Re: phonology of borrowed words

Eamon Graham scripsit:

> "French postcard" - that's one I had to get explained to me. ;)
Yeah, but the use of "French" in that one is configurational: the
postcards in question actually were produced and sold in France to
English tourists (male).

"French toast" is another example, but apparently the term is unknown
in Greater Leftpondia: it's day-old bread soaked in scrambled egg and sauteed,
usually with cinnamon and sometimes sugar, and eaten for breakfast.
Evidently this is a variant of pain perdu, which is probably why it's
called "French" in English.

--
"No, John.  I want formats that are actually       John Cowan
useful, rather than over-featured megaliths that   http://www.ccil.org/~cowan
address all questions by piling on ridiculous      http://www.reutershealth.com
internal links in forms which are hideously        jcowan@reutershealth.com
over-complex." --Simon St. Laurent on xml-dev

Replies