Spitting Image

The return of my evil twin sister!
Arrgghh!     Though people say we are the spitting image of each other!

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  • padackles

    What is the origin of airhead?

  • foldedangel

    I love your vids, i didnt even know half of this stuff, and to think, i thought i was pretty good with words :shock:

    can you please, in your next video, expound on the meaning of Lotion? :razz:

  • wreftle

    I vote for splitting image. Wood split down the middle is a mirror image of itself.

  • Qermaq

    It’s “spit and image” – the look (image) and flesh (spit) of the other person. I knew this one right off, even before I watched.

    Hoping my posting here rather than on YouTube counts – YouTube has been crashing my browser lately with all the ads.

  • http://myspace.com/drasticenthusiastic emmanuelo16

    CAN YOU PLEASE DO A LESSON ON THE WORD KINDERGARTEN!!!!! :roll: :lol: :mrgreen: :smile: :oops: :razz:

  • http://www.markcbradley.net sweaterhugger

    I think it’s the splitting image one.

  • http://www.myspace.com/muse_ick chacha04

    could you tell me the origin of doppleganger?

    thanks for enlightening all of us with your wisdom!

  • 121212wer

    What is the origin of airhead? :shock: :shock: :shock: :?:

  • snowdogg71

    Gotta say I agree, intelligence IS sexy. But anyway, can you delve into the origin of “hangover,” please?

  • http://myspace.com/garbageluis r2luix

    love your videos

    BIG SHOUT OUT TO MARINA :cool:
    WHOO HOO :)

    im going with theory number 1 :cool:

  • stephenetienne

    Two word requests – “mirror” and “mail” and in particular why are newspapers called “The Daily Mirror” (even in German) and why are newspapers called “The Mail of ______” (even in French). Thanks, Marina. Stephen

  • stephenetienne

    I vote for theory number 2. In English, we often remove sounds from words to create shorter words. So this makes sense to me that “spitting” comes from “splitting”.

  • ryuchan16

    I thikn it’s number 2.
    Teacher!
    What’s the name of your twin?

  • http://emmy-de-zelaware.com lividemerald

    Marina’s evil sister could be Tara, an alternate (human name) spelling of terra (from Latin; also see terra firma), which would be the terrestrial (!) counterpart to Marina (from Latin “marinus”).
    Marina and Tara. Sounds good to me! :idea:

  • jmtoou

    Can you please look into the origin of the word “audacity”? Thanks. Love your videos

  • JD

    In a previous video (Break A Leg) the “real” Marina can be heard referring to the evil twin as Marina. So, maybe they are both named Marina? Or maybe the one we thought was evil was really the real one? Or maybe, since they both sound alike, there is really just one Marina with a split personality? Or maybe… this is getting too confusing… Let’s just call the Evil Twin ET.

  • http://www.unravelingtheword.info/HomePage rhoadess

    Hi Mrs &, i mean Mrs Hot For Words
    So you mean to say that we can’t google anymore :???: you mean it’s cheating? :shock: How about wiki, can we wiki for info :?: :smile: I hope looking the word up in the Dictionary isn’t cheating, but I did, and there are a few definitions for spit, and one of them is perfect likeness as you said in theory number 3, so I pick theory number three. :grin: but last time I used the dictionary for help I got the wrong answer :roll: btw, you say you have a twin sister? Is she married?

  • http://emmy-de-zelaware.com lividemerald

    Yes, but ET also stands for extraterrestrial, and so we have an allusion to terrestrial > terra, which brings me back to Tara. But, frankly, my dear, I don’t give a damn… :shock:

  • ryuchan16

    That would seem kind of funny. :grin:
    The ET I mean,it reminds me of that alien movie.

    Or maybe her evil twin is an alien! :shock:
    But Tara sound really thought out and stuff.
    I don’t know but thanks for offering your opinons,guys!
    <3

  • dank1313

    hi teach,
    how u doin? I got a word… the word SHIT, yeah the word SHIT. Someone said it stands for “SHIT= Sexy Hot Intellijeent techer.”
    if that is so, then you marina should change your name from hfw to… SHIT

  • http://emmy-de-zelaware.com lividemerald

    She didn’t mention wiki-tiki-tavi or whatever. So if something wiki-d this way comes, I say raise your thumb and go for the ride.

  • http://emmy-de-zelaware.com lividemerald

    If she did, she would come out smelling like a rose! Oh, BTW, I was the one who suggested Sexy Hot Intelligent Teacher!

  • http://www.myspace.com/americanwayne americanwayne

    I love your videos! I would actually like to know the origin of the contrasting phrases “redneck” and “blue-blooded.” If there is any way you could investigate, that would be great. Thanks!

