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Chris -- 2018-04-11
Meditating on the pads of butter, it occurred to me to wonder if people’s hearts went pity-pat. Sure enough:
It’s a 62-yard collection of the newest fabrics from AvLyn Creations and they will make your heart go pity-pat. If you’re the
lucky winner you’ll receive …
“Yep, that makes my heart go pity-pat-pat. Anyone else?†He looked about the room with huge, moronic eyes.
And, this is the part that makes my heart go pity pat, isn’t it all just a question of time?
So what is it about these old fat-fendered Ford trucks that makes my heart go pity-pat ?? Why is. there a cult type following of these trucks?
to find someone who not only makes my heart go ‘pity-pat’, but someone with whom I can form a supportive, loving and mutually uplifting relationship.
I realy was happy with the buttercup and greens; but than the blues came out as I scrolled down and I had an OH Wow when my heart went pity-pat.
so many people responded when i needed a house my heart went pity pat.. god bless and happy thanksgiving to all
The more standard “pit-a-pat†or “pitty-pat†generally refer to the action of the heart under a sudden strong emotion. The first is quite certainly onomatopoeic, and the second a fairly natural pronunciation adjustment of it leading to a spelling adjustment. Pity-pat may well be a spelling variant of the latter, but certainly looks like the speller thinks the word pity is involved.
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If the word pity is involved, one may wonder whether there might be eggcornish re-imaging going on.
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Since pity is among the emotions that might occur suddenly and strongly enough to make the heart go pit-a-pat, there is some eggcornish potential. But in the cases I’ve found, the emotion seems to be something else, usually something not typically or easily combined with pity: loves of all kinds and their associated desires (including fervish fascinations with fine fabrics and fat-fendered Fords), gratitude, general excitement, etc.
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I can’t think of any other natural connection between pity and the pit-a-pat experience. So I conclude that this is best seen as an amusing malapropism, and likely in some cases not even that but simply a spelling variant of a phonologically-induced pronunciation variant.
Last edited by DavidTuggy (2008-12-10 18:00:40)
*If the human mind were simple enough for us to understand,
we would be too simple-minded to understand it* .
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I’d always known pit-a-pat as pitter-pat, and pitter-patter (goes my heart, of tiny feet).
I’m Kiwi, with a mostly UK English influence on what I read growing up (as opposed to US English).
Is pit-a-pat versus pitter-pat a regional difference?
Because I don’t use the shortened version pit-a-pat, I had to read your test rather after the quotations to figure out why pitter was so readily shortened.
(edited to fix some appalling typos)
Last edited by Sandi (2008-12-15 19:25:34)
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Yes, pitter-pat, of course—it’s bizarre to me that I somehow forgot about that. Certainly pitter-patter, and not pit-a-patter. I suppose pitter-pat and pit-a-pat might be spelling variants, for non-rhotic dialects. (pitter-pat 56K ghits, pit-a-pat 34K.)
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It strikes me tonight that there is a difference in nuance between pit-a-pat and pitty-pat, which I had suggested above were simply pronunciation variants. I think pitty-pat may have some influence from the diminutive suffix -y. Pitty-pat sounds to me (tonight) more like a little commotion/flutter of the heart, whereas pit-a-pat might be a rather strong one (but usually won’t).
Last edited by DavidTuggy (2008-12-14 19:40:58)
*If the human mind were simple enough for us to understand,
we would be too simple-minded to understand it* .
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Noticed that several definitions of pit-a-pat pop up on the first google page, but none for pitter-pat. In looking for one, I came across this:
A rain storm fits this definition perfectly. Rain, thunder, the pitter pat of the drops on the leaves, all a collection of sound, all temporary,
Yes, for me rain can go pitter-pat on the leaves (or pitter-patter), but not pit-a-pat.
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Hmmm. Got any spare cider, Peter? I feel like mulling a bit more.
*If the human mind were simple enough for us to understand,
we would be too simple-minded to understand it* .
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The kiwi accent often renders the E in words like pen to sound more like the I in pin. Of course one doesn’t generally hear it in one’s own speech, but I do notice it in some other kiwis whose accents seem stronger to me.
So would a kiwi hear the pet-a-pat of tiny feet when a cat or dog runs across the floor? BTW I find no Google results for this as onomatopoeia, so i wonder if anyone else thinks like this)
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I’m happy for rain and little feet to pitter-patter all they like, but if my heart joins in I’m phoning an ambulance. Pit-a-pat, pity-pat, pitter-pat are fine for hearts but pitter-patter suggests a gallop rhythm which I’d sooner avoid. (This begins to remind me of your recent ‘rattle-tat-tat’ post, David, and suggests a keen ear for rhythmic anomalies can be more than merely musical)
Speaking of galloping, my earliest introduction to rainfall-sounds was, ‘Clittor-clettor, doon came the wettor’. ‘Clitter-clatter’ is often reserved for the sounds of hooves but serves equally well for those under tin roofs (I’d rather write ‘rooves’) or, onomatopoeically, much heavier rain.
As an aside, I note there are 318 ughits for ‘petit pat’ and one or two for “pit or patter”.
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