I am revisiting the theme I raised quite a few years back concerning archaic verb forms in the King James Bible (and, for that matter, in other great religious works like The Book of Common Prayer). I was very annoyed to have yet another one of these knocked back today in the Challenge puzzle, and decided to recommence my campaign to make sure such words are accepted. Please see below for relevant citations (apologies for the repetitive layout, but this comes from a convenient website, biblehub.com, that I commend for a quick way to check these words).

Cheers,

Dave

Proverbs 25:20 Like one who takes away a garment on a cold day, or ...
... As he that taketh away a garment in cold weather, and as vinegar upon
nitre, so is he that singeth songs to an heavy heart. ...

Job 33:27 And they will go to others and say, 'I have sinned, I ...
... He singeth before men, and saith, I have sinned, and perverted
that which was right, And it profited me not

Judges 5:1 On that day Deborah and Barak son of Abinoam sang this ...
... And Deborah singeth -- also Barak son of Abinoam -- on that day, saying: -- .. ...
//biblehub.co

Exodus 15:1 Then Moses and the Israelites sang this song to the ...
... Then singeth Moses and the sons of Israel this song to Jehovah, and they speak,
saying: -- 'I sing to Jehovah, For triumphing He hath triumphed; The horse and .

Numbers 21:17 Then Israel sang this song: "Spring up, O well! Sing ...
... Then singeth Israel this song, concerning the well -- they have answered to it

Psalm 51:14 Deliver me from the guilt of bloodshed, O God, you who ...
... Deliver me from blood, O God, God of my salvation,
My tongue singeth of Thy righteousness ...

The previous discussion was here. My conclusion was:

Quote

The stumbling block for curlies is that it is almost always part of the phrase short and curlies - indeed, it's mostly in the expression have [someone] by the short and curlies. I did see a couple of examples of curlies used by itself as a jocular word for pubic hair, but I don't think it's an established idiom. So, sorry, Pat, but I'm not persuaded it should be allowed.

I believe this dictionary includes thousands of far more obscure words with minimal authority, Alan – even some Shakespearean words should not really be included, such as "argal" (only found in Hamlet, where it occurs just once, has never been In linguistic currency and may well be a typo hallowed by repetition).

In this case we have the authority of the Cambridge Idioms Dictionary (Second Edition, 2006) to show that this is, in fact, an established idiom. See the following citation in the online Free Dictionary:http://idioms.thefreedictionary.com/have+by+the+short+and+curlies. And it has, as I mentioned, appeared in a film title, which would not be likely to happen unless the idiom had some kind of currency.

The publisher's description of this volume makes it plain that it is intended to assist students of English to learn the idioms they require to understand colloquial speech in British, Australian, and American English. It seems to me to be quite inappropriate to disallow a word that has made its way into a standard learners textbook.

Further, the term has made it into a number of other online references, as shown in the following links:

http://www.phrases.org.uk/meanings/by-the-short-hairs.html (this one also cites one of Eric Partridge's dictionaries of slang); and, in some weird wonderful senses which I hadn't come across, http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=curlies

The strongest argument, though, is the inclusion of the term in the Cambridge University Press publication and I really don't think that you have a good case for excluding it.

Cheers,

Dave (frustrated ex-philologist )

It's been quite a while since I last made a suggestion, but I was horrified to discover that a fine English dialect word was not accepted, to wit, buttie. I remember being bombarded with this word in English TV shows like When the Boat Comes In, which had a strong regional emphasis (Tyneside). That invaluable publication the Shorter Oxford English Dictionary (2007) not only records the word but also provides an illustrative quotation:

butty ˈbʌti noun 2. Also buttie. N. English. m19.
A slice of bread and butter; a sandwich.
I. Rankin The canteen did a fine bacon buttie.

Cheers,

Dave

Ensuite

Common Australian term for a bathroom adjoining a bedroom (spelt as one word rather than as a French phrase).  Supported by Oxford Australian Dictionary, 2004.

Cheers,

Dave

Yep, definitely a gender thing, Linda .  To my ear it's a case of a normally sharp and witty voice turning to mushy doggerel , but I have, just once or twice, been told not to be such a bloody grouch (I do understand that it's hard to believe!).  The following works much better for me, maybe because it's laden with imagery:


        She walks in beauty, like the night
        Of cloudless climes and starry skies;
        And all that's best of dark and bright
        Meet in her aspect and her eyes:
        Thus mellow'd to that tender light
        Which heaven to gaudy day denies.
         
        One shade the more, one ray the less,
        Had half impair'd the nameless grace
        Which waves in every raven tress,
        Or softly lightens o'er her face;
        Where thoughts serenely sweet express
        How pure, how dear their dwelling-place.
         
        And on that cheek, and o'er that brow,
        So soft, so calm, yet eloquent,
        The smiles that win, the tints that glow,
        But tell of days in goodness spent,
        A mind at peace with all below,
        A heart whose love is innocent!


Cheers,

Dave

Many thanks, guys.  I did have a good day.

It has, unfortunately, been a physically painful year (nothing new or sinister, just my neck crumbling away ) but happily I'm still finding Chi a pleasant escape.  Must say, though, that I'm getting cranky about not seeing those rosettes nearly often enough – must be something to do with advancing age (and yes, I know it doesn't affect everybody that way, RM!).

Cheers,

Dave

PS do check out my website if you haven't done so already.  There is a disgraceful lack of new creations, but I'll try to do something about that in the new year.

http://www.davenourse.com

I thought it was about time I congratulated you, Alan, on the plan for a new puzzle – in one way it's pretty much what I don't need (because my addiction is proving time-consuming ), but it's a great idea and should generate some mind-blowing puzzles.

I have given a bit of thought to the name, too, and I reckon that you have hit the nail on the head with "Chinchilla."  It does go very nicely with Chihuahua, as you say, and has the additional property of being pretty much equally impossible to rhyme (have to give that more thought!).

Cheers,

Dave