  • http://emmy-de-zelaware.com lividemerald

    Oh, and Marina, watch out for Count Dracula and Bluebeard… :roll:

  • Bob

    Would that be why she always says “Bye Bye” instead of “Ta Ra” ? :grin:

  • http://www.myspace.com/americanwayne americanwayne

    :?:

  • Bob

    But Et, we learned in the last lesson, is shortened to “&”, so it’s the evil twin who is called &.

  • epyontwo

    can you do the word “relinquish”

  • http://emmy-de-zelaware.com lividemerald

    That’s too good a suggestion for Marina to leave behind!

  • Bob

    A red neck is what you get if you meet either of them and don’t run fast enough. :grin:

  • epyontwo

    why thaaank you

  • hot for you

    K i am really wanting to know were exactly the word fuck came from because it is used in many different ways. I tried to look for where originally came from and who thought of it in the first place. not trying to be wierd or anything like that i’am just really wanting to know :?:

  • paullychu

    Could you do, “Aloof”?

  • Bob

    And please explain why the Germans raise their children in a garden and their trees in a school. :???:

  • Bob

    It’s been done already. Listen to the Maxim Radio shows. (Link on the home page)

  • Bob

    ^
    / \
    / \

    Sorry; I’m on holiday in Thailand so I thought you meant a roof. :lol:

  • Bob

    Ho Hum
    So spaces don’t come out well… wtf

  • paullychu

    AH! :lol:
    Would you like one of those? :eek:

  • Bob

    If anyone wants to say that my comment wasn’t “justified” but the web site is, then feel free; I would have to agree with them :grin:

  • 3215121

    i would like to request the 2 words
    a.m. and p.m.
    i don’t know if you already done them

  • paullychu

    :cool:
    For sure.

  • anayadog

    I’m guessing 3

  • nuovabrezza

    Giorni Bella, I woud like 2 no the meaning of “Aficionado”-”Virtuoso “-incognito”–not all but which ever one u choose–A Presto, Grazie Mille! Tanti Saluti-Ciao.

  • JD

    Yes, that last video all makes sense now… The real Marina would never think of changing her name… That was the work of the evil twin.

  • http://www.myspace.com/ramzyikaika ramzyloveslions

    may i request the word “tattoo”..

  • Bob

    Testing, testing…

  • Bob

    Try again!
    <a href=”http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:SpittingImage_albumcover.jpg”Marinas evil twin with Ronald Reagan

  • Bob

    & again!
    <a href=”http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:SpittingI mage_albumcover.jpg”"Marinas evil twin with Ronald Reagan”

  • zuchinni_one

    Hey Marina,

    I’ve been a fan of etymology since I was in elementary school. I actually asked one of my first teachers about why words what they were and he didn’t know how to respond. Anyway, I love your channel and I think I have a very good word for you.

    Where does the word “a lot” or just “lot” come from?

    Do the different definitions have anything to do with one another?

    Can you have a lot of lots?

    Or a lot with a lot of little lots of lost lollipops looted from a lot of empty lots? :)

    I’d love to know a lot more than I do now about “lot” and “a lot” … probably a lot of other people would too :)

    -David

  • Bob

    If at first you don’t succeed, don’t take up sky-diving! :lol:

    HELP

  • Bob

    You’ll find a lot of lots on eBay or any other auction, on line or in a dusty old warehouse.

  • bobmcangus

    Hey what about the word

    ‘heirloom’

    Both the ‘heir’ and the ‘loom’ parts confuse me, and why are they used together?

    Cheers!

  • alucard1322

    ahah the way you said shut up at the end was kinda cool hehehe
    i would say it is …
    hehehe. :twisted:

    theory 1 is more like a person look like some who died.. like you said resemblance

    if one person it has to be theory 2 splitting images is like multiple personality i think…

    theory 3 spit and image if we are really talking about twins as in two persons who look a like

    so i would say its theory 3

  • shoup_erick

    I agree with the majority here – I choose number 3. I also have to add that as an adjunct faculty, it was always good to hear from my female students compliments on my looks. I must say I’m “Hot For Teacher”… with respect to Marina and borrowing from the classic 80s Van Halen tune.

  • slipperynoodle20

    I like the “splitting image” . Spit woodwork is also a sign of good craftsmanship.
    I also have my first word request. It is inspired by the high standard of your lessons. One could say you are “persnickety” about what you present and even how you present the lesson.
    Where did persnickety come from?
    Thanks

  • tricovictus

    i think is teory number 3, but i agree with number 2, so i have to throw a coin, ok, is number 3

  • Bob

    p.m. stands for pulchritudinous Marina, the real one
    a.m. stands for alternative Marina, the hologram, the evil twin & the second life avatar.

  • shadowsoldier1x1

    man, this is the only english hw i ever do! ah well, i this its the splitting image..

