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Chris -- 2018-04-11

#1 2019-11-30 11:10:56

Peter Forster
Eggcornista
From: UK
Registered: 2006-09-06
Posts: 1222

'perjorative' for 'pejorative'

As I tapped out a word the other day a line of red dots appeared under it, which I assumed was the work of yet another snooty stateside spellchecker haughtily pressing a Websterism onto my righteously resistant screen. But no, I was wrong, it was right and perjorative is not a word sharing some skewed connection with perjury which I had always taken to be self-evident, and in fact is not a word at all. Apparently what I was after was pejorative. I still find it hard to believe – English words beginning ‘pej’? “Pedge”? Apart from that ‘un and its variants, there are no more.

Since I am reading these terms in educational books I am assuming they carry no perjorative meanings in Spanish speaking countries the way …

Response to Feingold’s: The use of inappropriate, demeaning, and perjorative terminology to describe syndromes.

But this whole politically correct thing where the word Oriental is only used to describe an object and not a person and thus it’s a perjorative.

Gammon is a perjorative slang term used to describe white, middle-aged English men, who skew conservative on the political spectrum and support the English …

Conspiracy Theorist: A perjorative term created by the CIA to discredit those who questioned the idea that JFK was killed by a lone gunman with a magic bullet …

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#2 2019-11-30 13:15:20

yanogator
Eggcornista
From: Ohio
Registered: 2007-06-07
Posts: 237

Re: 'perjorative' for 'pejorative'

It comes from Latin “pejor”, which means “worse”.


“I always wanted to be somebody. I should have been more specific.” – Lily Tomlin

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#3 2019-12-01 06:55:31

DavidTuggy
Eggcornista
From: Mexico
Registered: 2007-10-11
Posts: 2713
Website

Re: 'perjorative' for 'pejorative'

Spanish peor is “worse” still.


*If the human mind were simple enough for us to understand,
we would be too simple-minded to understand it* .

(Possible Corollary: it is, and we are .)

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#4 2019-12-01 08:03:47

yanogator
Eggcornista
From: Ohio
Registered: 2007-06-07
Posts: 237

Re: 'perjorative' for 'pejorative'

Peter,
Did you pronounce it with the stress on PER? I once heard someone on the radio say PERjorative.


“I always wanted to be somebody. I should have been more specific.” – Lily Tomlin

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#5 2019-12-01 11:14:25

Peter Forster
Eggcornista
From: UK
Registered: 2006-09-06
Posts: 1222

Re: 'perjorative' for 'pejorative'

Bruce,
No, stress is on the second syllable, but for a-rhotics like me the words are perfect homophones.

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#6 2019-12-02 17:24:40

DavidTuggy
Eggcornista
From: Mexico
Registered: 2007-10-11
Posts: 2713
Website

Re: 'perjorative' for 'pejorative'

yanogator wrote:

I once heard someone on the radio say PERjorative.

Influenced by perjury (as Peter suggested in the first post above)?

This is one of a set of limericks defining terms that include the adjective Dutch in its pejorative (or perjurative) sense. Dutch courage in this sense refers to the …

(clearly punning, but still …)

We are talking about very moderate size activities, and we think that “academic” is both a perjurative and nattering term. In its perjurative sense, the term means …

And yet, on the other hand, we have this kind of perjurative anti-Communist language, raising questions in my mind which really go unanswered

it is not employed in a perjurative way nor intended to offend. In fact ‘counterresponse’ may be a more acceptable term.

(There are hundreds of them.) Just add untruth to the idea of shading your words towards the negative end of the spectrum, and it fits pretty well.

Last edited by DavidTuggy (2019-12-06 12:28:40)


*If the human mind were simple enough for us to understand,
we would be too simple-minded to understand it* .

(Possible Corollary: it is, and we are .)

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#7 2019-12-03 11:11:06

Peter Forster
Eggcornista
From: UK
Registered: 2006-09-06
Posts: 1222

Re: 'perjorative' for 'pejorative'

Good grief! I thought I’d looked for perjurative examples and found none. My senior moments are clearly joining hands to make minutes, and many of them.

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#8 2019-12-03 13:22:56

DavidTuggy
Eggcornista
From: Mexico
Registered: 2007-10-11
Posts: 2713
Website

Re: 'perjorative' for 'pejorative'

To round things out:

Nick name Vs. Pejurative Name : The broad difference between a nick name and pejurative/ugly name is that while the former is given by the parents of the child …

Most people who hear that the word “gyp” (meaning to swindle or cheat) is a pejurative truncation of the word “gypsy” are surprised by the racist history of the …

This may have an unintended condescending tone if used with your peers or it may be intended as a pejurative

This isn’t meant in any pejurative way but isn’t the choice to be a single parent mom usually made by women concerned about missing their child bearing years, and no longer wanting to wait for the right partner to come along?

(Again, there seem to be hundreds more out there.)

Last edited by DavidTuggy (2019-12-09 14:48:32)


*If the human mind were simple enough for us to understand,
we would be too simple-minded to understand it* .

(Possible Corollary: it is, and we are .)

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