Friday 26 November 7-by-many LEXICON puzzle

[ridethetalk]

EXCON – ex-convict

NEONIC – short for neonicotinoid – a particularly nasty pesticide which has been linked to the crashing of bee populations… NB. I’ve previously requested this here https://theforum.lexigame.com/index.php?topic=4569.msg70942#msg70942

CONNIE – a bus or tram conductor – becoming an extinct occupation one would have to expect…

[Roddles]

I do wonder where we would end up in Chihuahua if Alan was to accept all of these peculiarly Australian, and sometimes local, contractions, such as connie, that you suggest R-T-T. One of the really nice thing about Chihuahua has been its international balance, and that has flowed through to the forum participation. But it seems to me that we are starting to tip the balance into parochialism here, not to mention the extra effort being asked of our esteemed leader.
I somewhat disagree with the current view (I think stemming from a remark by Pat a few years ago) that any word that is used somewhere in the world is a fair candidate for inclusion. I think if we were to follow that through to its logical conclusion we would produce an absurdly large uncommon word list. What would be the point of that in what is ultimately a game testing a reasonably well-read person's knowledge of internationally-known English words?
Just my thoughts.

[pat]

... any word that is used somewhere in the world is a fair candidate for inclusion. I think if we were to follow that through to its logical conclusion we would produce an absurdly large uncommon word list. What would be the point of that in what is ultimately a game testing a reasonably well-read person's knowledge of internationally-known English words?

I think that's why the acceptable words in Chi are split into two categories, the ones in the common list being those that a reasonably well-read person might be expected to know. Given that no one is likely to beat him- or herself up over not getting a rare word I can't see that the size of the rare word list matters at all.

[ridethetalk]

...and should your hit rate be unduly compromised just because you grew up in a certain location where these words were common? (or, at least, once were...)

[yelnats]

I am finding that there are many Spanish words coming into English & Chihuahua,  probably from the Hispanic USA. Examples are cholo/a, tonto/a, which I have only ever heard in Spanish..

[TRex]

I am finding that there are many Spanish words coming into English & Chihuahua,  probably from the Hispanic USA. Examples are cholo/a, tonto/a, which I have only ever heard in Spanish..

Interesting. Even though I live in Hispanic USA (my small city is about one-third Hispanic), I haven't encountered those particular words. But there are lots of Spanish words I have heard and use.

[rogue_mother]

There are certainly some Spanish words coming into Chi from Hispanic USA, but I have felt all along that a lot of the words are in the lexicon because so many British people vacation in or retire to Spain.

[yelnats]

Cholo, chola - (pejorative) (person of mixed ethnic descent) (Andes)
Spanish/English dictionary

Most of the words I have noticed are of Latin American origin as in cholo which I first heard in Peru. The lone ranger's sidekick was Tonto (meaning stupid). All 4 (m/f) accepted in Chi.

[TRex]

Whilst it may seem to non-USA English speakers that Spanish words are being adopted via the USA, it can seem from this vantage point that French words are being adopted via the UK. But then English has a long history of appropriating words from other languages.

[Alan W]

Neonic already suggested.

[Alan W]

Thinking to deal quickly with a few long-outstanding suggestions (ever the optimist), I opened this topic from last year. But, re-reading it, I feel I should first respond to the comments made about Spanish words "coming into" Chihuahua. Cholo, chola and tonto have been allowed as rare words from the beginning of Chi. Tonta has never been accepted.

The word list we started with was compiled by people with a lot of time on their hands, from various sources including, I gather, some unabridged dictionaries published in the US and Britain. Cholo and chola can certainly be found in several English dictionaries, from both sides of the Atlantic. Tonto, all in lower case, is not in so many dictionaries, but it is in Wiktionary, the Shorter Oxford and the OED, as well as some slang dictionaries. The OED labels it "originally U.S.", but gives usage examples from both the US and Britain. A 1985 citation is from the Listener, a magazine published at that time by the BBC: "His two heroes are both ex-FO types and both terminally tonto about cricket."

[Alan W]

So, looking at the original suggestions, I'm sorry but I don't think excon makes the grade. A few dictionaries have ex-con, with a hyphen, but I didn't see any without.

[Alan W]

Connie is in a few dictionaries, though not always with the same meaning. The Australian informal term for a bus or tram conductor is in the Collins dictionary and some of the Oxford dictionaries. Merriam-Webster has it as meaning the same as inconnu, which it defines as either an unknown person or a type of fish. Meanwhile Wiktionary says connie is an obsolete form of cony, meaning a rabbit.

Despite this wealth of meanings, recent usage examples seem rather thin on the ground. In the case of the conductors, they have been largely dispensed with, as RTT says. So mentions tend to be in a retrospective context, as in the Age article from 2015 headlined "Melbourne 'connies' celebrate Kew tram depot centenary".

As connie is in a few dictionaries, I'll accept it as a rare word.

[ridethetalk]

Thanks Alan...