From owner-freebsd-chat  Mon Apr 10  6:51:58 2000
Delivered-To: freebsd-chat@freebsd.org
Received: from theory1.physics.iisc.ernet.in (theory1.physics.iisc.ernet.in [144.16.71.20])
	by hub.freebsd.org (Postfix) with SMTP id 8DFEB37B773
	for <freebsd-chat@FreeBSD.ORG>; Mon, 10 Apr 2000 06:51:31 -0700 (PDT)
	(envelope-from rsidd@theory5.physics.iisc.ernet.in)
Received: (qmail 611 invoked from network); 10 Apr 2000 12:04:21 -0000
Received: from unknown (HELO theory5.physics.iisc.ernet.in) (144.16.71.125)
  by theory1.physics.iisc.ernet.in with SMTP; 10 Apr 2000 12:04:21 -0000
Received: (qmail 504 invoked by uid 211); 10 Apr 2000 12:04:19 -0000
Date: Mon, 10 Apr 2000 17:34:19 +0530
From: Rahul Siddharthan <rsidd@physics.iisc.ernet.in>
To: Dag-Erling Smorgrav <des@flood.ping.uio.no>
Cc: Brett Taylor <brett@peloton.runet.edu>,
	Christian Weisgerber <naddy@mips.rhein-neckar.de>,
	freebsd-chat@FreeBSD.ORG
Subject: Re: Spellings [was Re: BSDCon East]
Message-ID: <20000410173419.B493@theory5.physics.iisc.ernet.in>
Mail-Followup-To: Dag-Erling Smorgrav <des@flood.ping.uio.no>,
	Brett Taylor <brett@peloton.runet.edu>,
	Christian Weisgerber <naddy@mips.rhein-neckar.de>,
	freebsd-chat@FreeBSD.ORG
References: <xzp3dovno4r.fsf@flood.ping.uio.no> <Pine.BSF.4.10.10004091541050.3039-100000@peloton.runet.edu> <20000410101700.B317@theory8.physics.iisc.ernet.in> <xzpk8i6micg.fsf@flood.ping.uio.no>
Mime-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
X-Mailer: Mutt 1.0.1i
In-Reply-To: <xzpk8i6micg.fsf@flood.ping.uio.no>; from des@flood.ping.uio.no on Mon, Apr 10, 2000 at 11:10:55AM +0200
X-Operating-System: Linux 2.0.36 i586
Sender: owner-freebsd-chat@FreeBSD.ORG
Precedence: bulk
X-Loop: FreeBSD.org

> > I just asked a French teacher of my acquaintance. She said it's true,
> > it can be interpreted in that way. 
> 
> No more than the english term "black hole" can be interpreted as
> meaning "anus".

Meaning, I presume, "not at all."

Well, she isn't a native speaker, but nor, I think, are you. I don't
have an opinion on whether this is true, but generally I find a
statement from a non-native speaker that "there exists such a
colloquialism" more believable than a statement that "there does not
exist such a colloquialism." I mean the speaker may not have heard of
it; but if he/she has heard of it, it can't be totally uncommon.  

For example, I believe my English (grammar and vocabulary) is around
as good as that of most native speakers, but there must be dozens of
informal phrases in England/America/Australia that I'd be unfamiliar
with.  Many English speakers in other parts of the world may not know
what "nuts" actually refers to, colloquially, in the US, though they 
may have heard the expression.


To Unsubscribe: send mail to majordomo@FreeBSD.org
with "unsubscribe freebsd-chat" in the body of the message