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Latest post Wed, Nov 22 2006 3:58 PM by Wilder. 13 replies.
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BMO  +  293504 Wed, 15 Nov 06 03:52 PM
Suffix -ling denotes pejorative. How can it be in Darling? Thanks.
BMO
Joined on Tue, Aug 17 2004
Full Member 164
Philip  +  293515 Wed, 15 Nov 06 04:33 PM
 BMO wrote:
Suffix -ling denotes pejorative. How can it be in Darling? Thanks.
"ling" is not a suffix, here.  The word is 'darling'.  Can you give me some examples of 'ling = pejorative"?  I'm not aware of that suffix.
Philip
Joined on Thu, Jun 23 2005
Veteran Member 8,604
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Clive  +  293550 Wed, 15 Nov 06 05:54 PM

Hi,

Perhaps a princeling? Or, Froda was a halfling.

In my lexicon, it's pejorative to call someone a ding-a-ling. Smile [:)]

Best wishes, Clive.
Clive
Joined on Thu, Oct 28 2004
Canada
Veteran Member 29,298
El tango argentino es un pensamiento triste que se puede bailar (The tango argentino is a sad thought which can be danced) Enrique Santos Discépolo
Marius Hancu  +  293564 Wed, 15 Nov 06 06:13 PM
It's definitely pejorative to call someone a "Q/quisling":

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quisling

but ling isn't a quite a suffix there, or perhaps it is in Norway.

Marius Hancu
Joined on Wed, Apr 26 2006
Veteran Member 11,673
BMO  +  293586 Wed, 15 Nov 06 06:57 PM

Sure. Underling, duckling, princeling, yearling, gosling, darkling, godling. Just go to www.onelook.com and enter -ling.

Darling = dear + ling.
BMO
Grammar Geek  +  293589 Wed, 15 Nov 06 07:04 PM

Do you mean "diminutive" instead of "perjorative"?
Grammar Geek
Joined on Tue, Jan 10 2006
Veteran Member 19,506
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Philip  +  293629 Wed, 15 Nov 06 09:31 PM
 Grammar Geek wrote:

Do you mean "diminutive" instead of "perjorative"?

Thank you, GG!
Philip
J Lewis  +  293943 Thu, 16 Nov 06 05:07 PM
Yes, diminutive, definitely. I can't think of a pejorative suffix in English.
I don't know if Quisling's name was derived from a diminutive of something. I had a schoolteacher called Gosling!
BTW I think darling probably is a diminutive, derived from dear-ling. Maybe someone can look up the etymology.
J Lewis
Joined on Tue, Sep 5 2006
Italy
Regular Member 518
Anonymous, 2 yr 357 days ago

Do you mean "pejorative" instead of perjorative"?

"It is so frequently misspelled as perjorative that the Oxford English Dictionary website contains a FAQ entry about this misspelling."

Sorry for being pedantic (or should that be perdantic?!)

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