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Ask for help > old womanish and retired colonelish
old womanish and retired colonelish
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gharbi2009
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old womanish and retired colonelish
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Happy New Year! What do these expressions old womanish and retired colonelish mean? and is there any simillarity in meaning between them? I will wholeheartedly be grateful for your help. |
31 Dec 2020
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saloui
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Hey ! well : I�ve never heard of retired colonelish , however I think it could mean that when smebody acts like a retired colonel. In what concerns old womanish , it could mean being sissy , or acting like an old lady. BTW , I am Tunisian too, but teaching in France , seeing the tests you posted reminded me of old good days ;)
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31 Dec 2020
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savilla
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Happy New Year! First, I don�t the expressions are in common use, certainly not in Australia. You normally add the suffix ish to nouns to make adjectives which indicate that someone is like that noun. For a good example of a stereotypical "retired colonel", see Colonel Hall in the British TV series Fawlty Towers. |
31 Dec 2020
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maryse pey�
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I was taught that the suffixe -ish is often pejorative. Think of yellowish for example : of a bad yellow. I may say that this is to characterize a person as bad-tempered as an old woman (single or kind of witch) or / and a bored and boring retired colonel who is too strict (as he was in the army) ? Might it be kinda ? |
1 Jan 2021
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yanogator
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IN the US, -ish is not pejorative. It simply means "like" or "somewhat". Yellowish just means somewhat yellow. That flower isn�t quite white. There is a yellowish color to it. So, old womanish and retired colonelish mean like an old woman and like a retired colonel. It would be left to the reader/hearer to interpret the terms in his/her own understanding of what an old woman and a retired colonel are like. Aqua is a bluish green color. It is a green that is somewhat blue. Bruce |
1 Jan 2021
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spinney
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I agree with Bruce on this. We tend to use it to mean "like" or "of the quality of." It is very flexible and also well established as a suffix. After all, I am from England, I am English. I live in Spain and I speak a little Spanish. Consider the following exchanges, "Is it cold outside?" "Er, coldish, I suppose." "Was the exam hard?" "It was hardish." "Is it cheap in Cordoba?" "It is cheapish, although it depends where you go and what you get up to." To me, "ish" is a very useful, and fun, little suffix. � |
2 Jan 2021
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Ruszkaia
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gharbi 2009 Sometimes Offensive. having characteristics considered typical of an old woman, as excessive fussiness or timidity. |
3 Jan 2021
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cunliffe
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Yes and I would add that if I heard someone described as retired colonelish, I would expect a mildly comic character, maybe even a bit Colonel Blimpish  . Old womanish is a sexist comment, I�m afraid.... Maybe both these terms are... |
3 Jan 2021
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spinney
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Yep, I concur with Ruszkaia and Lynne, Old Womanish can definitely be seen as sexist, if not used among friends, and would link to what maryse peyé said earlier. However, if two sisters were talking to each other and one said to the other, "Do you think this coat is old womanish?" it would indicate intimacy rather than outright sexism. But, yes, it is often used in a derogative way, also. @Lynne: Colonel Blimp? Are you a fan of that film? I think it is my favourite film of all time. I just love it! Talking of sexism, it has that in buckets, as well as cruelty to animals, but one of the loveliest films with some of the greatest performances I have seen in a British film. I watch it every year. |
3 Jan 2021
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cunliffe
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Do you know what, Dale, I have never seen it, but it�s on my list now! While I�m here, here is a P.G Wodehouse observation for you, which made me LOL and hope that almaz checks in  : it�s never difficult to distinguish between a Scotsman with a grievance and a ray of sunshine. Lynne
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3 Jan 2021
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