ONE snob is a sharp, unprincipled person, while a snallygaster is a mythical reptile and bird hybrid associated with rural Maryland. Although the words look similar, there is little evidence for an etymological relationship.
Now, which one is this again?
Many of us, whether we like to admit it or not, find it difficult to distinguish between fair use affect And function (if this matters, you can find bedevils help here). Others tend to be confused when using disable or provide energy. If you’ve mastered these couplets and need a better one for those moments around the campfire when people start talking about words they’ve always had to look up, let us introduce you to them. snallygaster And snob.
‘Snollygoster’ vs ‘Snallygaster’
These words have very little semantic overlap; One snallygaster is “a mythical nocturnal creature reported mainly from rural Maryland, believed to be part reptile and part bird, and believed to hunt poultry and children,” and one snob is “a wise, undisciplined man.” Despite the fact that the definitions are significantly different, the words are sometimes confused, largely because they look similar and don’t resemble most other words in the English language.
Many people feel that words are connected; it has been suggested that snob from snallygaster (supposedly from modification of Pennsylvania German Schnelle geesch, which literally means quick spirit). One of the problems with this theory is our evidence for snob come good earlier for snallygaster; the earliest dates to the 1840s, while our earliest later use is in 1900 (which appears to be a misspelling of snob).
Here I am now, a self-propelled double spinning Snolly Goster, ready to attack anything but a combination of Thunder-smoke-rail-iron and hot water. I want some of your girls to give me a chance to play the Hop Scotch game in your heart, and if I don’t play the bucket game by going straight through your prejudices to the young feelings middle, then help me Jozey. — Arkansas Intelligence (Van Buren, AK), October 25, 1845
Thursday night, January 31, sermon, “The Snallygaster in Politics,” Colonel HWJ Ham.— Brooklyn Daily Eagle (Brooklyn, NY), October 11, 1900
Snollygoster appeared in the mid-19th century, and within a few decades it was mainly used in political settings (usually describing someone with a particular interest in elected office).
We found that “R. Cole Foster, the snobby goblin,” was one of the nominees for the State Senate. You’d better stay at home; there will be no one in the Capital, next Winter, to take care of his morals.— Chief White Cloud Kansas (White Cloud, KS), October 25, 1866
Your house will be surrounded by snobby men. And they’ll thread you through the coil before you know what you’re doing.— Buffalo Morning Express (Buffalo, NY), January 25, 1890
Snallygasteron the other hand, did not begin to appear frequently until the 1930s, and was originally found mainly in Maryland.
Both claimed that ‘Snallygaster’ appeared suddenly from the south and was flying no more than 25 feet in the air, giving them a clear view of the monster.— The Evening Sun_ (Baltimore, MD), 25 November 1932
It’s not clear if the International League bosses are seeing venomous snakes or a swarm of bovalopi, but it’s clear they’re looking at a whole new twist on the method of determining tournament champions at the end of the season. season shows they have seen something unusual. —CM Gibbs, Sun (Baltimore, MD), November 30, 1932
If you need some mnemonic tips to help you stay on track snob And snallygaster you can just remember that the second part of snob (goster) is also a dialect English word that means “clearly wasting time, especially by talking and gossiping.” And the second part of snallygaster (Cook) is “the extension of the abdomen behind the stalk in hymenoptera insects (such as ants).”
(Please note that we are not saying it will be a good mnemonic.)
Categories: Usage Notes
Source: vothisaucamau.edu.vn
