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language rule (lemmy.world)
submitted 3 days ago by qaz@lemmy.world to c/196@lemmy.world
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[-] kartoffelsaft@programming.dev 41 points 3 days ago

I've seen tons of people over the years say japanese has dozens, perhaps hundreds, of counting systems, with the strong implication that it's this super exotic trait. Don't get me wrong that japanese doesn't have some super interesting features as a language, but english has literally the same system:

  • one, two, three, ...
  • twins, triplets, quadruplets, ...
  • bicycle, tricycle, quadrocycle, ...
  • first, second, third, ...
  • single, double, triple, ...
  • nullary, unary, binary, ternary, ...
  • primary, secondary, tertiary, ...
  • etc.
[-] Soulg@ani.social 3 points 2 days ago

While correct about English, Japanese is still different in that you use different counters for different objects qs opposed to what you listed, which they do also have some analogues of as well. Different counter for flat things, cylindrical things, large things, small things, small animals... But at least they have the generic counter that I just use if I'm not 100% positive and it works well enough.

[-] bisby@lemmy.world 43 points 3 days ago

It blew my mind when I learned that "venidos" meant "come"... And bienvenidos literally meant "well come", like it is good that you have came here.

And then I finally realized what welcome meant. 🤯

[-] fushuan 8 points 3 days ago

Venir is come. Venidos is a cast form of the verb, something like a past these for the second person (you plural), it would be bienvenido for a single person. In any case yeah, the equivalence to Welcome is correct.

[-] tigeruppercut@lemmy.zip 34 points 3 days ago

English doesn't have a single word for "government official who has been giving kickbacks to a company and therefore upon retirement gets a sinecure position in that company" but Japanese does.

https://jisho.org/search/amakudari

[-] BarrelAgedBoredom@lemmy.zip 11 points 3 days ago

Corrupt, regulatory capture or SEC employeecomes to mind lol

[-] NikkiDimes@lemmy.world 2 points 2 days ago

I quite like 転勤族, or tenkinzoku, myself. "person who moves a lot for their job; family who moves a lot for the primary breadwinner's job"

https://jisho.org/search/tenkinzoku

[-] threeonefour@piefed.ca 39 points 3 days ago

The French don't have a word for entrepreneur

[-] DragonTypeWyvern@midwest.social 28 points 3 days ago

Because of woke

[-] BonkTheAnnoyed 2 points 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago)

Funny about that.

Anyhow, apropos of nothing...

An entrepôt (English: /ˈɒntrəpoʊ/ ON-trə-poh; French: [ɑ̃tʁəpo] ⓘ) or transshipment port is a port, city, or trading post where merchandise may be imported, stored, or traded, usually to be exported again. Such cities often sprang up and such ports and trading posts often developed into commercial cities due to the growth and expansion of long-distance trade.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Entrep%C3%B4t?wprov=sfla1

[-] aeternum 21 points 3 days ago

Goodbye was derived from "God be with ye"

[-] bigboismith@lemmy.world 32 points 3 days ago

The Swedish word for vegetable is "Green thing"

[-] sniggleboots@europe.pub 28 points 3 days ago

Buddy have I got news for you about oranges!

:^)

[-] Tagger@lemmy.world 6 points 3 days ago
[-] SkunkWorkz@lemmy.world 15 points 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago)

Orange the color was named after the fruit. So they probably joking

[-] sniggleboots@europe.pub 6 points 3 days ago

it's true, I was!

[-] CarbonIceDragon@pawb.social 16 points 3 days ago

I mean, calling vegetables "greens" isn't terribly odd in English either.

[-] NoneOfUrBusiness@fedia.io 6 points 3 days ago

In Arabic it's green things. Creativity!

[-] HotDog7@lemmy.world 15 points 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago)

In German the word for alone is Allein as in "all one". It blew my mind that it's the same in English.

In Ukrainian the word for Trident is Trizub, literally "three tooth". Again, it blew me away that it's the same in English.

[-] AnUnusualRelic@lemmy.world 14 points 3 days ago

English doesn't have a word for people with orange hair.

[-] someguy3@lemmy.world 9 points 3 days ago

Redhead was from when red was used to describe both red and orange.

[-] AnUnusualRelic@lemmy.world 3 points 3 days ago

I know. My point still stands though.

[-] klemptor@startrek.website 6 points 3 days ago
[-] AnUnusualRelic@lemmy.world 4 points 3 days ago
[-] HeyThisIsntTheYMCA@lemmy.world 4 points 3 days ago

English also doesn't have a word for overcooked steak

[-] KSPAtlas@sopuli.xyz 2 points 3 days ago

Congratulations

[-] Linkalee@sh.itjust.works 7 points 3 days ago

My favorite is that in French, you don't ask "How old are you?" "I'm 50 years old," you ask "What age do you have?" "I have 50 years."

It's like you've aged like a fine wine, versus being old and past your prime.

[-] KSPAtlas@sopuli.xyz 2 points 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago)

Polish also does this:

Ile masz lat - How many years do you have? (lit. how-many you-have years)

Mam 50 lat - I have 50 years

It also uses "finish X years" instead of "turn X" to refer to becoming a particular age

Skończył 50 lat - they finished 50 years

[-] Bonsoir@lemmy.ca 2 points 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago)

Well, age is an attribute. Do you say "I have blue eyes" or "I am blue-eyed"? I guess both are technically valid.

[-] twinnie@feddit.uk 12 points 3 days ago

“Everybody” is a weird way of saying all the people. The French say “all the world”, which is also weird.

[-] ConstantPain@lemmy.world 8 points 3 days ago

Portuguese too (todo mundo)

[-] Bonsoir@lemmy.ca 8 points 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago)

"Monde" is both the word "world" and a synonym for "a group of persons". The second meaning is an older formula for people you are used to or people who work for you.
-> "Je connais mon monde" == "I know my people"

[-] bent@feddit.dk 4 points 3 days ago

In Norwegian it's all together (alle sammen).

[-] Professorozone@lemmy.world 9 points 3 days ago

How do you explain skibidi?

[-] Psaldorn@lemmy.world 13 points 3 days ago

Short for skibidibidibidibidoop.

Don't make me resurrect the skatman

[-] burntbacon@discuss.tchncs.de 6 points 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago)

the skatman

Ba pa BEE ba ba bada boo...

[-] usernameusername@sh.itjust.works 4 points 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago)

Originally comes from this song

Then it was used by this belly dance guy which I imagine is what popularized it as a meme

Then skibidi toilet came along, using a mashup with this other song


(Also as a little fun fact, the original song actually says shtibidi, not skibidi)

[-] Professorozone@lemmy.world 3 points 3 days ago

Wow, didn't actually expect an answer.

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[-] Two9A@lemmy.world 8 points 3 days ago

This came up in the latest episode of Tom Scott's Reverse Trivia: they got onto the topic of princes, and Tom had the sudden realisation of where "principality" comes from.

And Gary then dropped "duchy": region granted to a duke.

Words have histories, we often forget it.

[-] pruwybn@discuss.tchncs.de 2 points 3 days ago

Not to mention counties.

[-] khannie@lemmy.world 3 points 3 days ago

In Irish, there is no word for yes.

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this post was submitted on 24 Aug 2025
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