Peace Be Upon You :

 
By May Rostom


We speak words, we listen to words, and form meaningful sentences using a bunch of letters combined forming words. Where do these words come from? We don’t care. Well, what better way to learn and understand your English than in the form of facts? Enjoy this week’s extra lengthy facts!


1. In Shakespeare's time, mattresses were secured on bed frames by ropes. When you pulled on the ropes, the mattress tightened therefore making the bed firmer to sleep on. Hence the phrase "goodnight, sleep tight."


2. A baby kangaroo is called a joey
3. Attics were invented in Attica.
4. “Rhythm” is the longest English word without a vowel.
5. In England, in the 1880's, "Pants" was considered a dirty word!

6. Of all the words in the English language, the word set has the most definitions.
7. It was the accepted practice in Babylon 4,000 years ago that for a month after the wedding, the bride's father would supply his son-in-law with all the mead he could drink. Mead is a honey beer and because their calendar was lunar based, this period was called the honey month, which we know today as the "honeymoon" .


8. A group of geese on the ground is a gaggle; a group of geese in the air is a skein.
9. Taphephobia is the fear of being buried alive and Clinophobia is the fear of beds.
10. The only 15 letter word that can be spelled without repeating a letter is "uncopyrightable" !


11. No word in the English language rhymes with “month, orange, silver and purple”.
12. Oscar Wilde and his friends came up the with the word "dude" . It came from the words "duds" and "attitude."


13. The little circles of paper that are cut out after a paper has been punched by a hole-puncher are called "chad."
14. Limelight was how the stage was before electricity was invented. Basically, illumination was produced by heating blocks of lime until they glowed.
15. A 'jiffy' is an actual unit of time for 1/100th of a second!


The wise Shakespeare once said “When words are scarce they are seldom spent in vain”



MSN Arabia

 
Nice post. I think it shouldn’t be in “Say it in English”. It matches rather with Grammar or English Encyclopedia’ s section of this forum. For it contains information about some English words and sayigs that we_ as non-native speakers nor specialised in Linguistics_ are not titled to discuss their reliability for example.
It's nice informatinal post anyway.
be aware guys it may come as a question in the next MA test. May God prevent a doctor of our colleage from using the Internet anymore. ' cos one may invent a question like the following:
Name " Wilde's friends" who coined the word lab lab...

 
Peace Be Upon You :

 
أندلسية

Thanx 4 ur note

That's why you should keep watching and reading my topics

you will get the benifits and u may find answers for the coming MA Impossble Exam

سيرين

You are most welcome

 
Portia,
A very nice topic darling I really enjoy reading it

Keep supplying us with such amusing topics

 
Peace Be Upon you :

Raghad :

Thanx Raghood 4 ur nice & encouraging reply

i'll try always 2 supply you in what is really good & useful

En Sha2 Allah