Re: Oink! (was: German (was Russian) letter names was Re: Words about)

Steg writes:

>John Cowan writes:
>>  What's particularly interesting about "oink" is that unlike "arf"
>  > or "woof", it seriously offends English phonotactics.
>
>How come?
>And does that mean that "boink" also offends English phonotactics?
I would imagine that, minus 'oink', the '-oink' words are a fairly
new invention.

"boink", which in my idiolect means "have sexual congress with",
seems to be a variant of "bonk"
"boing" is what a recoiled spring does upon release, or perhaps the
sound of a rubber ball bouncing
"doink", meaning "moron" or "schmuck", seems a weird fusion of 'dork'
and 'dink'
"doing" (/doIN/), which in my idiolect means "penis", seems to be a
variant of "dong"
"ploink", dropping, say, a pebble into a puddle, seems to be a
variant of "plunk"

"Boing" is an attested form in the OED; all the others are not. I've
heard "boink" used by others than myself, so perhaps it's gaining
currency. I don't know if "doink", "doing", and "ploink" are legit
forms, fall into the realm of "family language", or are terms I've
coined off the fly. While it may not _seriously_ offend English
phonotactics, it's hardly common.

Kou