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From: Steve Hayes <hayesstw@telkomsa.net>
Newsgroups: sci.lang,alt.usage.english
Subject: Re: Word of the day: ?Papoose?
Date: Tue, 03 Sep 2024 05:11:25 +0200
Organization: Khanya Publications
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On Mon, 02 Sep 2024 11:45:58 -0400, Tony Cooper
<tonycooper214@gmail.com> wrote:

>On Mon, 2 Sep 2024 12:33:02 -0000 (UTC), Steve Hayes
><hayesstw@telkomsa.net> wrote:
>
>>On Sun, 01 Sep 2024 15:39:20 -0400, Tony Cooper wrote:
>>
>>>>So it seems that people within the US understand "papoose" as referring
>>>>to a child, and outside the US it refers to a child holder?
>>> 
>>> 
>>> Please...write "some people".
>>> 
>>> If I see an (American) Indian with a baby in a carrier strapped to her
>>> back, I would describe that as a woman with a papoose.
>>> 
>>> However, if she removes the baby from the carrier and puts the baby on a
>>> blanket on the ground, I would not say the baby is a "papoose".
>>> 
>>> You seem to want "people" in the US to all view things the same.
>>
>>The OP said (I think quoting a dictionary or some such source) that in AmE 
>>"papoose" meant a child, but everyone from outside the US whose comments 
>>I have seen seems to think it means a child holder. 
>>
>>Perhaps the OP could clarify. 
>
>You have participated in this group long enough to know that a
>dictionary cite does not at all indicate 100% or near-all usage of
>some words.
>
>That assumes that all Americans (in this case) look up a word to gain
>the definition.  In fact, the majority of Americans gain a definition
>by how the word is/was used in the instance(s) where they first or
>commonly come across it.

Yes, but I have also been in this group long enough to know that
dictionaries often reflect rather than determine popular usage. 

Dictionaries go to people as much as, if not more than, people go to
dictionaries. 


-- 
Steve Hayes from Tshwane, South Africa
Web:  http://www.khanya.org.za/stevesig.htm
Blog: http://khanya.wordpress.com
E-mail - see web page, or parse: shayes at dunelm full stop org full stop uk