![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
achacunsagloire.livejournal.com posting in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
fandom_grammarIt’s Monday again, and I’m sure all of you cool cats know what that means: time to draw a question from the magical hat that is the Question Stable and answer it. Today’s lucky winner is:
Don’t be a square! Click on the cut below to check out the answer!
It all started with one word: the Latin noun quattuor, which means “four.” From quattuor evolved the Old French adjective catre, which also means “four.” French speakers and enthusiasts will recognize catre as the ancestor of quatre, the Modern French word for the same number.
At some point—most likely during Norman duke William the Conqueror’s rule over what is now England in the eleventh century—catre wormed its way into Middle English in the form of catre-corner (“four-cornered”), which referred to the “four” side of a die. Accepted English spelling norms are the most probable cause for the change from catre-corner to the phrase’s current spelling, cater-corner. Perhaps due to the short-A sound that carried over from the French catre, domesticated felines became associated with the phase, and that association inspired the American variations, kitty-corner and catty-corner, in addition to several others (such as kitty-wampus and catty-cross).
Cater-corner and all of its variants mean the same thing: “diagonal” or “located diagonally across from,” especially in a squared-shaped or rectangular area or an area that can be graphed as a square or rectangle. The popularity of each variant ranges according to location and dialect. For example, while cater-corner is the original version of the phrase, it is not commonly used anymore, especially in American English; in fact, you would generally be hard-pressed to find an American who knows what it means. But if you were to tell a New Englander, Midwesterner, or West Coaster that it is a synonym for kitty-corner, he or she would then understand cater-corner perfectly—the same way that a Southerner would understand it once you told him or her that it’s the same thing as catty-corner. (For more details about the American uses of cater-corner and its variants, check out the Dialect Survey’s poll and Harvard University Press’s blog entry on the subject.
Here’s an example of the usages of cater-corner and its two popular variants, featuring the cast of Resident Evil:
Sources
The British Broadcasting Cooperation
The Free Dictionary
Grammarist.Com
Harvard University Press
Latdict: Latin Dictionary & Grammar Resources
The Phrase Finder
Is there a correct version of the phrase "kitty-corner"/"catty-corner"/"catercorner"? Are there regional differences or rules?
Don’t be a square! Click on the cut below to check out the answer!
It all started with one word: the Latin noun quattuor, which means “four.” From quattuor evolved the Old French adjective catre, which also means “four.” French speakers and enthusiasts will recognize catre as the ancestor of quatre, the Modern French word for the same number.
At some point—most likely during Norman duke William the Conqueror’s rule over what is now England in the eleventh century—catre wormed its way into Middle English in the form of catre-corner (“four-cornered”), which referred to the “four” side of a die. Accepted English spelling norms are the most probable cause for the change from catre-corner to the phrase’s current spelling, cater-corner. Perhaps due to the short-A sound that carried over from the French catre, domesticated felines became associated with the phase, and that association inspired the American variations, kitty-corner and catty-corner, in addition to several others (such as kitty-wampus and catty-cross).
Cater-corner and all of its variants mean the same thing: “diagonal” or “located diagonally across from,” especially in a squared-shaped or rectangular area or an area that can be graphed as a square or rectangle. The popularity of each variant ranges according to location and dialect. For example, while cater-corner is the original version of the phrase, it is not commonly used anymore, especially in American English; in fact, you would generally be hard-pressed to find an American who knows what it means. But if you were to tell a New Englander, Midwesterner, or West Coaster that it is a synonym for kitty-corner, he or she would then understand cater-corner perfectly—the same way that a Southerner would understand it once you told him or her that it’s the same thing as catty-corner. (For more details about the American uses of cater-corner and its variants, check out the Dialect Survey’s poll and Harvard University Press’s blog entry on the subject.
Here’s an example of the usages of cater-corner and its two popular variants, featuring the cast of Resident Evil:
“Here’s what I suggest,” David said as he pointed to a square on the schematic next to Jill and Forest. “We go in through the rear entrance. We follow this line all the way ‘round, through the offices, past the loo, then run cater-corner to the—”
“‘Cater-corner?’” Chris said, raising an eyebrow.
“You know. ‘Cater-corner,’” David said.
Chris just shook his head and shrugged.
“Like ‘catty-corner,’” said Forest.
“What is ‘catty-corner?" Chris asked.
“‘Catty-corner,’ man—like ‘right across from.’ Like this.” Forest touched the tips of his fingers to his elbow and bent his arm into a 45-degree angle.
“Diagonally,” David added.
“Oh!” said Chris. “You mean ‘kitty-corner.’”
“‘Kitty-corner?’ Is that what you all in the Midwest call it?”
“Well, we use other words for it sometimes too, but basically—”
“Maybe we could argue linguistics after we’ve solidified our plan of action?” said Jill.
Sources
The British Broadcasting Cooperation
The Free Dictionary
Grammarist.Com
Harvard University Press
Latdict: Latin Dictionary & Grammar Resources
The Phrase Finder
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
no subject
11/2/14 16:54 (UTC)no subject
11/2/14 23:23 (UTC)"It's catty-corner."
I was about 30 years old, and that was the first time in my life I'd ever heard it said that way. But once I did, I was able to figure out (for the first time in my life) that the meaning revolved around the number four! It was a revelation. :-)
no subject
12/2/14 02:10 (UTC)