buffaloed

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wurdpurrson
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buffaloed

Postby wurdpurrson » Thu Apr 03, 2014 4:16 am

How did we come to use this word to mean confused, perplexed or stymied?

Perry Lassiter
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Re: buffaloed

Postby Perry Lassiter » Fri Apr 04, 2014 1:56 pm

The dictionaries don't seem to address it. They go back to the animal or to Portuguese bufalo. Also can mean to intimidate.
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Slava
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Re: buffaloed

Postby Slava » Fri Apr 04, 2014 2:15 pm

etymonline.com thinks, "Probably from the animals' tendency to mass panic."
Life is like playing chess with chessmen who each have thoughts and feelings and motives of their own.

wurdpurrson
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Re: buffaloed

Postby wurdpurrson » Fri Apr 04, 2014 5:26 pm

If it derives from the animal's tendency to mass panic, then similar herding animals' like behavior should qualify that species also, yes? So. Cowed (using it as a generic term for bovine) means intimidated or subdued, more than perplexed or stymied, but there is a borderline connection.
Sheeped? Horse/equined? Elked? It gets curiouser and curiouser and is likely dependent on human perspective as to which animal is preferable use for a behavior trait, I assume. My musing was sparked by wee-hour conversations with academic friends via internet. We can all speculate some more. Thanks for your input, Slava and Perry; I appreciate it.

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Slava
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Re: buffaloed

Postby Slava » Fri Apr 04, 2014 5:43 pm

Sheepish
Horse-sense
kitty-foot
Sick/Tired as a dog
Dogged determination
Come in on little cat feet
Stool Pigeon
Pigeon-toed
Laugh like a hyena
Memory like a steel sponge
Ape
Monkey around.

They don't all have to become verbs, do they?

I wonder if it is even possible to come up with a comprehensive list.
Life is like playing chess with chessmen who each have thoughts and feelings and motives of their own.

wurdpurrson
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Re: buffaloed and other beastie things

Postby wurdpurrson » Sat Apr 05, 2014 4:33 am

Snake in the grass
Catty
Chicken
Bull-headed
Pig
Toad
Worm
Bird-brain
Eat like a bird
Loony
Goosey
Cow-eyed
Stag party
Get one's goat
etc. ad infinitum ad nauseum.
Nope, they don't all have to become verbs, obviously. And a comprehensive list would be long, tedious and show only that we are (and have been) much influenced by the animals inhabiting our world. Which is actually a good realization, that people share the world with many other living things.

Perry Lassiter
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Re: buffaloed

Postby Perry Lassiter » Sun Apr 06, 2014 3:44 pm

Hey, what happened to our apocryphal friend? Haven't heard from him for a while, and this is the sort of post he would love.
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Slava
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Re: buffaloed

Postby Slava » Sun Apr 06, 2014 3:50 pm

Poor guy. He likes to come up with apocrypha and in now apocryphal himself.
Life is like playing chess with chessmen who each have thoughts and feelings and motives of their own.

wurdpurrson
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Joined: Wed Apr 13, 2011 7:43 pm
Location: Olympic Peninsula, WA

Re: buffaloed

Postby wurdpurrson » Sun Apr 06, 2014 7:36 pm

Perhaps he's done a Cheshire cat disappearance on us, with only his grinning at our efforts showing hanging in the air somewhere. Look over your shoulder...?


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