  • http://NONE brainimeanbrian

    “Knock your socks off”

  • sxcat

    Could you try the word “concubine” ?

  • xennelul

    I have two word requests that are totally unrelated:

    origins of the word ‘robot’
    where does the expression ‘running amok’ come from?

    Thanks!

  • pelnied

    It would be so amazing if you would do the word hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia i watch all your videos and think you are amazing

  • tygejessen

    I was wondering where the origin of the word recorder comes from. (The woodwind instrument called recorder)

  • jilsoft

    Please please please can you give me the real origin of “the whole nine yards” .. I have seen several… I must know! It refers to the totality of something … as in.. “He took the whole nine yards of the beer on the table!”
    Thanks so much HFW… :wink:

  • prospero811

    Hi Marina!

    My guess is “spit and image.”

    TGIF!

    Eric

  • http://myspace.com/drasticenthusiastic emmanuelo16

    Can you do a lesson on the origin of the word KINDERGARTEN :neutral: :twisted: :shock: :roll: :mad: :eek:

  • prospero811

    Marina,

    Your website has become quite the phrontistery, even with that acrasial, fallaciloquent, and senticous evil twin of yours. I’ve become quite the sacricolist of you, Marina. You speak gaudiloquently, and your hirquitalliency increases every day.

    Amazing how many words have come and gone in the English language.

    Eric

  • http://www.kunstscheiss.de alx


    <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:SpittingImage_albumcover.jpg">Marinas evil twin with Ronald Reagan</a>

  • http://www.kunstscheiss.de alx

    code is above. just copy and paste.

    Marinas evil twin with Ronald Reagan

  • http://hotforwords.com Marina

    Being quite the sesquipedalian, eh prospero811 :?: :eek:

  • http://www.kunstscheiss.de alx

    *sigh*


    <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:SpittingImage_albumcover.jpg">Marinas evil twin with Ronald Reagan</a>

    Marinas evil twin with Ronald Reagan

  • http://www.kunstscheiss.de alx

    yo, marina, lol. delete the obsolete postings of mine. 6:46 and 6:48. thx. and this one. uh huh.

  • prospero811

    Yes, I suppose I am today.

    All that may have sounded like amphigory or galimatias, but hopefully you don’t consider it a delenda. Word of advice for your evil twin, she should probably get herself to a growlery.

  • prospero811

    Oh.. request tor your next video… can you wear a belly shirt please? I am in the mood for omphaloskepsis. :lol: (strictly for philosophical purposes, of course…. )

  • http://www.kunstscheiss.de alx

    prospero,

    if you like good-looking east european women with big boobs and revealing clothes, you should definitely check out veronika zemanová. not from russia, though, but from czechoslovakia.
    I think she did some playboy shootings. whatever.

  • http://www.kunstscheiss.de alx

    there’s even a dog in that video.

  • commandodave

    Isn’t our language a deep and interesting thing, I have always wondered where certain words and phrases originate. Glad to know there are more of us out there. So here is a word request, gibberish I beleieve it originates from the work of legendary mathematician Al-Jabr :-)

  • derfasthirnlosenick

    Kindergarden looks like it consists of the word Kinder and Garden, which would imply that it comes from the german words Kind meaning child and Garten meaning garden, but here’s another rather interesting explanation:

    It’s rather interesting, that in many european languages, words that sound related to “garden” (english), “garten” (german) or “jardin” (french) often have something to do with protection of “the weak”.
    Examples: The guard. (german: Garde), yard…
    In fact, a Garten is a place always surrounded and protected by some sort of fence, wall or hedge.
    Which leads us to the words chórtos (greec) and the hortus (latin) for garden. The corresponding verb “hortari” means “to advise/warn” or “to invite so. to do sth.” or literally translated “wohl eingefrieded” (german) or “well protected”.
    Also, another german word for “Kindergarten” is “Kinderhort” (even though they seem to be related, the apparently aren’t (?))

    To make the long story short: In this context, garten has nothing to do with flowers and trees, but rather with the protection of something vulnurable.

    This idea also applies to “Baumschule”, a place where trees are protected. Like a school.

    Hope that did help, though I can not guarantee that it is correct.
    I’m no phylologist. I’m not even hot :(

    My word of choice: Where does the name Marina come from.

  • prospero811

    alx – I did not see the dog…. and I don’t discriminate based on national origin…. :smile:

  • derfasthirnlosenick

    oh wait! alternative word:
    Gay/Lesbian
    I know where gay is supposed to come from, but does lesbian have anything to do with the lesbos island in greece?

  • http://www.kunstscheiss.de alx

    first few seconds in the vid. white dog.

