tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3119105822589181967.post1051729858951415416..comments2024-03-28T15:01:21.285-04:00Comments on SleuthSayers: Plussed (or Non)Leigh Lundinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07921276795499571578noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3119105822589181967.post-89538071392269698102019-11-21T02:41:57.313-05:002019-11-21T02:41:57.313-05:00Hmmm... I had always thought of "nonplussed&q...Hmmm... I had always thought of "nonplussed" as meaning "not terribly impressed by". <br /><br />For what it's worth! LOL<br /><br />--DixonDixon Hillhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01454210400565573813noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3119105822589181967.post-79151894364654355552019-11-18T14:29:03.934-05:002019-11-18T14:29:03.934-05:00I came across similar, um, doubts in my 18th centu...I came across similar, um, <i>doubts</i> in my 18th century series, where my research yielded that <i>misdoubt</i> was frequently used instead to signify uncertainty. But the OED does not indicate that it meaning has significantly changed at any time.James Lincoln Warrenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09666160495434980653noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3119105822589181967.post-63959009640695801652019-11-17T22:16:11.852-05:002019-11-17T22:16:11.852-05:00James, I was (and still am) considering an article...James, I was (and still am) considering an article on contranyms.<br /><br />In her Brother Cadfael novels, Ellis Peters seemed to use 'doubt' to mean something like certainty, the opposite of its current meaning. Her use made me wonder if it had switched meanings.<br /><br />Thank you for your assistance, my friend.<br /><br />Good for you, Larry. You brought back a memory from grade school. A mischevous classmate vowed to use 'unique' in a sentence. Her example– I can't believe I still remember this– "How do you catch a bunny? Unique up on him."<br /><br />Jeff, there's only one answer. RUN!Leigh Lundinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07921276795499571578noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3119105822589181967.post-62881847226538218562019-11-17T20:43:24.566-05:002019-11-17T20:43:24.566-05:00I've seen one of those Google vehicles; I'...I've seen one of those Google vehicles; I'm glad I'm not the only one who thought of Daleks!Jeff Bakerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00316081079528920123noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3119105822589181967.post-72005944930977472672019-11-17T20:40:36.402-05:002019-11-17T20:40:36.402-05:00Grammar is not supposed to be this fun, Leigh. I j...Grammar is not supposed to be this fun, Leigh. I just know I’m going to use the word nonplussed this week, eye rolls be damned.Lawrence Maddoxhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03057386966178865691noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3119105822589181967.post-63207931132096743882019-11-17T16:27:32.055-05:002019-11-17T16:27:32.055-05:00(1) No such coinage as "plussed" to my k...(1) No such coinage as "plussed" to my knowledge, although "plus" as synonym for add is perfectly sound.<br /><br />"Nonplus" is from Latin "non plus", literally "no more", and was originally a noun. (cf. "non plus ultra".) To be at a nonplus meant that no further progress was possible—everything stopped in its tracks. It was later "verbed". Its most common form is now as participial noun: "Leigh was nonplussed."<br /><br />(2) The Oxford English Dictionary is an etymological historical descriptive dictionary. It first lists etymology, and then definitions in historical order, i.e., beginning with the earliest usage as the first definition, and then listing successive definitions and usages as the word evolved. The New Oxford Dictionary of English is a college dictionary, and lists definitions by most common usage. It is also descriptive, and like the OED, lists words according to how they are actually used, rightly or wrongly.<br /><br />(3) There is a lexical phenomenon, variously called an auto-antonym, autantonym, contronym, or contranym, whereby a word may mean one thing as well as its opposite. A good example of this is "to cleave", which may mean either to join together or to sunder apart. "Nonplus" has thus evolved into one—but I'm sure the mechanism that turned it on its head is incorrectly assuming its meaning from context. This is not rare. For example: "redundant" actually means "superfluous, unnecessary", but most people think it means "repetitive".James Lincoln Warrenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09666160495434980653noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3119105822589181967.post-69916592126824470682019-11-17T16:01:11.835-05:002019-11-17T16:01:11.835-05:00Leigh, JLW once told me not to use "snuck&quo...Leigh, JLW once told me not to use "snuck" (as in "he snuck up on him") because there's no such word--it should be "sneaked." I believed him, and I still do, but I snuck around and used it anyway. John Floydhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04001712728130488485noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3119105822589181967.post-61867054480477046332019-11-17T14:59:32.549-05:002019-11-17T14:59:32.549-05:00In a way, Janice, we can see 'plussed' as ...In a way, Janice, we can see 'plussed' as a separate word. If we travel back to Latin, we find 'non plus' means 'no more'. That's a short form of saying, "No more can be evoked."<br /><br />John, you're right on both counts. A number of references suggest alternatives for belie in particular, although I like the subtle distinction that belie implies. Nonplussed can have substitutions like surprised, stunned, gobsmacked, etc.<br /><br />JLW makes a great (re)source.<br /><br />Leigh Lundinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07921276795499571578noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3119105822589181967.post-67284115505315760582019-11-17T10:44:15.315-05:002019-11-17T10:44:15.315-05:00I love this, Leigh! But I have a solution: don...I love this, Leigh! But I have a solution: don't use "belie" or "nonplussed." And I agree, JLW is the absolute best reference for this kind of thing. He and I have occasionally disagreed, and he was always right.John Floydhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04001712728130488485noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3119105822589181967.post-58860626926107314542019-11-17T07:56:19.063-05:002019-11-17T07:56:19.063-05:00I'm keen to know if 'plussed" was eve...I'm keen to know if 'plussed" was ever a word.janice lawnoreply@blogger.com