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Folk etymology: alive and kicking in the 21st century

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  07 July 2004

ALAN S. KAYE
ALAN S. KAYE
Affiliation:
Professor of Linguistics at California State University, Fullerton
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Abstract

The author focuses on the approach to word origins widely known as ‘folk etymology’, which he regards as ‘alive and kicking in America's leading daily newspapers, duping many a gullible reader’. To do this, he considers the etymology of the phrase ‘so long’ when used to mean ‘good-bye’.

Type
Original Article
Information
English Today , Volume 20 , Issue 3 , July 2004 , pp. 55 - 56
Copyright
© 2004 Cambridge University Press

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