Language desk
< January 14	<< Dec \| January \| Feb >>	January 16 >

Welcome to the Wikipedia Language Reference Desk Archives
The page you are currently viewing is an archive page. While you can leave answers for any questions shown below, please ask new questions on one of the current reference desk pages.

January 15

Language

What is the Spanish equivelent for the word "aquafier"? —The preceding unsigned comment was added by Gcklein (talk • contribs) 00:50, 15 January 2007 (UTC).[reply]

acuífero (see [1]). Assuming you meant "aquifer". --Miskwito 01:44, 15 January 2007 (UTC)[reply]

If you go to aquafier you will see in the left-hand side-bar <----- links to article about the same thing in different languages including Spanish (Español). meltBanana 01:46, 15 January 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Although, note that aquafier redirects to aquifer (the correct spelling), and the Spanish article which that links to redirects to Agua subterránea ("groundwater"), which isn't the same thing as an aquifer (it's less specific). The direct equivalent of "aquifer" is acuífero; the result you'll get to by going on a rather tortuous path of redirects is the Spanish equivalent of "groundwater". --Miskwito 01:51, 15 January 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Can you help translate this line into Latin?

I am an admirer of comedian Sam Kinison, and would like to use his punch line "Move to where the food is" as a business motto. My other resource, the LA Public Library, says they no longer have a person on staff to help (they did in the past.) Can you help me with a translation for this line? Thanks in advance, SuebeeWeebleswobble 05:40, 15 January 2007 (UTC)[reply]

I'm not familiar with this guy, and don't really understand the context of his punchline. However, for a short motto-like translation, how about 'Escam sequere'? Literally, follow the food. Is this what Kinison means? Maid Marion 12:04, 15 January 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Sequi takes the dative doesn't it? I'm not familiar with the word esca for food (I thought "food" was cibus), but wouldn't it be Escae sequere anyway? —An gr 13:21, 15 January 2007 (UTC)[reply]

I don't have reference books by me, but I think it is normal for sequor to take the accusative, whereas I think that compounds such as insequor take the dative. But I'd need to check this. As for esca, it's a common enough word for food - it's the origin of English esculent. It also means 'bait', for fishing etc. Maid Marion 15:45, 15 January 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Actually I've now found Lewis and Short online (alleluia, could be a life changing experience). It confirms that sequor always takes accusative, and so does insequor (I think I had instare in mind when I thought of the dative). Maid Marion 16:43, 15 January 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Hmm... I guess I was being thrown off by German (where folgen takes the dative). I still think cibus is better than esca, though; esca is a much rarer word than cibus, and Escam sequere is likely to be interpreted as "follow the bait", probably less successful as a business motto. —An gr 19:12, 15 January 2007 (UTC)[reply]

In one his first HBO performance, Sam said we should stop sending food to people in poor nations. Instead, we should be sending them luggage. "There's nothing there but sand! Move to where the food is!" —The preceding unsigned comment was added by Weebleswobble (talk • contribs) 13:36, 18 January 2007 (UTC).[reply]

To summarize, the expression would properly be "Cibus sequere?" —The preceding unsigned comment was added by Weebleswobble (talk • contribs) 21:17, 20 January 2007 (UTC).[reply]

"Cibum sequere" (cibus has to be in the accusative case). Provided "follow the food" is close enough to "move to where the food is" for your purposes. —An gr 21:31, 20 January 2007 (UTC)[reply]

guarantee vs warranty

please let me know the difference between guarantee and warantee

thanks

S K Vinodth —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 59.92.107.100 (talk) 08:32, 15 January 2007 (UTC).[reply]

To 'guarantee' is basically to somewhat unofficially promise something to someone else, whereas a warranty is something that would come with a product that you buy (or would be free with the product). If you guarantee something, it's assumed that it applies for forever; if you take out a warranty on something, there's a set time period where that something is insured. Here, let's look at an example. Say I'm looking to buy a new television. I go to my local Best Buy and browse their TVs. On the Best Buy building, there's a sign that says "Lowest prices on televisions--guaranteed!" So I'm looking at the TVs, and one says on the box "For an extra $25, you can get a two-year warranty on this television set." I'd check the price of the TV to make sure that there aren't any other stores that are selling the same TV for cheaper (if there were, I'd mention it to an employee or the manager so I can buy it at the cheaper price, since they guaranteed that it would be the lowest price). If I also decide to buy the two-year warranty for the extra $25, that would mean that if the TV breaks sometime in the next two years, it would get fixed or replaced for free (assuming it wasn't obviously my fault that it broke). --pie4all88 09:46, 15 January 2007 (UTC)[reply]

