Mr Spot

The truth always hurts

Translation:
ARSEMOSIS: The process by which people seem to absorb success and promotions by
sucking the boss's bum rather than working hard.

Faux-ami:
ASSMOSIS: Name of a biblical donkey

me thinks that someone has been viweing roger melly's dictionary from the viz i like the one doing a southhampton:

you stay up all night with no intention or cause to do so

METHINKS - A word used to cause major annoyance by the flippant among the better educated.

bounders....

Methinks no bugger on here would be classed as better educated

Have you noticed how all these new 'terms' generally refer to office locations and situations, basically phrases made up by people in non jobs with f**k all to do all day.

Years ago someone at the Observer made a list of things that deserved a word in the English language, but for which no word currently existed. Amongs other things, it was suggested there should be a word for the aroma left in a biscuit tin when all the biscuits were gone
The Age of Innocence.....

The most serious missing word in the English language is the one that means the opposite of exceed/excess.
There is an opposite of excess (n), namely, shortage or shortfall, but there's no opposite of excess (adj) as in excess fat, excess speed, etc.

Go on, try to find a single word meaning the opposite of "exceeds" in the phrase "exceeds expectations".

It's not just missing in English either. We are a continent of optimists because we don't have a word meaning "fails to meet" or "falls short of"

HOW ABOUT "ALMOST"?

bloody caps lock!!!

Almost is an adverb my esteemed Mr Parmo.

I read the post as merely a "word" for your request!!!

How about "undershoots expectations" or have a failed to meet the challenge?

Undershoot is probably the best approximation, agreed, and is probably OK when talking about expectations.
But it is an approximation since it implies unintentionally falling short, just as overshoot implies unintentionally exceeding.
It couldn't be used as the opposite of "wait until the temperature exceeds 30°C", for example. You can do that with "falls below" but that's two words.
Anyway enough of all this serious stuff we'll be exceeding our welcome!

I thought in your neck of the woods, the word was 'merde'

No it's the beer that's merde.

Irrespective of the words used - its ain'y gonna happen this July (well in Blighty anyway)

Now you see, this is one of those occasions when I really do need an exact opposite

We haven't got a future tense either......

With those eyes they won't be able to see very far ahead though.

No I don't mean the split links, I mean us, the Brits. I get a bollocking off Mr Poolpower if I claim to be a chink.

I am like, so he can just Ta Ma Di!!!

What do you mean, no future tense? No future perhaps, but no future tense?
The proof is in the procastination.....

Just that.

We have no future tense.

How about the verb situation in ''I shall go shopping tomorrow morning"

or ''If things get any worse with you I shall contact a doctor."

Hmm?

Predictive, not future, as expressed IN the future.

kev, I appreciate your time zone problem, but no-one can express things 'in' the future.

Now, back to the future tense

Lot's of languages have a future tense. English doesn't.

Of course it has you blithering idiot.
I see...present
I saw...perfect
I shall see.....future.
How could a language possibly function without a future tense?

'I shall see' is predictive not future. There is no way to say what you are doing in the future in the English language. There is in other languages.

That's it. I resign

Well me might or might not have a future tense but we do have a wonderful tense called the present perfect that foreigners just simply can't get their brains round.
I have checked this and have found it to be true.

Peut-etre
But tell Mr Kev about how the works of Balzac, Zola, Moliere, Flaubert etc etc etc etc etc have all been effortlessly translated into English, even tho the two languages have no tenses in common.....

You don't translate literature you rewrite it in a different language.
Which is why literary translators are considered artists.

Does it sound like we're ganging up on you?

Yeah well you know birds, they know everything.

But they don't know that English has no future tense.

No, literary translators are considered translators. That's why they're called literary translators


This is getting very tense. I can see why you and Kev thought you had no future in England.

Yeah but there's no way of telling you that. It can only be predicted.

You haven't apologised for the blithering idiot remark either.

Which shows a complete lack of humility in anyone's language.

Why on earth should I apologise for the blithering idiot remark. It's no more than you deserve.
Anyway Cornelius told me to say it

Because it was based on your assertion that English has a future tense when in fact it doesn't. There's probably a case for defamation as I am a qualified English Teacher and any prospective clients reading this might decide to take their business elsewhere because of your cutting and totally unnecessary insult.

No. It was based on your assertion that English doesn't have a future tense when it has.

Any more of this and I shall consult TBI with a view to seeking damages against your undermining of my status as a philosopher of language.

(God. I'm going to work in the library tomorrow so that I'm not tempted to come on here every half hour)

I've gotta admire you, sandwiched between a qualified English teacher and a professional translator and playing the egg-sucking card


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Translation

Excuse me, monsieur, I am not sandwiched anywhere. I am a bod in my own right

I accept what you're saying about translations. And I accept that Kev's course contained the info that Engish doesn't have a future tense, tho I think this is mistaken. I think that because (I use French as it's the only mod lang I know) as far as I can see 'j'irai' means exactly the same thing as 'I shall go'. It's the meaning that's future not this or that set of words.

p.s. sorry to bore anyone who's not interested

Almost but not quite me dear.

Here's an example.

In English we might say "tomorrow when you hear me ring I want you to open the door for me"
In French that would be "demain quand vous m'entendrez sonner je voudrai que vous ouvriez la porte pour moi"

We're quite clearly talking about the future, but our lack of a strict future tense means we have to make do with putting "hear" and "want" in the present, which is an obvious shortcoming. If we transposed that to the past we wouldn't say "yesterday when you hear me ring I want you to open the door for me", would we now?
The French version however uses their fully-fledged future tense, which when you think about it is logical even if it sounds funny to our future-proof ears.

I'm learning to speak canine. Here's some stuff I picked up today:

woof woof.
woof.
bow wow wow wow.
Hoooooooooowwwwwwwwwwwwwlllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll.

It's the future.

Just don't call me 'Canine', right. I thought we were friends

Richard, I am now somewhat befuddled with chicken and wine, but here goes.
Kev said: 'I shall see' is predictive and not future, and that there is no way to say what you're doing in the future in English, in the way there is in other languages. My point is that 'j'irai' means exactly the same as 'I shall see'. Either both are future tense or neither is.
In your example, I agree that the future tense is not used strictly in the English form, as in the French, but there is still the option of using it....it just wouldn't be colloquial. Whatever, the English form is used as it is to express the future tense.
I come at it from a different angle from you. In philosophy everything has to follow on logically and you have to define your terms right in the first place, or the conclusion doesn't follow. I suppose if you're not doing philosophy, it doesn't matter.

No, no, silly goose. 'Irai' simply translates as 'I shall see' because there isn't a literal translation. Because........................drum roll..................there's no future tense in the English language, hence the assertive 'I shall, with the root form verb 'see.'

Anyway, my people will be in touch.

In the future.

I hate to be a nitpicker but "j'irai " doesn't mean anything of the sort.



OK I'll go now.

Shhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!!!!