Have you got a Big Question you'd like us to answer? If so, let us know by emailing us at. It was named this as the container was traditionally a small barrel. The next time someone asks you what the scuttlebutt is, now you can tell them. Scuttlebutt The scuttlebutt is a cask on a ship containing the vessels drinking water. Nautical technology made the scuttlebutt obsolete, but the term endured, becoming a catch-all word for unfounded rumors. The scuttlebutt was really the only place to do it. Since sailors could congregate around the fountain, it became a place to finally catch up and exchange gossip, making scuttlebutt synonymous with casual conversation. A scuttlebutt was therefore a hatch in the cask.īecause sailors usually received orders from shouting supervisors, talking amongst themselves was discouraged. an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to and it’s affiliated sites. The cask was known as a butt, while scuttle was taken from the French word escoutilles and means hatch or hole. Scuttlebutt is time-consuming and if such is a scenario then it’s only to realise that the product is going to be closed soon. It was later used as the name of the drinking fountain found on a ship or in a Naval installation. But what exactly is scuttlebutt, and why did it become associated with idle water cooler talk?Īccording to Merriam-Webster, a scuttlebutt referred to a cask on sailing ships in the 1800s that contained drinking water for those on board. We can easily infer that scuttlebutt is a slang term for information or maybe even gossip. “What’s the scuttlebutt?” you’d say, for example, and then they’d reply with the solicited scuttlebutt. Scuttle comes from the Old French escoutille meaning ‘hatchway’. Sometimes, you can ask them what the scuttlebutt is. You might ask someone how they’re doing, what’s new, or if they’ve done anything interesting recently. Register for the Daily Good Word E-Mail! - You can get our daily Good Word sent directly to you via e-mail in either HTML or Text format.Casual conversation is home to a variety of prompts. (The scuttlebutt around the alphaDictionary water cooler is that Lenn Zonder suggested today's Good Word and you can bottle our scuttlebutt.) A small cask was a butticula in Late Latin, a word that Old French converted to botele, (Modern French bouteille), and passed on to English as bottle. The British Navy lifted this word from Old French boute, a descendant of Late Latin buttis "cask, keg". Now, I know what you are thinking and butt has nothing to do with that. But a hole in a butt (keg) of water allows access to the contents. To scuttle means "to cut a hole in something" and is still used in reference to sinking a boat or ship. As a result, scuttlebutt originally referred exclusively to the gossip you pick up around the water barrel. It originated as a British naval slang phrase, scuttled butt, the keg for drinking water on board a ship. Word History: Today's Good Word is a lexical gift from the US Navy. Scuttlebutt Method - The Scuttlebutt Method was coined by Phil Fisher (a legend of the. In Play: Today's word is available when you need a word longer than rumor or gossip or when you tire of using these two old stand-bys: "The scuttlebutt has it that Faye Slift has had so much cosmetic surgery that every time she sits down she grins." Scuttlebutt no longer has to be gossip picked up by the water cooler-but that remains a very good spot to get the latest: "Did you hear the latest scuttlebutt? I heard at the water cooler that Wadley got a transmotion (lateral change of positions) to Kuala Lumpur." Buffett explains his methods of finding the best brands to invest in. But in the 30s it began to spread through the general language until it became a fixture of English vocabulary. It began its life as an adjective in phrases like scuttlebutt rumor and a scuttlebutt yarn, talk around the water container, whatever it was. Simply put, it doesn’t work great that you play over international breaks, Bradley said. In sense of gossip, compare scuttlebutt, of similar origin. Things get worse next week with Toronto losing fullback Richie Laryea, midfielders Jonathan Osorio and Mark-Anthony Kaye and forward Ayo Akinola to Canada, meaning further roster holes for an away game at San Jose. water cooler: water cooler (English) Origin & history water + cooler. scuttle-butts) Alternative spelling of scuttlebutt. Notes: Although it originally referred to gossip picked up around the water cooler (see Word History), today this Good Word refers to any kind of gossip or rumors. Scuttlebutt noun - Information or opinion that is widely disseminated without any authority or confirmation of accuracy. scuttle-butt: see also scuttlebutt scuttle-butt (English) Noun scuttle-butt (pl. The drinking fountain or other source of water aboard a ship.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |