No Stupid Questions

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Does blowing on our hot food before we put it into our mouths actually make a difference to how hot it is? (feddit.uk)

submitted 7 months ago by Oneeightnine@feddit.uk to c/nostupidquestions@lemmy.ca

30 comments fedilink hide all child comments

I'm thinking that no, it doesn't. Which begs the question of why we do it? Is it a psychological thing?

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[–] ivanafterall@kbin.social 1 points 7 months ago* (last edited 7 months ago) (1 children)

It doesn’t mean “leads me to a question."

It does, though. In fact, that's considered the primary definition, per Merriam-Webster.

Begging the question means "to elicit a specific question as a reaction or response," and can often be replaced with "a question that begs to be answered." However, a lesser used and more formal definition is "to ignore a question under the assumption it has already been answered." The phrase itself comes from a translation of an Aristotelian phrase rendered as "beg the question" but meaning "assume the conclusion."

It's literally a moot point, all over again.

[–] morphballganon@lemmy.world 3 points 7 months ago (1 children)

That's a case of a dictionary caving to a misuse being so common that it becomes the new norm. If a dictionary claimed "supposively" was an acceptable spelling of supposedly, would that make it correct?

[–] dohpaz42@lemmy.world 1 points 7 months ago (1 children)

Yes. That’s exactly what dictionaries do. Where else would we go for DEFINITIVE answers?

[–] morphballganon@lemmy.world 0 points 7 months ago (1 children)

So, someone could release their own dictionary and thus become a DEFINITIVE authority on language?

Dictionaries are supposed to reflect the official lexicon.

At what point does slang enter the official lexicon?

[–] dohpaz42@lemmy.world 1 points 7 months ago (1 children)

Wow. I’m not sure if you’re serious or trolling.

But to answer your question, someone did release their own dictionary… and, thus, became a definitive authority on language… in 1847. That someone (actually someones) were the Merriam brothers. They then bought a license from another someone named Webster. Maybe you’ve heard of them.

If you are serious, you are digging pretty damn deep trying to make your point. If you’re not careful, you might come out on the other side of the world.

[–] morphballganon@lemmy.world -1 points 7 months ago (1 children)

So anyone with standards is a troll now? Jesus fuck.

[–] subignition@fedia.io 1 points 7 months ago

Dictionaries are descriptive, not prescriptive; when meanings get changed by popular usage, so too do dictionaries follow.

Terribly sorry you're learning this so late in life. Might have saved yourself some frustration otherwise.