Word Game: Language-Related Clues and Lingustic Q&A

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SUMMARY

The forum discussion centers on a word game involving language-related clues and linguistic questions. Participants provide hints about words, often derived from etymology or linguistic characteristics, and others guess the words based on these clues. Key examples include the word "mongoose," which refers to a mammal from India, and "pneumonia," linked to a lung disease with Indo-European roots. The game encourages engagement with language and etymology, fostering a community of language enthusiasts.

PREREQUISITES
  • Understanding of basic linguistics and etymology
  • Familiarity with Indo-European language roots
  • Knowledge of English vocabulary and its origins
  • Ability to interpret clues and wordplay
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  • Explore the etymology of common English words using Etymonline
  • Study Indo-European language families and their characteristics
  • Learn about linguistic games and puzzles to enhance vocabulary skills
  • Investigate the historical context of words in heraldry and their meanings
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This discussion is beneficial for linguists, language enthusiasts, educators, and anyone interested in expanding their vocabulary through engaging word games and etymological exploration.

  • #181
Sorry.. I'm trying not to give this away too easily.

It's a sort of duel.

--edit--
this was the part I was getting at by referring to rappers.
 
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  • #182
TheStatutoryApe said:
Sorry.. I'm trying not to give this away too easily.

It's a sort of duel.

--edit--
this was the part I was getting at by referring to rappers.
Hmmm... 'flyting' ?
 
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  • #183
Gokul43201 said:
Hmmm... 'flyting' ?
Correct. You're turn Gokul.
 
  • #184
The noun form of this verb was coined very early in the 17th century, before the verb itself came into being. The verb is derived from a noun which had been in sporadic use at the time. This noun comes from an Arabic word that was born around the 11th Century.
 
  • #185
assassin (n) and assassinate (v)
 
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  • #186
Damn, that was fast ! Just living up to your name, I guess. You're up.

PS : For completeness, the noun that was coined around 1705 (by Shakespeare, for Macbeth) is 'assassination'.
 
  • #187
Ah shucks! 'Tweren't nothin'. :blushing: My word means something discarded or defunct. It once referred to things both living and non-living, but its reference to living things has been discarded and defunt for quite a while now (at least in English).
 
  • #188
is it obsolete?
 
  • #189
Nope, the word is in common usage today. It just doesn't apply to living entities in common usage anymore.
 
  • #190
oh, i meant is the word: "obsolete", but i guess that's not it ;-)
 
  • #191
ok, i have to go do laundry now. i hope this game gets played again the next time I'm on, i totally enjoyed that :approve:
 
  • #192
No, that is not the word, and it is not headed in the right direction. The word is a very basic one with Latin roots.
 
  • #193
Hint: The latin root of the word is half of the name of a US city.
 
  • #194
Its not excrement, is it?
 
  • #195
fi said:
Its not excrement, is it?
I'd have said that sure looks like a winner, but then I thought the same thing when turbo guessed 'rime' on the previous clue.
 
  • #196
fi said:
Its not excrement, is it?
Sorry, no. Big hint: the city is in Texas.
 
  • #197
I figured you rascals would have tumbled to this by now. It's a coastal city, and the Latin root word is EXACTLY half of the modern name.
 
  • #198
Corpse?

If so you really threw me with the way you worded the clue. Good Job.
 
  • #199
TheStatutoryApe said:
Corpse?

If so you really threw me with the way you worded the clue. Good Job.
Yep, that's it.
 
  • #200
There are ten of these words, one hundred letters long, all belonging to a single literary work.
 
  • #201
TheStatutoryApe said:
There are ten of these words, one hundred letters long, all belonging to a single literary work.
Thunderwords, in Finnegan's Wake.
 
  • #202
turbo-1 said:
Thunderwords, in Finnegan's Wake.
That is correct.
 
  • #203
This word can mean a star in a production or a conductor, or many other things.
 
  • #204
As a verb, it can also describe a method of joining panes of window glass (pronunciation differs).
 
  • #205
turbo-1 said:
As a verb, it can also describe a method of joining panes of window glass (pronunciation differs).
It is also the English name of an element.
 
  • #206
It's a heavy metal...
 
  • #207
Could it be lead?
 
  • #208
Absolutely! You are next. I thought that word would be easy because "lead" has so many definitions. What's your word?
 
  • #209
It's a 7 letter adjective. If you replace the 2nd letter with an "e", and add an "i" after the third letter, the two words mean the same thing.
 
  • #210
The word is a middle english variant of the second word.
 

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