Strapping
Posted: Wed Feb 28, 2024 1:02 pm
How did we go from a strap, meaning a band of leather to strapping, meaning tall and sturdy, robust?
I'd never noticed just how many of these there are, these things etymonline calls "present-participle adjectives of violent action expressing something large in size or effect".
Whopping, spanking (1660s), bouncing (1570s), cracking, thumping (1570s), ripping, smashing. I wonder how many more are hiding out there. Anyone with a penchant for lists care to jump in?