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BS: When did 'forbid' become 'forfend'? |
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Subject: RE: BS: When did 'forbid' become 'forfend'? From: Little Hawk Date: 26 Dec 08 - 02:31 AM The fact is, Ah've nae had ma lugs rung in ower a year. Tae ca' me a nyaff an' a glaikit gowk is nae way tae speak tae a braw laddie wha wis at the Battle o' Bannockburn hisel, an' Stirling Bridge too. Ye shuid be ashamed tae sae sich things. As fer ma bahookie, dinna mess wi' that! |
Subject: RE: BS: When did 'forbid' become 'forfend'? From: Megan L Date: 26 Dec 08 - 04:24 AM ROFL Aye lad ye may be bonny and ye may be bricht but even Giok McKenzie is no that auld |
Subject: RE: BS: When did 'forbid' become 'forfend'? From: Backwoodsman Date: 26 Dec 08 - 04:51 AM OH YES HE IS....................(well, it's the panto season, isn't it?) :-) :-) |
Subject: RE: BS: When did 'forbid' become 'forfend'? From: Nigel Parsons Date: 26 Dec 08 - 05:00 AM We have had numerous postings showing that 'for' or 'fore' mean 'to the front'. In American usage, surely the fact that cars do not have 'bumpers' then they have a 'forefender' and a 'rearfender'. These (as they might say in the Southern states) are De fenders! 'Fore' is also a very useful word for getting a lot of meaning into a single word, it means 'I've just hit a golf ball and anyone in front of me (to the fore) should be alert' Lovely language this, innit? |
Subject: RE: BS: When did 'forbid' become 'forfend'? From: GUEST,leeneia Date: 26 Dec 08 - 12:45 PM English has at least three fors. 1. the preposition, as in 'This is for you.' My dictionary has a column and a half of definitions for this supposedly simple word. 2. The prefix fore-, which Nigel is talking about. It usually means ahead of, or in front of. 3. The prefix for-, which only cultivated and suave speakers such as Mudcatters are aware of. It is rather archaic. For- tends to ascribe something bad to the verb. It is prohibited or overdone. For example, consider the difference between 'bid' and 'forbid.' It is akin to the German prefix, 'ver-,' which means about the same thing. ========== Trouble is, the -fend part of forfend doesn't make much sense. To forfend is to avert or prevent, which is why my mother would exclaim 'Saints forfend!' How that meaning came about, I do not know. Nigel, I agree with you that English is a lovely language. |
Subject: RE: BS: When did 'forbid' become 'forfend'? From: artbrooks Date: 26 Dec 08 - 07:11 PM Is the drink you have before having a beer a forebitter? |
Subject: RE: BS: When did 'forbid' become 'forfend'? From: kendall Date: 27 Dec 08 - 09:12 AM The first time I ever heard that expression was Joan Sprung in the mid 70s. I have always been a fan of Bill Shakespere, and at one point in my checkered youth I was going to write a biography of him, but, as he once said, "And enterprises of great pith and moment become sicklyed over with the pale cast of thought, and lose the name of action." |
Subject: RE: BS: When did 'forbid' become 'forfend'? From: GUEST,leeneia Date: 27 Dec 08 - 01:34 PM Yes, Art. A precursor to a beer is a forebitter. However, when the Prince of Denmark tried to institute prohibition, he forbittered the pubs. See the difference? |
Subject: RE: BS: When did 'forbid' become 'forfend'? From: Gurney Date: 27 Dec 08 - 08:55 PM Leeneia, I've always supposed, without a shadow of evidence, that the -fend part is from the same root as the fend in nautical terms, as 'to fend off,' physically prevent from colliding, or 'to fend for yourself.' |