tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2629301231907528990.post4461434675403388155..comments2024-03-26T18:01:57.609+00:00Comments on Inky Fool: All mimsy were the polka-dotsM.H. Forsythhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01464964455944509750noreply@blogger.comBlogger9125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2629301231907528990.post-76825690192968484262010-05-18T15:41:12.806+01:002010-05-18T15:41:12.806+01:00but you are right, the present day meaning is much...but you are right, the present day meaning is much closer to "mim" (which was being used as early as the sixteenth century to mean "reserved, restrained...contrived or priggish...affectedly modest, demure") than to Carroll's "miserable and flimsy".Mrs. Malaprophttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11571335974754100925noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2629301231907528990.post-92089919310738372962010-05-18T15:27:11.399+01:002010-05-18T15:27:11.399+01:00Yes, I noticed this - but the first citation for t...Yes, I noticed this - but the first citation for the word in this second sense is not until thirty years after Carroll first used it in 1855, which is why I think my edition at least is a bit cautious on the etmyology - saying that it "apparently" derives from the older adjective "mim" but may also be influenced by Carroll.Mrs. Malaprophttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11571335974754100925noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2629301231907528990.post-71606145602812709912010-05-18T15:20:16.736+01:002010-05-18T15:20:16.736+01:00To continue: it's apparently from "mim&qu...To continue: it's apparently from "mim" meaning "Reserved or restrained in manner or behaviour, esp. in a contrived or priggish way" which dates from well before Jabberwocky.goofyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14760721504519661112noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2629301231907528990.post-47287429281057516152010-05-18T15:18:15.825+01:002010-05-18T15:18:15.825+01:00According to the OED, mimsy meaning "prim; ca...According to the OED, mimsy meaning "prim; careful; affected; feeble, weak, lightweight" is a completely different word from Carroll's mimsy, with a different etymology.goofyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14760721504519661112noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2629301231907528990.post-50786019718842412932010-05-17T11:07:43.622+01:002010-05-17T11:07:43.622+01:00I watched the cricket with divine impartiality and...I watched the cricket with divine impartiality and the heap of Australians sitting at the next table, engorged with woe, had nothing whatsoever to do with my giggling.<br /><br />It may be coincidence, but mimsy also rhymes with whimsy.M.H. Forsythhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01464964455944509750noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2629301231907528990.post-37424880932028337552010-05-17T09:04:34.334+01:002010-05-17T09:04:34.334+01:00And thank you for the "malamanteau" link...And thank you for the "malamanteau" link, Antipodean! That's wonderful.Mrs. Malaprophttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11571335974754100925noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2629301231907528990.post-49303427941437820072010-05-17T09:02:42.373+01:002010-05-17T09:02:42.373+01:00Moptop - I have added a short list of other Jabber...Moptop - I have added a short list of other Jabberwocky portmanteau words which have survived into the present day, either with the original or a slightly altered meaning.Mrs. Malaprophttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11571335974754100925noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2629301231907528990.post-26143583584219031842010-05-17T05:08:48.070+01:002010-05-17T05:08:48.070+01:00Dogberry would be happy with the cricket, I suspec...Dogberry would be happy with the cricket, I suspect. <br /><br />On malapropisms and portmanteaus (portmaneteux?) - <a href="http://xkcd.com/739/" rel="nofollow"> http://xkcd.com/739</a>The Antipodeannoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2629301231907528990.post-42644624022312844602010-05-17T00:12:41.894+01:002010-05-17T00:12:41.894+01:00Thank you for this, Mrs M. I did not know it was a...Thank you for this, Mrs M. I did not know it was a portmanteau word and I liked your list of other MI words.<br /><br />My favourite is 'miffed'. It is without doubt the very best word to use should one have a yen to get arrested. As in (to a very cross policeman) "I can see you're getting a bit miffed..."<br /><br />It never fails.Moptophttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03043271018134053860noreply@blogger.com