#12 | Posted by Lipzoidial at 2009-07-01 06:46 PM
lagniappes
#10 | Posted by Johnson
Wtf kind of word is this?
the problem with trying to impress by using weird and obscure words is that if you succeed, no one understands wtf you just said.
Always glad to be of service, Lipz.
lagniappe (lnyp, ln-yp)
n. Chiefly Southern Louisiana & Mississippi
1. A small gift presented by a storeowner to a customer with the customer's purchase.
2. An extra or unexpected gift or benefit. Also called regionally boot 2. See Regional Note at beignet.
[Louisiana French, from American Spanish la apa, the gift : la, the (from Latin illa, feminine of ille, that, the; see al-1 in Indo-European roots) + apa (variant of yapa, gift, from Quechua, from yapay, to give more).]
Regional Note: Lagniappe derives from New World Spanish la apa, "the gift," and ultimately from Quechua yapay, "to give more." The word came into the rich Creole dialect mixture of New Orleans and there acquired a French spelling. It is still used in the Gulf states, especially southern Louisiana, to denote a little bonus that a friendly shopkeeper might add to a purchase. By extension, it may mean "an extra or unexpected gift or benefit."
Here is the original statment, Lipz.
"... here could be added lagniappes for the luckier straight male passenger on the flight."
The term as used is intended to mean an unexpected gift or benefit.
And although I've revised my postings in an attempt to be more readily understandable, Lipz, I don't want to be in a position of talking down to people by as many newspapers do, reducing the posts to language which a third grader could comprehend. It's a difficult juggling act because my normal style is not readily understandable and yet I don't want such a low cut off boundary that displays a contempt for posters.
Thanks for the alert though.