  • derfasthirnlosenick

    maybe I should have listened to the radio thingy before posting that comment. disregard it ;)

  • whacker

    Can you please make a video about the word “marginalize”? I didnt really understood it.

    Thanks and love you videos!

  • nvalline

    I think the answer is number 3, Spit and Image.

    I also have a word request, it kind of goes with spitting image, juxtaposition.

    Thanks and the lessons are great!

  • http://www.marriia.piczo.com thefailure

    I’d like to know more about the word, Bisexual. [:

  • redraven1974

    LOL I WAS THINKING IT WAS A SPITTING OF THE OTHER HEAD(CUM)LOL BOY WAS I WRONG LOL/ LIKE A SON LOOKS LIKE THE FATHER OR THE DAUGHTER LOOKS LIKE THE MOTHER LOL.OH WELL IM GONG TO GUESS NUMBER 2 NO NO 1 NO NO 3 OK 2 NO 1 NO 3 NO NO OK FINAL ANSWER (2) OK THAT IT OK 2 IM SURE IM WRONG AGAIN BUT WORTH A TRY.

  • xxfirefrostxx

    what does fire and ice mean

  • errinf

    My answer is going to be D -None of the above. The three answers given may all be false answers given out by Marina’s evil twin. Don’t let the voice in the background of the vid fool you… Marina’s dark half could easily have mastered ventriloquism as well as philology. You never know… I’ll have to wait until the next video to find out. How evil. :twisted:

    As for a word request, I recently came across the word ‘reincelibate’ (or ‘re-incelibate’, perhaps) in a song lyric of an old Mott the Hoople track. Curious if it is a real word or if it is just a play on words. If it is real, I wonder what exactly it means, tho I doubt it is real, and more of a Lewis Carroll type effort. Thought I’d ask Marina and/or her evil twin about it, as they both have degrees in philology.

    Thanks for another interesting lesson, HotForWords. By chance do you have a neutral triplet in addition to your evil twin? Maybe we should just clone you and create a master race of philologists. Just think of all the word requests that would get answered. :mrgreen:

  • matrix

    Hi Marina,

    My word requests are: Analogy and Analysis. :lol:

    Cya

  • leebot_9

    Dear HotForWords,
    I’d like to request the phrase:

    “Cut to the chase”

    Thanks!

  • galakticus

    the 3d one.

    High Marina)) Could you explain the origin of the word spirit? Why are some liquor called spirits?

  • lemon2323

    I want to know were the word plasma came from. and also were howdy because it says that in the top right cornor :mrgreen:

  • omontesc

    i would lke to know the origin of a delicious word…DESSERT. thanks Marina and greetings, i hope you select this word.

  • omontesc

    according to the word “spitting image” i think the 3rd theory is the correct. please let me know marina. greetings from MX

  • jamus37

    :smile: Would you do a lesson on the prefix ab as in absolute or absolution or absolve. I have wondered why this prefix seems to refer to removing things.

    Sincerely,

    Student Jamus37

  • takachiado

    Does the international no symbol have anything to do with the Japanese character の pronounced “no”?

  • Summer

    Here’s a request: soap opera. I don’t understand why it’s called that!

  • archbishopbilly

    I would guess option 3.

    Dear Teacher, could you us the where the phrase “The Bee’s Knees” comes from? Commonly used when something is clever or keen as in “Well isn’t that just the bee’s knees.”

    Thanks
    Your devouted student
    Archbishop Billy

  • liljrpat

    can i request for the word “Biotic”, thanks alot!

    LilJrPat

  • motoslau

    i would like to know the origin of sarchofagus

  • http://www.musicaster.com musonik

    Hello Hot for words,
    where did the word melancholy come from? Peace love and thank you for the HOT website.You are one hotty for sure

  • phatbank

    I’ve always wanted to know about the origin of the phrase “Put up your dukes” to refer to boxing or fisticuffs.

  • alcapone

    I think it’s theory number 3.

  • steamboatwilly

    Hmm, the second i reckon.

    The origin of the word ‘mercy’, obviously related to the French ‘merci’, but why / how?

    Good skills BTW!

  • http://www.myspace.com/arsejack dstiner86

    Here is a tough word that truelly would be a task for you to even find. Any way the word is “Mogwai”. If you can’t think of where these might of possible came from, here is a terrible clue. Think of “Gizmo”? eh enjoy that one!

  • jeckes

    I am going to guess:
    airhead=dumb=thoughtless=thinking about nothing=nothing but air in there head

  • chnum

    why don’t you investigate the word :arrow: to investigate/ investigation :?:

  • david-j

    Orgasm is a wonderful WORD to tell about it’s origin!I know the origin of it but still!Будет интересно узнать точное от тебя! :wink:

  • http://www.myspace.com/missiloverock theresee

    Where did Therese orgin from or does it have any meaning?