That may be so where you are Pie4al188, but in the UK goods may come with a 'warranty' or a 'guarantee', but I'm not sure there's a systematic distinction between the two. I have the impression that the word 'guarantee' has been gradually giving way to 'warranty'. --ColinFine 23:00, 22 January 2007 (UTC)[reply]

"Man in the Black Pajamas" Phrase

Hey guys, I heard this phrase in the movie The Big Lebowski and I've been looking online to find out what it means. While I've found references to it throughout the web (mostly where quoting the movie), I can't seem to find a definition anywhere. I get the impression it refers to an adversary during the Vietnam War. Is that true? How did the phrase come about? Thanks for the help! --pie4all88 09:33, 15 January 2007 (UTC)[reply]

It is indeed a Vietnam War thing. The Viet Minh and Viet Cong mostly wore black 'pyjamas' and simple black rubber sandals. ([2]). Proto::► 11:38, 15 January 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Great! Thanks a lot for the help, Proto! --207.63.248.235 22:01, 17 January 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Spanish Translation

This came up in class and my professor didnt know how to say it.

How do you say Booger in spanish?

--Omnipotence407 15:10, 15 January 2007 (UTC)[reply]

moco mnewmanqc 15:19, 15 January 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Isn't "moco" just general snot? Don't know if there's a particular word for the concept "booger". 惑乱分からん 15:51, 15 January 2007 (UTC)[reply]

My ex-co-worker used to talk about having to clean the mocos off her son's nose all the time. User:Zoe|(talk) 17:33, 15 January 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Mocos or mucus? 惑乱分からん 19:13, 15 January 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Mocos. She's Hispanic, though a native English speaker, but she'd throw in Spanish words every now and then, and that was one of them. It was plural. User:Zoe|(talk) 21:17, 15 January 2007 (UTC)[reply]

I always hear "mocito," which probably means small moco. --Proficient 07:05, 16 January 2007 (UTC)[reply]

A Dominican woman I know says she knows of no Spanish word that refers exclusively to dried mucus. Just part of the richness of the English language, I guess. -- Mwalcoff 08:09, 16 January 2007 (UTC)[reply]

I'm no expert, but based on what I see here, I think she's mistaken. Moquito would appear to gloss unambiguously to "booger". While moco could refer either to uncountable mucus or to a countable unit of dried mucus, I believe diminutives are always explicitly countable. Bhumiya (said/done) 02:52, 17 January 2007 (UTC)[reply]

If anyone's interested, Swedish has (snor)kråka, lit. (snot) crow. 惑乱分からん 13:12, 16 January 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Is that mocito or moquito? User:Zoe|(talk) 16:43, 16 January 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Make no mistake: the diminutive of moco is moquito. Mocito is the diminutive of mozo, meaning "lad" or, in a certain context, "bellhop". You wouldn't want to say you have a laddie in your nose. Estarías muy embarazada. Bhumiya (said/done) 02:30, 17 January 2007 (UTC)[reply]

For those who don't speak Spanish, Bhumiya was engaging in a multilingual pun. -- Mwalcoff 04:04, 17 January 2007 (UTC)[reply]

I was going to ask for a translation of 'booger' into English, but it is clear from context that the answer is 'bogie'. --ColinFine 23:01, 22 January 2007 (UTC)[reply]

singular or plural verb?

