, we compromise our will. I nearly fell over when I noticed the word "promise" hiding in plain sight in the word comPROMISE. Interesting stuff.
Posted by: Kathy AKA Ben | December 12, 2005 3:02 PM
I love it! Those are conversation snippets are priceless. Thinking of you and hoping you're doing okay these days.
Posted by: Chickadee | December 12, 2005 3:19 PM
And is "skee" a word without "daddle?"
Posted by: Paul N. | December 12, 2005 5:30 PM
Puns are the lowest form of humor. That's why my blogs are solo (groan).
Posted by: Bill Slone | December 12, 2005 7:43 PM
Very funny. Interesting about the letter "V". It is said that if you have a "V" or a "K" in your name, you are an old, old soul.
Posted by: kenju | December 12, 2005 7:56 PM
It's good to know thta people still play scrabble.
Posted by: Sarcasmom | December 12, 2005 8:49 PM
I have always been fascinated with word play as well. Here are a few interesting ones.
Embarassed sounds a lot like the Spanish word "embarasada", but "Embarasada" actually means pregnant. Interesting...
The word "arigato" in Japanese has no official Japanese meaning. Some linguists speculate that it is derived from the Portuguese word "obrigato" which means "thank you" as well. Apparently the Portuguese had a big influence on the Japanese.
There is no real word for Love in Japanese, at least not in the sense we know it.
I could go on and on...maybe later I will.
Posted by: K Jones | December 12, 2005 10:24 PM
Judy are you going to be the one to tell Vicki that she is an OLD SOUL?
Colleen, my favorite of these is: Is pest an alternative plural for pet when you have too many of them? I love this probably because sometimes it feels that way with our crew. They say pets help lower your blood pressure....with the number we have mine should be rock bottom. :)
Posted by: srp | December 12, 2005 11:03 PM
Love that dictionary diving! We do it with our "secret word game," too (I've just posted the rules). I thought Topsy went with Mopsy and Cottontail....
Posted by: Elissa Malcohn | December 13, 2005 12:06 AM
That was amazing..so many words that I know but hadn't put together the things you came up with...I love Slut & Lust...hello???
And I'd never thought about Verb and V's having so much 'action' as you saud, but..indeed..it does and you are correctemundo! Great fun, words.
Posted by: OldOldLady Of The Hills | December 13, 2005 3:18 AM
I love that you can get so much out of a game of scrabble! It's so much fun. We can play for hours and not even realize it.
It sounds like you have a really great friend there. Almost like you too were meant to cross eachothers paths. God Bless you both.
Take care
Posted by: Tommi | December 13, 2005 9:39 AM
I never gave any thought to some of the forward/backward options ;)
Posted by: running2ks | December 13, 2005 4:09 PM