  • ramza42

    sex,penius,vagina

  • fireduck01

    i think it is #3 form fireduck01

  • http://ru.youtube.com/user/ifranquito hitman

    Don’t confuse Russia with Czechoslovakia (Czech Republic) :evil: but finally is east European…

  • http://www.unravelingtheword.info/HomePage rhoadess

    :shock:
    prospero811 If you speak that way normally, you should consider running for president, you would keep the media perplexed for days, trying to figure out if you actually answered their question.
    Well here’s a list of the words you used for those who have no clue what it says, yes I had to google them :neutral:

    phrontistery
    n. place for study.

    acrasial Adjective (comparative more acrasial, superlative most acrasial)
    Positive
    acrasial
    sacricolist n 1727 -1727
    devout worshipper
    She was a skeptic, but became a sacricolist after her father’s death.

    Comparative
    more acrasial

    Superlative
    most acrasial

    1. ill-mannered, ill-tempered.

    fallaciloquence n 1656 -1761
    deceitful speech
    Your fallaciloquence, though charming, will not convince the jury to acquit.
    senticous adj 1657 -1657
    prickly; thorny
    He pricked himself on a senticous bush as he searched about for his golf ball.
    gaudiloquent adj 1656 -1727
    speaking joyfully or on joyful matters
    Her gaudiloquent tone was thought excessively perky by the stodgy faculty.
    hirquitalliency n 1652 -1652
    strength of voice
    The wrestler’s hirquitalliency compensated for his lack of strength and talent.
    sesquipedalian
    1 : having many syllables : LONG *sesquipedalian terms*
    2 : given to or characterized by the use of long words *a sesquipedalian television commentator*

    amphigory n.

    A nonsense verse; a rigmarole, with apparent meaning, which on further attention proves to be meaningless. [Written also amphigouri.]
    galimatias n.

    Nonsense; gibberish.

    [French.]
    delenda n. pl.

    [L., fr. delere to destroy.]
    Things to be erased or blotted out.
    growlery
    a retreat for times of ill humor
    This, you must know, is the growlery. When I am out of humour, I come and growl here. — Dickens, Bleak House

  • http://www.kunstscheiss.de alx

    ?

  • muggins

    Dear teacher,

    What is the origin of “feckless”? Or…what is the feck of
    feckless?

  • toysjoe

    If no one can answer this, perhaps we can do a lesson on why “Yours truly” means “myself”.

  • big andrew

    hey hfw, where did the term “the whole 9 yads” originate from?

    does it come from WW1 airplan gunners using about 9 yards of ammo at a time.

  • big andrew

    excuse the type O, I ment yards not yads.

  • jeffinboulder

    Dear Marina,
    Hope all is well. Please investigate the word “Candy Cake” I have a birthday coming up.
    Many thanks,

    jeffinboulder

  • alcapone

    I’m portuguese, i’m curious about the word ‘Iberia’…

    Iberia

    1. The region of Europe south of the Pyrenees, consisting of Andorra, Spain, Portugal, and Gibraltar.

    But where did this word come from? :)

  • dmrm22

    Where did the word procrastination originate from?

    I have a video response as well

  • eseverson

    I would love to know the etymology of the words Heaven and Hell.

    I have always been fascinated by words and their origins, and when I discovered your YouTube channel, it fueled my hobby even more. I am appreciative that there are other people who are passionate about words too. Thank you for sharing your knowledge with the world.

    Вы также красивы

  • toysjoe

    ROFL :lol:

  • http://www.myspace.com/michelleleafuller milea

    Hello there Hotforwords!
    Love the videos, I have a word request for you!
    PETTIFOGGER: It means a petty, unscrupulous lawyer; also, who quibbles over trivia.
    I was wondering how this word came about.
    Thanks a bunch!
    MiLea :roll:

  • buzzword

    I saw the same plot in a Hispanic soap opera.

  • Bob

    Many thanks for that, alx.
    That’s what I thought I did at first but I see that I left out the all important “>” in the middle. :oops:

  • Bob

    Abandon soap all ye who enter here. :grin:
    Soap operas are the modern opiate of the masses and should be anathema to those who fancy themselves as intelligent.

  • Bob

    Word request, Marina.
    Anathema

  • http://geocities.com/fyshdoc fyshdoc

    i agree. splitting a piece of wood does not give two of the same image, rather they have all their features reversed. this is analogous to the “enantiomer” well known to students of organic chemistry. spit and image gives a feeling not only of physical similarity but also of internal similarity.

