Gaffe

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Dr. Goodword
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Gaffe

Postby Dr. Goodword » Thu Apr 16, 2020 8:04 pm

• gaffe •


Pronunciation: gæf • Hear it!

Part of Speech: Noun

Meaning: A clumsy remark, embarrassing blunder, faux pas, solecism.

Notes: Don't forget the final E on this word, because, without it, (gaff) it means "a stick with a hook on the end". This word seems to be a lexical orphan, with no derivational relatives.

In Play: VP Joe Biden, known for his verbal gaffes, once said "If we do everything right, there's still a 30% chance we are going to get it wrong." However, in Washington a gaffe is usually when someone slips up and tells the truth. Gaffes may be visual, as the picture below demonstrates.
Image
Word History: English in the early 20th century simply helped itself to the French word gaffe "clumsy remark", originally "a pole with a hook on the end". French took the word from Old Provençal gafar "to seize", which borrowed it from a Germanic source. We guess a Germanic source for that would explain the changes in the PIE word kap- "to grasp". This leaves only the semantic question. The semantic shift probably resulted from a confusion with an ancestor of the Old English word gaf "buffoonery, tomfoolery". (Our old friend and frequent contributor Jackie Strauss gave us the go-ahead on today's funny if mysterious Good Word.)
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William Hupy
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Re: Gaffe

Postby William Hupy » Fri Apr 17, 2020 10:58 am

Why single out Biden? Trump trumps Biden’s gaffes by light years.
William A. Hupy

LukeJavan8
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Re: Gaffe

Postby LukeJavan8 » Fri Apr 17, 2020 11:41 am

Can we keep politics out of the conversation, please?
I, for one, find them highly offensive.
-----please, draw me a sheep-----

damoge
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Re: Gaffe

Postby damoge » Fri Apr 17, 2020 1:23 pm

Thanks for that wonderful picture!
There was a company in the town I used to live in that had several very successful Chinese restaurants called China House.
The bought a white van to use for deliveries and such.
On the doors, they had painted:
C.H.Inc.
I didn't know anyone in the company to talk to.
I never decided if I wanted them to know, or didn't want them to know.
Everything works out, one way or another

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Slava
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Re: Gaffe

Postby Slava » Sat Jan 30, 2021 7:33 am

In my area there is a non-gaffe company called Sloth Electricians. Non-gaffe because that is the actual name of the owners. Still... .
Life is like playing chess with chessmen who each have thoughts and feelings and motives of their own.

bbeeton
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Re: Gaffe

Postby bbeeton » Sat Jan 30, 2021 3:02 pm

My sister introduced me to "Flood Plumbers". Again, a case of truth in advertising, as it recognized the name of the owner, not a disaster.

Collecting such names can be fun. There must be a word for it?


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