
Is “Ass” the Most Complicated Word in English? - feross
https://pudding.cool/2019/10/slang
======
josefresco
I'll just leave this here:

[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=igh9iO5BxBo&feature=youtu.be](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=igh9iO5BxBo&feature=youtu.be)

He also does a "clean" version for television, and I think he's done a version
for "ass" as well. This was my favorite.

~~~
AaronNewcomer
_and I think he 's done a version for "ass" as well_

That's literally what the whole article is about.

~~~
michael_j_ward
The article contains clips of the "Ass" version. For those that want a link to
the whole thing:
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RAGcDi0DRtU](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RAGcDi0DRtU)

------
Roonerelli
Micky Flannigan, a uk comedian, does a great routine about when he lived in
America and people confused his cockney pronunciation of "house" with the
American pronunciation of "Ass".

So at the end of a date he's on the doorstep with a girl and they are saying
goodbye:

He says: I'd like to come in your house

She looks shocked. So he says: I won't try to kiss you, I just want to come in
your house

~~~
umanwizard
Link:
[https://m.youtube.com/watch?feature=share&v=fNzuOxJ3iS8](https://m.youtube.com/watch?feature=share&v=fNzuOxJ3iS8)

~~~
Roonerelli
thanks - I didnt want to search for that from my work PC :)

------
TomNomNom
The word that surprised me the most when flipping through a dictionary as a
child was probably 'set': [https://www.merriam-
webster.com/dictionary/set](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/set)

~~~
gonmad
In a way it may be the same as the fictionnal word Kree from Stargate. One
meaning a lot.
[https://stargate.fandom.com/wiki/Kree](https://stargate.fandom.com/wiki/Kree)

~~~
LanceH
Like, grok smurf, dude.

------
DoreenMichele
When I lived in Germany, I explained to someone (in German) that _ass_ means
both _arse_ and _donkey_ and they cracked up.

Shrek: "I've got to save my ass" \-- meaning his donkey (named Donkey), but
Fiona interprets that differently from his intended meaning.

Also, I would interpret _piece of ass_ as _sex object_ , not _beautiful._ It's
about just being used for sex. A less ugly use of the expression is roughly
"looking for no-strings-attached sex."

~~~
mercer
Interesting. As a bilingual/fluent but not native English speaker 'piece of
ass' always contained at least an element of beauty. not necessarily, but
usually.

~~~
dragonwriter
> As a bilingual/fluent but not native English speaker 'piece of ass' always
> contained at least an element of beauty.

As a native English speaker it does not contain that _in itself_ , though it's
frequently _accompanied by_ a positive qualitative assessment of utility as a
sex object (very often also dehumanizing by using wording traditionally used
for objects rather than humans, e.g., “that’s a fine piece of ass!”), which
assessment is often based on appearance (and frequently accompanied by
nonverbal communication or other context which clearlt—often lewdly—indicates
that the qualitative assessment of sexual utility is based on appearance,
often quite specific features of appearance.)

~~~
salawat
I'm a native English speaker as well, and I think you're conflating two
different uses.

Yes. There is 'fine piece of ass' as one might hear one utter of an uninvolved
person to a friend that matches what you are describing.

That changes significantly when the subject to whom the "fine piece of ass"
belongs is a direct recipient of the comment. I.e. "Girl, you have/are one
fine piece of ass."

In that case there is communicated the sense of appreciation of beauty between
the speaker and receiver. There is the also the not necessarily explicit "that
I'd like to try," which clearly distinguishes the "appreciative" form from the
"sex objectification form."

Be aware this is not license to use the phrase carelessly. Aware of the norms
of the company you're keeping must be taken into account. On the American side
of the pond, careless banding about of that sort of thing has been growing
increasingly problematic in any business casual up, or official social
context. It is a solidly informal comment not intended for "polite company".

I'm a blast at parties. For the curious. (I'm really not.)

~~~
DoreenMichele
_Fine_ is the part of that sentence that expresses appreciation for beauty,
not _piece of ass._

------
empath75
There’s a famous scene in the Wire that is basically two detectives having a
conversation at a crime scene using only the word ‘fuck’

[https://youtu.be/XdfwFDZGnUk](https://youtu.be/XdfwFDZGnUk)

~~~
lostgame
Spiritual ‘Guru’ Osho has an amazing breakdown of all the types of expression
‘fuck’ has:

Ignorance: Fucked if I know.

Trouble: I guess I am fucked now!

Fraud: I got fucked at the used car lot.

Aggression: Fuck you!

Displeasure: What the fuck is going on here?

Difficulty: I can’t understand this fucking job.

Incompetence: He is a fuck-off.

Suspicion: What the fuck are you doing?

Enjoyment: I had a fucking good time.

Request: Get the fuck out of here.

Hostility: I’m going to knock your fucking head off.

Greeting: How the fuck are you?

Apathy: Who gives a fuck?

Innovation: Get a bigger fucking hammer.

Surprise: Fuck! You scared the shit out of me!

Anxiety: Today is really fucked.

[http://www.spiritualsatya.com/osho-meaning-and-
versatility-o...](http://www.spiritualsatya.com/osho-meaning-and-versatility-
of-the-word-fuck/)