  • delana1347

    Hey Marina! I LOVE your videos! They’re ALOT of help with my language.
    I was wondering…
    If you could figure out where the word ” guile ” came from.
    Im very confused about this word and I DO NOT know anything about this word. I am VERY curious. My youtube name is Delana1347 and I am a current suscriber of you! Yay!
    Thanks for all your help,
    Delana1347
    ( You pronounce Delana as Duh – Lane – Uh )
    There ya go :D

  • buzzword

    Back in the 80′s during the cold war, we watched, I kid you not the movie Red Dawn in history class. This farm boy said if he ever saw a Russkie he’d shoot him. I asked why in the hell would just shoot somebody for being Russian? Along with a few additional insults and we ended up fighting. He was just some ignorant patriotic farm boy who likes to ride tractors and shoot guns. So twenty years later I am talking with hitman and wondering what the farm boy would think of that. Now here is the sad thing. The kid ended up being a military policeman stationed at the Guantanomo Bay prison. This was before the news that the U.S. was torturing detainees. The farm boy comes up missing, all they can find are his clothes at the edge of a ledge overlooking the ocean. The military declared it an accidental death and closed the case. I always think about this patriotic farm boy and that fight we had and if he committed suicide, if so why, and what he was thinking.

  • link57

    SPIT AND IMAGE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :mrgreen: :mrgreen: :mrgreen: :mrgreen: :mrgreen: :mrgreen: :mrgreen: :mrgreen:

  • tdwnarrows

    Great maxim show and Great lesson 5 stars to each.
    Answer— I think its # 3

  • weeder14

    I like theory #1. the other two seem a bit too far fetched for me.

  • ashleyee100

    Hi HotForWords!!!

    I’d like to request the word ‘ambidextrous’, thanks so much!

    Ashley

  • jezko68

    Love your videos. Very smart, and super sexy. I think the answer to spitting image is number 3, but 2 sounds like a possibility. Hey, could you research the word “hodgepodge”? Thanks. Mmmmwwaaa.

  • scarecrow03

    I would like to know the history of the word “WELCOME”. Is it simply a shortened version of “Well, come on in”?

    Also, is the correct answer to the “Spitting Image” game the first choice of “Spirit and Image”? Lemme know please.

    Keep up the good work, Marina. You’re helping me get a brain better than the wizard ever did. :mrgreen:

  • el professor

    In college English almost 40 years ago we were told it comes from “spirit and image” by people who really took English scholarship seriously.

  • http://emmy-de-zelaware.com lividemerald

    What did John F. Kennedy and King Arthur once do in Egypt when they forgot to bring along their ride? . . . Why, they went to the Camel Lot. :roll:

  • el professor

    Someone needed a term to describe the relative brains, wisdom and common sense of brilliant bottle blondes Paris Hilton and Brittney Spears, so they came up with these two terms, “airhead” and “vacuum packed.”

  • http://emmy-de-zelaware.com lividemerald

    That one is a shoo-in!

  • http://emmy-de-zelaware.com lividemerald

    Darn! I was going to suggest that one.
    Oh well. Farewell my concubine!

  • http://emmy-de-zelaware.com lividemerald

    You had me going there. I was going to correct your punctuation to read: I have two word requests that are: totally, unrelated. :roll:

  • el professor

    It’s a mispronounciation of “effectless,” a synonym “ineffective.” Your feckless nebbish is the nephew or son-in-law that you hire to give your daughter and her children an income because her husband would never succeed on his own.

  • el professor

    I should have added that what it means is that someone not only LOOKS like someone else, usually a father, but also ACTS like him. His image (appearance) is the same and so his his spirit (character and personality).

  • colormekosher

    shalom hotforwords I’m a new student I would like to know were the wild goose chase comes from.

  • http://emmy-de-zelaware.com lividemerald

    Sounds retentive to me…

  • http://emmy-de-zelaware.com lividemerald

    When things got boring in old movies, the director would have the film cut to the chase (as in coppers followin robbers) to keep the audience interested. This is what I’ve heard, anyway.

  • http://emmy-de-zelaware.com lividemerald

    My grandmother used to say, “Well, I’ll swan.” I never did figure out the origin of that. But it seemed to be the equivalent of, “Well, I’ll be!”

  • http://emmy-de-zelaware.com lividemerald

    I heard that if you crossed Lassie with a watermelon, you got a melancholy baby. :grin:

  • http://emmy-de-zelaware.com lividemerald

    An old meaning of “merci” is grace or pity, as in “at the mercy of God.” (à la merci de Dieu), or “to cry uncle” (crier merci).

  • http://emmy-de-zelaware.com lividemerald

    I hope Marina does this one, because I haven’t the foggiest.

  • http://emmy-de-zelaware.com lividemerald

    ….or more importanty, where the wild goose chase is going!

  • http://emmy-de-zelaware.com lividemerald

    Isn’t vacuum packed an oxymoron?

