Why Is a Cat Under Your Hat?
Q: How about the word “puss”? It refers to both a person’s face and a cat. How are they connected? –Alann Lyons, via email
A: Well, they were briefly connected just yesterday when my cat, Tabby, took a playful swipe at my puss (fortunately with claws retracted). But linguistically, the two terms are unrelated.
“Puss,” meaning “the face,” first appeared as a slang term during the 1880s. It’s derived from the Irish term “pus,” meaning the lips and mouth.
The origin of “puss,” meaning “a cat,” which first appeared in English during the early 1500s, is less certain. Some speculate that it imitates the hissing sound (“pssss”) made to catch a cat’s attention.
This theory receives some support from the fact that several other languages have similar terms for a cat: “poes” (Dutch), “puse” (Norwegian) and “pisica” (Romanian).
Q: I’m reading Catherine Coulter’s book, “Double Take,” and the following sentence stopped me cold: “He was standing by his big antique mahogany desk, looking every inch the tall, lean aristocrat in a beautiful pale blue cashmere turtleneck sweater and black bespoke slacks.” What does “bespoke” have to do with wool slacks? ‘Tis a puzzlement. But I was reminded of the time I chided my little daughter for standing on the foot of my bed, explaining, “That’s mahogany!”
To which she replied, “What’s your hogany?” I suppose it was my Southern accent! –Betty Lundy, West Point, Miss.
A: Your delightful “mahogany” anecdote reminds me of the kids who, told to “behave,” responded, “We are being have!”
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The juxtaposition of “bespoke” with “slacks” does seem odd. I mean, if slacks ran out of breath because they spoke too much, would they pant?
“Bespoke” is one of those tweedy little words imported from Great Britain and now used by hoity-toity Americans.
One meaning of the verb “bespeak” is “to hire, engage or claim beforehand.” So if someone has hired a tailor to make a custom-made item of clothing, the resulting apparel is described as “bespoke” (the past participle of “bespeak”).
So “bespoke” means “custom made,” as in a “bespoke suit,” “a bespoke dress” and “bespoke slacks.” Dave Kansas, a columnist at The Wall Street Journal, recently wrote, “In London, Saville Row bespoke suits start around $5,000.” Now THAT’s hoighty-toity!
But in America, using “bespoke” is a “custom made” more honored in the “breeches” than in the observance.
Rob Kyff, a teacher and writer in West Hartford, Conn., invites your language sightings. Send your reports of misuse and abuse, as well as examples of good writing, via e-mail to Wordguy@aol.com or by regular mail to Rob Kyff, Creators Syndicate, 737 3rd Street, Hermosa Beach, CA 9025
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