Listen up southerners!! You have been incorrectly using the word "Toboggan" for far too long.
I heard on the news the other day "Police are looking for a suspect wearing a black hoodie, and a grey toboggan, if you have any clues as to who this person is... bla bla bla."
He was wearing a what?
to·bog·gan - noun
A long, narrow, runnerless sled constructed of thin boards curled upward at the front end.
intr.v. to·bog·ganed, to·bog·gan·ing, to·bog·gans
1. To coast, ride, or travel on a toboggan.
2. Slang To decline or fall rapidly: His good fortune has tobogganed
So this suspect was wearing a sled on his head? Now that's sure to make it easy to identify him! James used this word to reference a knit hat he wore in the winter, and we argued about the usage! Then he heard his aunt use the word in the same context, and said "Ah ha! See I told ya!"
Not.
A toboggan was something I got for christmas as a little kid, and I totally felt like Laura Ingalls when my sister pulled me around on it in our back yard.
Just because many many people use it incorrectly, it doesn't make it any more correct. In fact, it makes it even more annoying.
End of rant. Have a great day.
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
Grammar police is on patrol
Posted by April at 9:38 AM
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
3 comments:
maybe you should alert the news media who reported it of their error as well.... where are the editors I ask you???
Main Entry: 1to·bog·gan
Pronunciation: \tə-ˈbä-gən\
Function: noun
Etymology: Canadian French tobogan, of Algonquian origin; akin to Micmac tobâgun drag made of skin
Date: circa 1820
1: a long flat-bottomed light sled made usually of thin boards curved up at one end with usually low handrails at the sides
2: a downward course or a sharp decline
3chiefly Southern & Midland : stocking cap
Joshua says in some parts of Tennessee a green bell pepper is a mango. In other parts, an avacado is a mango. Just head north of the Mason Dixon line every once in a while for a reality check.
Post a Comment