3 l/min (litres per minutes) are transferred or 3 l/min is transferred? Which is the correct form and why?--Raggiante 16:08, 15 January 2007 (UTC) 3 prefers plural, so just say : 3 prefer plural. Also : per minute. -- DLL ^{.. T} 16:59, 15 January 2007 (UTC)[reply]

The liters are plural, the minute isn't. - Mgm|^(talk) 13:01, 16 January 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Latin to English translation

How would you translate the following Latin sentence, used in 1741 by a French naturalist to describe the Mata mata (a kind of turtle) : "Testudo terrestris major putamine echinato et striato, sive raparapa" ? - Mu 18:36, 15 January 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Something like "Large terrestrial turtle, having a shell with prickles and furrows, also known as raparapa. Are you sure this description is for the mata mata? --Lambiam ^Talk 21:25, 15 January 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Thank you. The reference to the mata mata comes from fr:Matamata, which unfortunately doesn't give a source. - Mu 21:34, 15 January 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Hello, I'm the author who asked for a translation in the french wikipedia... My source is [3], an article by William H. Espenshade, III. I'd like to thank you for your help. fr:user:FR

Proverb: Hay Is For Horses And Grass Is Cheaper

Dear Wikipedia,

I've tried searching WWW for this particular proverb, "Hay is for horses and grass is cheaper."

I can't seem to find anything in regards to this saying origin or its complete content and I've been hearing my children say it a lot.

Can you tell me what does "Hay is for horses and grass is cheaper" mean and where does the saying come from?

Thank you kindly, Odonnelle-mail address removed for security Cobh, Ireland —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 66.215.239.142 (talk) 19:20, 15 January 2007 (UTC).[reply]

I never heard the extension "and grass is cheaper". My mother always said "hay is for horses" as a way of reminding us children to be more polite when getting someone's attention than saying simply "Hey!" —An gr 19:26, 15 January 2007 (UTC)[reply]

"Hay for horses" is also the first line of the Cockney alphabet. See here. --Richardrj ^talk ^email 19:55, 15 January 2007 (UTC)[reply]

"Hay is for horses" and "Grass is cheaper" both are responses triggered by the exclamation "Hey!". Someone just combined them for increased effect: Hay is for horses; moreover, grass is cheaper. Which it is. --Lambiam ^Talk 21:32, 15 January 2007 (UTC)[reply]

I've never personally heard the "grass is cheeper" part but this:

Hay is for horses, straw is for cows, milk is for little pigs, and wash for old sows

is at least Victorian and probably much older whilst the "Hay is for horses" response to "Hey" is recorded by Jonathan Swift. meltBanana 01:15, 16 January 2007 (UTC)[reply]

My fiance is from Ohio and I've heard this before. I can't remeber the whole thing, but it goes like "Hay is for horses, grass is cheaper (something something) then buy all three. I came from the west coast and we simply said "Hay is for horses, aren't you glad you're a pig.

It's also common in those "colloquial alphabets" - A for 'orses, B for mutton ("beef or mutton"), etc etc etc. Grutness...wha? 02:32, 16 January 2007 (UTC)[reply]

When I was a kid, I often heard the phrase. I retooled it to say "Hay is horses; grass is more expensive, but you get a better high!" The problem is, I used that so many times that I don't remember what the original secondary clause was. I think it was something along the line of "Grass is cheaper ... ", but that's all I can remember. Anyone out there still reading this thread?

As I pointed out above. I sometimes wonder if I'm invisible around here. --Richardrj ^talk ^email 06:23, 16 January 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Sorry about that - I didn't click because I've never heard it called the "Cockney alphabet" before. It varies from place to place worldwide (I doubt that London would be the source of N for gargle, for instance). Grutness...wha? 00:43, 17 January 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Better yet, see this link. It's from a cool site called Wikipedia. jnestorius^(talk) 12:11, 22 January 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Word matching BC??

I'm making a crossword puzzle, and I have a couple of good words except for the fact that they require a crossing word of the form BC??. The only ideas I've come up with so far are BCDE, BCPL, BCUP, and BCUZ, but I'm not sure I like any of these. Any suggestions? —Bkell (talk) 22:29, 15 January 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Does have it to begin with BC or can it contain the string BC anywhere in the word? If the latter, there are all sorts of words like BOBCAT and HUBCAP and any number of C-initial words with the SUB prefix before them. —An gr 22:37, 15 January 2007 (UTC)[reply]

MediaWiki's "all articles" feature might help you. --Kusunose 02:00, 16 January 2007 (UTC)[reply]

You'd really be better off recasting some of the other words, or using a grid that doesn't require two adjacent crossing letters.--Shantavira 09:16, 17 January 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Language/2007 January 15

Contents