Washing-machine words (was: Futurese, Chinese, Hz of NatLangs, etc.)
From: | Jeffrey Henning <jeffrey@...> |
Date: | Wednesday, May 15, 2002, 3:19 |
Kala Tunu <kalatunu@...> comunu:
> wow! all this is truely interesting. IMHO conlangs based on a few hundred
or
> thousands of monosyllabic roots like Vorlin, BrSc or Futurese for that
matter
> are perfectly ok. but once you realize that the list of CVC roots for your
lang
> is no more valid that, say, the list of essential kanjis is, and that
calling a
> dish-washer a "dish washing machine" or a "meal instrument water swirling
> bucket" is a matter of personal taste, cultural environment and state of
> art---well, then, you understand that conlanging is it
I found this quote inspirational. Dublex is an engineered language whose
primary design goal is to develop a maximally effective minimal set of root
words. The goal with Dublex's roots is to identify the most productive
roots, by analyzing a long list of compounds and seeing which roots are used
most often. This will provide quantifiable information on the productivity
of specific roots (not the first such analysis, as this has been done with
Esperanto and maybe, by now, Lojban).
Since I often find that I can create words the most quickly when I am
dwelling on a narrow classification (I drafted a few dozen words for windows
the other night, for instance), I decided to tackle washing machines and
related terms. I was rather surprised to see that out of 5000+ compounds
submitted by dozens of people, that basic convenience of modern domestic
life, the dishwasher, had not yet been named.
Here are some words you may want to define in your own langs:
MACHINES FOR WASH/CLEAN X
lavmahin [washing/cleaning+machine.] washing machine -- any machine that
washes objects; e.g., a carwash, clothes washing machine, dish washer
camlavmahin [garment+washing/cleaning+machine.] washer, automatic
washer, washing machine -- a home appliance for washing clothes and linens
automatically
contoplavmahin [bottom(opposite+top)+washing/cleaning+machine.] vac,
vacuum, vacuum cleaner, hoover -- an electrical home appliance that cleans
by suction; typically used to clean rugs and floors
cublavmahin [cup+washing/cleaning+machine.] dishwasher, dish washer,
dishwashing machine -- a machine for washing dishes
darglavmahin [road+washing/cleaning+machine.] street cleaner, street
sweeper -- a customized vehicle with machinery to wash and clean streets
(typically used by a municipal sanitation department)
dentlavmahin [tooth+washing/cleaning+machine.] electric toothbrush -- a
toothbrush with an electric motor in the handle that vibrates the head of
the brush
marlavmahin [ocean+washing/cleaning+machine.] dredge -- a power shovel
to clean debris from a harbor, channel or riverbed
perlavmahin [person+washing/cleaning+machine.] shower -- a plumbing
fixture that sprays water over a person
seblavmahin [self+washing/cleaning+machine.] self-cleaning machine --
any machine that can clean itself, especially an oven
suvinlavmahin [swine+washing/cleaning+machine.] hogwash -- a machine for
washing swine
vatlavmahin [water+washing/cleaning+machine.] wet vac, wet vacuum, wet
vacuum cleaner -- an electrical home appliance that cleans up water by
suction
viclavmahin [vehicle+washing/cleaning+machine.] carwash, car wash -- a
bay that a vehicle can be driven into and automatically washed and cleaned
by machinery
MACHINES THAT WASH/CLEAN USING X
lavcisidmahin [washing/cleaning+acid+machine.] acid washer -- a machine
that washes with acid to achieve a bleached look; used for blue jeans and
other denim clothing
lavdartmahin [washing/cleaning+dirt+machine.] sandblast -- a machine
using a blast of air or steam to propel sand at high velocity to etch glass
or to clean stone or metal surface
lavluftmahin [washing/cleaning+air+machine.] vac, vacuum, vacuum
cleaner, hoover -- an electrical home appliance that cleans by suction
lavnontvatmahin [washing/cleaning+not+water+machine.] dry cleaning
machine -- machine that cleans (fabrics) with a solvent other than water
lavrocmahin [washing/cleaning+rock+machine.] stonewasher -- a machine
that washes with stones to achieve a worn appearance; used for blue jeans
and other denim clothing
lavventmahin [washing/cleaning+wind+machine.] air shower -- a device
using jets of air to blow lint and dust off the staff who work in clean room
TOOLS FOR WASHING/CLEANING X
dentlavhim [tooth+washing/cleaning+tool.] toothbrush -- small brush with
long handle used to clean teeth
tabaclavhim [tobacco+washing/cleaning+tool.] pipe cleaner -- cleaning
implement consisting of a flexible tufted wire that is used to clean a pipe
stem
PROFESSIONALS WHO WASH/CLEAN X
darglavnic [road+washing/cleaning+professional.] street cleaner, street
sweeper -- a worker employed to clean streets (especially one employed by a
municipal sanitation department)
foctublavnic [chimney+washing/cleaning+professional.] chimneysweeper,
chimneysweep, sweep -- someone who cleans soot from chimneys
hisanlavnic [horse+washing/cleaning+professional.] stableman, stableboy,
groom, hostler, ostler -- someone employed in a stable to take care of the
horses
LIQUIDS
lavlic [washing/cleaning+liquid.] cleansing agent, cleanser, cleaner --
a liquid detergent or chemical agent used in cleaning something
mehlavlic [sheep+cleaning+liquid.] sheep dip -- a liquid mixture
containing pesticides in which sheep are dipped to kill parasites
Best regards,
Mr. Clean
http://jeffrey.henning.com
http://www.langmaker.com
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