  • el professor

    It’s a joke, lividemerald.

    Actually, vacuum packed means that when something like coffee is shipped, they suck the air out because oxygen in the can combines with the tastiest flavonoids in coffee so they eliminate that taste-destroyer.

    And what I meant is that although Paris Hilton seems to be empty-headed, at least she seems to have the capacity to learn from nasty consequences while Brittney Spears plows full speed into self-destruction. But then, she’s a rock star, and rock stars have a life expectancy in the mid 30′s.

  • http://emmy-de-zelaware.com lividemerald

    Paraphrasing my dictionary: ab- (prefix) Middle English, from Old French and Latin; Old French from Latin ab-, abs-, a-, from ab meaning from, away, off. From Greek apo.
    Just picking up the dictionary worked my abs!

  • http://emmy-de-zelaware.com lividemerald

    Of course it’s a joke. I love to feign naïveté. But I enjoyed your comment. In fact, I enjoy all of your comments, el profesor. And that’s no joke!

  • richiebution

    okay, what does femme fatale mean?

  • http://ru.youtube.com/user/ifranquito hitman

    But, Red Dawn doesn’t describe a real fact, just an hypothetical Soviet invasion to the USA

  • matrix

    yea, scratch those: rather mundane. ;\

  • mrpenguinismyhomeboy

    whats the origin of the word awesome?
    thx! :mrgreen:

  • rjphotog

    I vote for number two. It makes the most sense and sounds the most like “spitting image”.

  • nearlynot

    I’ll go with #3. That’s the only one I ever heard used

  • BillyB

    I’ve always used the phrase “splitting image” so my bad for not Knowing yet it had morphed to spitting with the lost “L”. #2 didn’t cheat & I feel old enough to have beem around when the Phrase was coined.
    My mom is still with us & so is her twin & they still compete with each other, almost bitterly sometimes, but share a bond that is closer than other siblings. They were kept warm as little babys in the bread warmer above the stove in the bitterly cold Sasketchewan winter. I’m sure Marina has a bond that is as close that comes across as sibling rivalry in the vids’. :lol:
    I paused the video @ 2:16 to get the phone @ was intimidated when I came back to the computer. Marina’s brotther could look like that ?
    Anyways Marina shatters the myth of “blond means dumb”.
    This otta’ shatter the “lacking social concscience” myth .
    http://au.youtube.com/watch?v=NutBawnYtlw

  • lukefuno

    the word i would like to know about is “fuck”
    now i am not trying to be a smart ass or anything but someone told me it not a curse word but means “fornicating under the kings consent” like it was an acronym, or something. could you clarify? thanks, :)

  • buzzword

    No, but viewing the video while in a history class during the cold war is irresponsible. The movie had little to do with history. It affected the students understanding toward Russia and it’s history. It created a bias in the class that interfered with a fair treatment of world history. Also in my post there is a theme of personal and national aggression and how people and nations have progressed. The fictional crimes committed by the Russians in the movie are then compared to the real crimes committed by the U.S. in Guantanomo Bay. They are linked by the lives of me and this farm boy and how our experiences and perceptions have guided and misguided us, and our nations.

  • batanglooban

    i want to know the words ending in -gry are… angry, hungry and idc wat is d other one…tnx marina :grin:

  • tollinchi

    Hi I was wondering… When ever I go to a restaurant I have to wait to be seated, then wait for the waiter or waitress who by the refer to their profession as waiting on tables. So, Is there a connection between waiters and waiting? If you think about it the waiters really don’t wait that much… I do. Anyway I am curious about that. Take care bye,bye.

  • splitfootman

    Can you trace the origins of the word “Mark” and find out how it became used as a person’s name?

  • deaconj999

    :roll:
    Hi Marina,

    I was wondering if you know where the word tomfoolery comes from ?

    Regards

    Joe

  • theoddgeteven

    Holy shimoly ….this stream is all over the place……

    To stay with the homework assigned….Therory #1 has got to be the winner.

  • http://emmy-de-zelaware.com lividemerald

    Or even antibiotic, for that matter. Check out the Greek word biotos, which means “life.”

  • http://emmy-de-zelaware.com lividemerald

    I looked up sarcophagus, and it has very amusing roots. Rather than provide the answer, I think I’l just second the motion, and ask that Marina do this one. I assume you misspelled the word, motoslau, but I actually like the “look” of your spelling. By the way, I saw a whiteboard this past week on which an English teacher spelled “misspelling” with just one s–boy was I tempted to write a nasty note! How can a teacher misspell misspelling??? :???:

  • http://emmy-de-zelaware.com lividemerald

    I’ll excuse your misspelling But why should I excuse your blood type? :mrgreen:

  • http://emmy-de-zelaware.com lividemerald

    Hell, yes! Heaven can wait. :grin:

  • http://emmy-de-zelaware.com lividemerald

    BTW, the astronauts just installed DEXTRE the robot on the ISS. I wonder if he’s ambi? :roll:

  • http://emmy-de-zelaware.com lividemerald

    That’s an easy one. But I’d like to direct your attenton instead to a film by Brian De Palma entitled “Femme Fatale.” It’s a great film with a controversial ending (but I love it!).

