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Extravagant adjective formation - 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer' hits Gray Lady

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halcombe

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Oct 30, 2003, 2:50:18 PM10/30/03
to
A noted (amongst aficionados) nauseatingly twee tic of scripts in the
latter days of 'Buffy' was a promiscuous use of nonce-adjectives
formed by the addition of ‘-y' to words and phrases.
‘Out-of-the-loop-y' is one I remember with particular fondness. Not.

Now, it seems, the revolting practice has spread to the New York Times
[1]. In an op-ed piece by Maureen Dowd, one reads

‘Mr. Bush looked buck-passy when he denied that the White House, which
throws up PowerPoint slogans behind his head on TV, was behind the
"Mission Accomplished" banner.'

(She even omits the hyphen, jolting the reader into racking his brain
for the significance of the word ‘passy'.)

Is this an isolated instance?


[1] http://nytimes.com/2003/10/30/opinion/30DOWD.html

R H Draney

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Oct 30, 2003, 3:34:53 PM10/30/03
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halcombe filted:
>
>閃r. Bush looked buck-passy when he denied that the White House, which

>throws up PowerPoint slogans behind his head on TV, was behind the
>"Mission Accomplished" banner.'
>
>Is this an isolated instance?

That is *so* not an isolated instance....r

Tony Cooper

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Oct 30, 2003, 5:12:31 PM10/30/03
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On 30 Oct 2003 11:50:18 -0800, halc...@subdimension.com (halcombe)
wrote:

Ms Dowd is a columnist. (An interesting one, too) In that capacity,
she can legitimately play fast and loose with English. I don't
particularly care for this example, but it is not The End Of Civilized
Writing As We Know It.


John Dean

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Oct 30, 2003, 7:45:36 PM10/30/03
to

Oh you cuddle-monkey you ...
--
John Dean
Oxford
De-frag to reply


R H Draney

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Oct 30, 2003, 7:53:34 PM10/30/03
to
John Dean filted:

>
>R H Draney wrote:
>> halcombe filted:
>>>
>>> ‘Mr. Bush looked buck-passy when he denied that the White House,

>>> which throws up PowerPoint slogans behind his head on TV, was behind
>>> the "Mission Accomplished" banner.'
>>>
>>> Is this an isolated instance?
>>
>> That is *so* not an isolated instance....r
>
>Oh you cuddle-monkey you ...

Could this thread *be* any more self-referential?...r

Ben Zimmer

unread,
Nov 4, 2003, 4:12:51 PM11/4/03
to
R H Draney wrote:
>
> John Dean filted:
> >
> >R H Draney wrote:
> >> halcombe filted:
> >>>
> >>> 閃r. Bush looked buck-passy when he denied that the White House,

> >>> which throws up PowerPoint slogans behind his head on TV, was behind
> >>> the "Mission Accomplished" banner.'
> >>>
> >>> Is this an isolated instance?
> >>
> >> That is *so* not an isolated instance....r
> >
> >Oh you cuddle-monkey you ...
>
> Could this thread *be* any more self-referential?...r

Those in the dark here may want to consult a new book from Oxford
University Press entitled _Slayer Slang: A Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Lexicon_, by Michael Adams (Professor of English, Albright College).
Here's a review of the book by Michael Quinion, which discusses
linguistic innovations such as the "-y" formation (as in "buck-passy"):

http://www.worldwidewords.org/reviews/re-sla1.htm

The OUP website gives sample entries for "bitca", "break and enterish",
"carbon-dated", and of course "cuddle-monkey":

http://www.oup.com/us/catalog/general/subject/?view=usa&ci=0195160339

And as more evidence of the wide-ranging influence of _BtVS_ on modern
usage, here's a recent addition to the online OED:

much, a., adv., pron., and n.
B. adv.
1. h. colloq. (orig. U.S., freq. ironic). With a preceding
adjective, infinitive verb, or noun phrase, forming an
elliptical comment or question.
The use was popularized by the film Buffy, the Vampire
Slayer and the television series derived from it.

1988 D. WATERS Heathers (film script) 15 God Veronica, drool
much? His name's Jason Dean. 1988 D. WATERS Heathers (film
script) 86 Heather Duke. It was J.D.'s idea! He made out the
signature sheet and everything. Now will you sign it.
Veronica. (queasy) No. Heather Duke. Jealous much? 1992 J.
WHEDON Buffy, the Vampire Slayer (film script) 8 A stranger,
walking the other way, bumps into Buffy, doesn't stop...
Buffy. Excuse much! Not rude or anything. 1992 J. WHEDON
Buffy, the Vampire Slayer (film script) 25 Pike and Benny
have entered the diner, quite drunk... Kimberly (to the
other girls) Smell of booze much. 1998 M. BURGESS & R.
GREEN Isabella in Sopranos (television shooting script) 1st
Ser. 1 42 Anthony Jr. Probably I can't go to that dance now
either. Meadow. God, self-involved much? 2001 Cosmopolitan
Dec. 178 You've seen them: the kinds of couples who finish
each other's sentences... Jealous much? Damn right.

david56

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Nov 5, 2003, 4:54:39 AM11/5/03
to
bgzi...@midway.uchicago.edu spake thus:

> R H Draney wrote:
> >
> > John Dean filted:
> > >
> > >R H Draney wrote:
> > >> halcombe filted:
> > >>>

> > >>> Mr. Bush looked buck-passy when he denied that the White House,


> > >>> which throws up PowerPoint slogans behind his head on TV, was behind
> > >>> the "Mission Accomplished" banner.'
> > >>>
> > >>> Is this an isolated instance?
> > >>
> > >> That is *so* not an isolated instance....r
> > >
> > >Oh you cuddle-monkey you ...
> >
> > Could this thread *be* any more self-referential?...r
>
> Those in the dark here may want to consult a new book from Oxford
> University Press entitled _Slayer Slang: A Buffy the Vampire Slayer
> Lexicon_, by Michael Adams (Professor of English, Albright College).
> Here's a review of the book by Michael Quinion, which discusses
> linguistic innovations such as the "-y" formation (as in "buck-passy"):
>
> http://www.worldwidewords.org/reviews/re-sla1.htm

Wonderful, thanks. A Christmas present for Daughter.

--
David
=====

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