• rumschlumpel@feddit.org
    83·
    11 months ago

    You’re just jealous that we can actually understand what our words mean instead of copying them wholesale from latin or french (which we also do, just not as much).

    • pyre@lemmy.world
      40·
      11 months ago

      agreed. plus everything can be funny if you just translate it word for word, even though in almost all languages the meaning for the original words barely cross people’s minds when they use compound words.

      eg:

      German: Kamin

      French: Cheminée

      Spanish: Chimenea

      English: FIREPLACE!

      like fucking cavemen

    • Affidavit@lemmy.world
      5·
      11 months ago

      I’ll have you know that the history of ‘gloves’ in English goes back long before the Norman conquest; the roots in English are neither from French nor Latin.

      What I really want to know is if shoes in German are called ‘fußglof’?

      If you say, ‘yes’, then I really will be jealous. I want a foot glove…

  • HairyHarry@lemmy.world
    422·
    11 months ago

    German is easy:

    gloves = Handschuhe => hand shoes

    scarf = Halsschuh => neck shoe

    condom = Schwanzschuh => dick shoe

    • Affidavit@lemmy.world
      40·
      11 months ago

      Wow, you’re right. German really is amazing!

      mittens = Faustschuhe => fist shoes

      hat = Kopfschuh => head shoe

      glasses = Augenschuhe => eye shoes

      earrings = Ohrschuhe => ear shoes

      mask = Gesichtsschuh => face shoe

      bra = Brustschuhe => breast shoes

      shirt = Rumpfschuh => torso shoe

      pants = Beinschuhe => leg shoes

      helmet = Gehirnschuh => brain shoe

      diaper = Babyschambereichschuh => baby shame-area shoe

    • blackris@discuss.tchncs.de
      51·
      11 months ago

      Are you joking or do you really think, the second one is a word used in german? I cannot tell. It is not.

      • brown567@sh.itjust.works
        16·
        11 months ago

        It’s a reference to the saying “Close only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades”

        The second word is a (probably poorly, I hardly know any German) made-up compound word for “horse grenades”, so it’s handshoes and horse grenades instead

    • Affidavit@lemmy.world
      4·
      11 months ago

      Does Dutch keep both forms?

      I believe both Old English and Old High German kept both the compound word (hand shoe) and the singular word (e.g. glōf) before eventually choosing one and discarding the other. I’m curious if there are any Germanic languages that have kept both forms into the modern era.

      • bluesheep@lemm.ee
        2·
        11 months ago

        The alternative closest to glove I’d say would be “want(en)”, but it’s not nearly used as much as “handschoen(en)” - hand shoes.

        • Trinsec@piefed.socialEnglish
          3·
          11 months ago

          Wanten would actually be mittens. Gloves where all the fingers are fused together. Mostly used by kids or cooks (the ovenwanten 😋).

    • palordrolap@fedia.io
      6·
      11 months ago

      I’ve read enough clothing labels to know that that should be Baumwolle. Tree wool. Because of course cotton is “tree wool” in German.