  • http://emmy-de-zelaware.com lividemerald

    A picture would be worth a thousand words on this one. :cool:

  • http://emmy-de-zelaware.com lividemerald

    Just for fun, I looked up “schmo” (schmoe). The origin is given as unknown. Apparently coined in 1947. It means an annoyingy stupid or foolish person (synonym of jerk). At first, I assumed that in the expression “holy schmoly,” the “ly” was added for alliterative purposes, and I wondered how “holy” got hooked up with “schmo” in the first place. Then I happened upon the dictionary entry for the prefix “schm-” (shm-). It comes from Yiddish “shm-” and is “used to form a rhyming term of derision by replacing the initial consonant or consonant cluster of a word or by preceding the initial vowel.” The example provided is fancy schmancy. I guess this second entry is the good one behind the explanation of holy schmoly. I would assume that “shimoly” is a spelling variation. I’m such a schmart ass!

  • ravioliman66

    Theory No 1.

  • deragor

    Theory number 3. We’ve got the same expression in italy, and the ittalian for spit doesn’t sound like the italian for split, nor spirit. So… it MUST be n°3. This time i’m sure!

  • wingdingking

    Hi Marina
    i was wanting to know the history of the word OBITUARY and also to go along with that word MORBID thks

  • motoslau

    sorry if i misspeled it or anything but i’m romanian so i’m not that good at spelling still i hope marina is gonna tell me this one:)

  • moss2010

    in ireland we say when some person looks like another that they are the “spit of “. eg ” isn’t paddy the spit of his uncle mick” :razz:

  • sammyizcool

    are purple and violet the same color
    and if so where did we get violet from?

  • darnko

    Funny thing, ‘split’ image crossed my mind when I first opened this lesson so I must go with the answer that it’s from, “splitting Image”.

    Darnko :wink:

  • nighteye

    I’m going with number 2 – identical twins are also formed by splitting a cell.

    And while I’m waiting on my earlier word requests, another request: what is the origin of the word breakfast? Is it contradictory if I eat slowfood for breakfast?

  • http://Bellevue-DarkKnight.deviantart.com wayne_leonheart

    I think that it is theory one. It seems to be the one that makes the most sense

  • bonerjams95

    how about the phrase blow job? i have all ways wondered how that came to be so if you can make a video teaching me, thanks

  • Bob

    I’ll add my name to this request.
    Why Ambi- …
    Ambidextrous, Ambiguous but only Bisextile and Bisexual.
    Also, Dextre must have an evil twin called Sinistre so, is a person with “two left feet” ambisinistrous?

  • Bob

    This has nothing to do with quickly and slowly.
    Fast also means to abstain from eating, as in Lent, Ramadan and hunger strike.
    Normally, humans start to feel hungry and have to eat after a maximum of four hours from the last meal, but when sleeping overnight they go for at least nine or ten hours without eating so they are effectively fasting overnight and the first meal of the new day breaks that fast, hence break-fast.

  • serenitygod

    I think it is splitting image

  • allizard

    argg… “doppelganger” playing Magic the Gathering finally paid off!! :mrgreen:

  • dustin535

    hey what is the origen of the words “sex” and “sexy”.

  • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5n2NXuQ5ako mijj

    “sex” is latin for “six”.

    Six people were the official standard number of participants required for the original Olympic games Orgy team event.

    The word has passed to us from this usage.

  • leonard

    I like all three theories. My father would clean the mirror with his spit and hanky. :lol: another great lesson

  • http://vkontakte.ru/id25408688?68581 leonard

    you are the brain; we miss you :eek: island boy :!:

  • http://www.youtube.com/user/frostyEnumerator mijj

    no you dont! .. (island boy?)

  • http://www.youtube.com/CheVolay Che Volay

    Think he meant England is an Island.

    {One of the few times Che has understood Lenny}

  • leonard

    That is right…be good…thanks Che :smile:

  • rijk

    Oops :oops: no google, that’s what i used on the previous popquiz(s)

    I know that in cars splitted wood is used to get the mirror image, so its number two for me.

    I would like to know the origin of the word [popquiz] because it is also used as a suprise test. Marina, you got work to do.

  • Nestor Negodiajev

    I am not believe for yuor “sister” existence.

  • Nestor Negodiajev

    I am not believe for yuor “suster” existence.

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