Exactly! Lol
I’m not even a sports fan and I knew it. I mainly knew what they were though because I used to be on a baseball team when I was child but as I grew older I lost interest in all sports. I still remember a few terms from back then but even besides that I still see and hear the terms on occasion.
Same. I’m neither into sports nor native, but still knew what it was.
That being said, it is a specialized word, so I can’t say I’m really surprised either.
That’s a really awesome tip, thanks so much!
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There’s already claw and hand radicals (which are actual kanji as well) so I don’t think those are good ideas.
WK chose them as mnemonic, it’s common enough. But for non-native they are a pain.
Oh, no doubt. He just seemed to be under the impression they were particularly obscure and I wanted to point out they were in the common register for virtually any native English speaker. I would expect an elementary school student to know all of those.
Perfect illustration ! For romance-language native “torrid, lugubrious, or salubrious” are very easy, it’s completely transparent in language such as french, spanish, italian, portugese…
There’s an interesting parallel with Japanese here. English is a primarily Germanic language with a layer of Latin-origin words spread on top via medieval French. Most words we use in typical conversation tend to be Germanic in origin; we bust out the Latinate words in literature, speeches, and academic papers when we need that extra rhetorical flourish or precision. I’ve noticed the Japanese tend to act in a similar way: in typical conversations the most frequently used words are historical Japanese-origin ones with kunyomi readings. They bring out the more obscure onyomi jukugo in literature, research papers, and public speaking.
WaniKani not only teaches me Japanese but also English. Words like Contraption, Yonder, Biased, Crevice, ANIMAL HUSBANDRY, that I’m sure I’ll never use in my life, but they are good to know and I enjoy a lot making my vocabulary richer, now I can talk about livestock with my friends.
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Isn’t that what we all wish for, at the end of the day?
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Life goals. Once I finish my Japanese studies and get my N1 certificate, i’ll open a 牧野 in 北海道 and get 不潔 金持ち with my 畜産業.
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My husband uses this one fairly often, though ususally with “less-than-” as a prefix/qualifier attached!
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While I don’t recall when I learned yonder (I expect most native speakers first pick it up from Christmas carols, not Eng. Lit.), I had certainly learned yon from general conversation by the time I started school at the age of four (in rural midwest UK in the 70s), so some of the differences in usage are dialectal rather than just chronological.
I don’t think that’s a problem. There are different radicals for water and tsunami for example but they imply the same meaning for our mnemonics ie water. Each to their own of course but there is no value per se in having different names for different elements/“radicals” just for the sake of it.
Hi all, I saw this old thread - The Mnemonic Complaining Thread. IDK if you wanted it revived (there really isn’t much content in there). However, it may be a great way to for talk about specific mnemonics that need more explaining, and other people helping out.
That’s all. Goodbye!
runs away
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I’ll be honored if the thread is revived:)
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