hellooo since the definition of favor is twofold—to treat gently or carefully. 2. : to show partiality toward : prefer.
doesn’t it make linguistic sense either way? Like if I favor a leg I am preferring to walk on it? the former definition might be the technically Right Answer but existing language definitions could support both imo
I don’t know how much it really matters if something sounds like it could be something else, when the (8?) senses of “favour” aren’t especially internally contradictory.
But the discourse reminds me a bit of “prone.”
I don’t see there being a lot of value in digging into definitions and twisting them trying to validate a guess, when digging into definitions instantly gives you a definition that explains the exact situation. It’s a bit like creatively contorting a definition so Sarah J Maas is never wrong:
Like, I absolutely see the point that “ohhh it makes sense to guess wrong about this one, and then go with the guess, since it’s a bit similar to the vibes of another meaning of the word, and if you argue enough, you can see why people guessed it”
Like, my answer is: “I can see why they said it. Because they didn’t know what it meant. And they guessed. Which happened to be wrong”
“Yeah but one definition sounds a bit like it could go-“
“If you read one definition, is it much more work to read two or even three of them?”
“No but like, we need to acknowledge that it was an understandable guess, because of the feeling of the sense of the vibes of the other definitions of the word”
“Okay. It’s fine to guess wrong. We don’t have to argue ourselves into a pretzel to make the guess sound better, and it’ll be pretty hard to rewrite everything so the guess was correct all along.”
“But what if the guess WAS correct, and the definition supported that. We could get there by discarding a definition, tweaking the sense of the others, and being a bit unsupportive about how we think of injured things.”
“The thing is, this is so much justification and extra work, though, guys.”
But I do get it! We can definitely understand where people are coming from. I certainly do! I have never felt “that’s a STUPID and UNSYMPATHETIC guess.” I think the entire reason people are defensive about this particular one is because it never would have occurred to them that they were guessing. It’s an invisible guess. It feels intuitive. I do see that.
I don’t need to have it explained to me that it’s a sensible and justified guess. I see that it is. It isn’t important because I never hung my hat on insulting people, calling it a stupid guess, or anything like that.
I have said it’s a misunderstanding based on lack of familiarity, and that the frequency of Tumblr guessing wrong doesn’t indicate a change of use.
one curiousity search on ebay to see if people are still going nuts over beanie babies has led to getting a strong contender for the funniest email ever
Maria Skłodowska-Curie’s notebooks are crazy once you think about it. They’re so radioactive they have to be sealed in a lead box. Imagine a world where atomic theory is forgotten and a dude just goes “yea there’s a book that details the secrets of the universe, the machinations of the creation of existence down to its barest essentials, but if you get close to it you fucking die. The more you read it the more your body slowly disassembles into mush.” like wat excuse me
Oh what a funny little plot and funny little guy and oh my god, cheeky satire.
Well, that’s a funny line. Another funny line. I am having laugh. Another good laugh.
And another- Wait, is that a commentary on the class discrimination? Erm okay, funny but true..
Funny line and funny line about the state of world and people in power and the belief of man.. man, wait, ALL of this is a commentary?
So, even that line was a commentary..
More funny lines and- huh?? What’s up with this one sombre line the book built up to which is making me cry.. There’s a tear and-
Oh yay, the funny little guy turned out alright at the end. Everything turned out alright and kind and happy because inherent goodness and being good to other people or something.
