ESL Vocabulary and Idioms

Re: "schlump" vs "slump"

CalifJim — Sat, 17 May 2008 03:03:21 GMT

Odd, but true.

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

Note that there a few images in the right margin that show Yiddish as it is actually written.

Re: "schlump" vs "slump"

Grammar Geek — Fri, 16 May 2008 02:50:51 GMT

CalifJim
It is essentially German to which Hebrew and even some Slavic words have been added. It is written in Hebrew characters.

Hebrew characters? I've seen a LOT of Yiddish peppered through dialogue in my life, but never in Hebrew. Of course, usually foreign words get their phoenetic spelling in English, but this one stuck me as odd.

Re: "schlump" vs "slump"

CalifJim — Fri, 16 May 2008 01:10:51 GMT

Mosca
I don't know Yiddish but it sure seems to be very similar to german

Yes. It may be considered either a dialect of German, or, according to others, a separate language. It is essentially German to which Hebrew and even some Slavic words have been added. It is written in Hebrew characters.

Mosca
The "sch-" is very german to us

To us, too. But German "sch" often becomes "sh" in English. "schl" becomes "sl". Note how German "f" often becomes English "p".

Schaf - sheep; Schaft - shaft; Scham - shame; scharf - sharp; scheinen - shine; scheu - shy; Schiff - ship; Schild - shield; Schlaf - sleep; Schleim - slime.

Just to name a few.

Re: "schlump" vs "slump"

Mosca — Thu, 15 May 2008 16:35:11 GMT

Really interesting - this is of special interest to me as I'm scandinavian - and I keep coming across words (often in Couplands novels) which I think are examples of a kind of casual vocabulary - that I've never heard before in english but which sound kind of scandinavian to me.

The example above of the sound immitating 'falling into water' verb appears in a norweigan dicitionary as does the "walk sluggishly, slowly, heavily, lazily".

I don't know Yiddish but it sure seems to be very similar to german (which also is close to our languages).

The "sch-" is very german to us - although it certainly appears in many of our words - on the other hand typically a lot of german words with sch- has been replaced by just s- in many german words adopted by our languages. (I say "our" languages although I'm swedish - they are mutually intelligible to us - in most cases)..

Re: "schlump" vs "slump"

CalifJim — Wed, 14 May 2008 00:34:55 GMT

Mosca
Do the verbs "schlump" and "slump" have anything to do with each other? Any relation there?

Hard to say without some research. slump came from a Germanic word schlump, supposedly an imitation of the sound of something falling into water. schlump is Yiddish, but did it originally come from this same idea of the sound of something falling into water? Hard to say. I wouldn't be surprised to find out that there is some relationship.

Re: "schlump" vs "slump"

CalifJim — Wed, 14 May 2008 00:23:36 GMT

Delmobile
faux Yiddish?

That was my first guess. But I think it's real Yiddish.

m-w.com

Main Entry: schlump Pronunciation: \ËshlÉmp\ Function:noun Etymology:Yiddish shlump sloppy or dowdy personDate:1948

yourdictionary.com

â schlump (sÌ¸hlump)

noun

a person who is stupid, foolish, inept, boring, etc.
one who is sloppily or poorly dressed

intransitive verb

Slang to go about lazily, sluggishly, or poorly dressed

Re: "schlump" vs "slump"

Delmobile — Tue, 13 May 2008 16:31:53 GMT

Could "schlump" be some kind of faux Yiddish? There's schmuck and schlepp - this sounds like it could be a portmanteau of those two.

Re: "schlump" vs "slump"

Mister Micawber — Tue, 13 May 2008 12:31:42 GMT

.
Slump, as you can see, is Scandinavian; schlump's origin: "1950â55, Americanism; prob. of expressive origin". No likely connection. What is your concern about droop?

"schlump" vs "slump"

Mosca — Tue, 13 May 2008 11:35:48 GMT

Do the verbs "schlump" and "slump" have anything to do with each other? Any relation there? The origin in Norweigan I'm not familiar with as it would normally signify something âdone by randomâ (randomize) .. I originally saw schlump in a Douglas Coupland novel: âI schlumped back to my roomâ.

Any ideas .. ?

schlump Definition â schlump (sÌ¸hlump) noun

a person who is stupid, foolish, inept, boring, etc.
one who is sloppily or poorly dressed

intransitive verbSlang to go about lazily, sluggishly, or poorly dressed slump (slÅmp) ntr.v., slumped, slumpÂ·ing, slumps.

To fall or sink heavily; collapse: She slumped, exhausted, onto the sofa.
To droop, as in sitting or standing; slouch.

To decline suddenly; fall off: Business slumped after the holidays.
To perform poorly or inadequately: The team has been slumping for a month.

To sink or settle, as into mud or slush.
To slide down or spread out thickly, as mud or fresh concrete.

The act or an instance of slumping.
A drooping or slouching posture: read defeat in the slump of his shoulders.
A sudden falling off or decline, as in activity, prices, or business: a stock market slump; a slump in farm prices.
An extended period of poor performance, especially in a sport or competitive activity: a slump in a batting average.
See grunt (sense 5).

[Probably of Scandinavian origin; akin to Norwegian slumpa, to slump.] droop (drÅ«p)

v., drooped, droopÂ·ing, droops. v.intr.

To bend or hang downward: âHis mouth drooped sadly, pulled down, no doubt, by the plump weight of his jowlsâ (Gore Vidal).
To bend or sag gradually: flowers drooping in the midday heat.
To sag in dejection or exhaustion: drooped from lack of sleep.

v.tr. To let bend or hang down: âHe drooped his body over the railâ (Norman Mailer).n. The act or condition of drooping.[Middle English droupen, from Old Norse drÅ«pa.]