~~~
Shaanie
In many of those it's just used as an amplifier. If you can remove the "fuck"
and the sentence still makes sense, then it's not really doing anything.

~~~
tyre
> it's not really doing anything

"fuck" is fascinating in part because it doesn't mean much beyond
amplification. It's pure emotion

------
ourlordcaffeine
I think that the title should be qualified with "American English" since the
colloquial uses of the word "ass" are not really a thing in British English.

~~~
interfixus
I can't be arsed to disagree with you.

~~~
senorjazz
now your just making an ass of yourself

------
ryanmercer
I would think "dude" would be more confusing.

\- "Dude" = cool

\- "Dude" = come on man, really?

\- "Dude!" = WTF man, I should punch you in the face

\- "Dude!" = holy crap, I just got that girl's number!

\- "Dude?" = who's there, is there a killer in my house?

\- "Dude?" = no shit, for real?

\- "Dude!?" = why'd you sleep with my sister?!

\- "Dude" = hey Steve

\- "Dude." = not cool bro

\- "Dude!!!" = you're not gonna believe this!

\- "Dude" = stfu before the cop maces you, idiot.

\- "Dude..." = did we just see that car flip and roll 11 times down the hill,
do you think anyone is alive, I can't believe that just happened

\- "Dude." = look man, you're really drunk and me and my girl are trying to
have a nice walk and you really need to turn around and walk in the opposite
direction of us.

Etc etc, I'm sure you get the point.

~~~
senorjazz
Is that north American wide or just certain groups in certain states though?

~~~
ryanmercer
Bud Light had a commercial some years back where it's just them using 'dude' a
bunch of different ways
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dyMSSe7cOvA](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dyMSSe7cOvA)

I've also seen it used in stand up several times and I feel like at least one
film.

~~~
vidarh
> and I feel like at least one film.

"Dude, Where's My Car?"

Half the dialogue (ok, I'm probably exaggerating a _little_ bit) is the word
"dude". Often repeated many times in different intonations.

~~~
ryanmercer
They even poke fun of it some in it with the

"Dude, what's mine say?"

"Sweet, what's mine say?"

"Dude, what's mine say?!"

"Sweet! What's mine say?!"

------
totaldude87
Slightly off topic..anyone else took a few minutes to figure out how the
website navigation really works? I mean you need to move right to see
continuation of a single video ?!

Not sure which ass dictionary this will fit in

------
wildylion
Don't even get me started about 'хуй' in Russian, okay?

------
imglorp
I noticed one missing in the 201 list at the bottom; it's a two-fer. "Riding
one's ass", meaning either to tailgate in a vehicle, or also meaning to nag or
irritate.

------
HappySweeney
Sure, it's complicated, but has anyone looked at all the definitions for the
words 'take' or 'get'? Both have more than 100 definitions each.

~~~
ydnaclementine
A similar world I would put up there as well is 'run'. Run a business, run a
program, physically run

~~~
AnIdiotOnTheNet
I wouldn't say such phrases demonstrate a different meaning of the word 'run',
though. The word 'run' just has an abstract meaning related to movement.

------
sorokod
The obligatory History of the English language episode

"In this episode, we explore the history of swearing and obscenities, and we
examine Chaucer’s use of bawdy language in the Miller’s Tale"

[https://historyofenglishpodcast.com/2019/09/25/episode-129-c...](https://historyofenglishpodcast.com/2019/09/25/episode-129-chaucers-
vulgar-tongue-explicit-language/)

------
ahartmetz
"Cast" has many meanings, some of them seemingly unrelated. Some time ago I
tried to find out why type casting in programming is named as it is.

~~~
chapium
Casting from a mold seems near the top of the list and analogous to type
casting.

------
rwc
I think "fuck" gives "ass" a run for its money...

[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fuck#Modern_usage](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fuck#Modern_usage)

------
umvi
Basically any vulgar word ends up being overused by the (uneducated) masses by
the definition of the word vulgar. I'm not sure why, probably because they
don't have the vocabulary to precisely express their thoughts and end up
reusing the handful of strong words they do know in new ways and contexts.

Like how a chef who only knows about cayenne and salt wouldn't be using subtle
spices like paprika. He's just going to bludgeon every dish with salt and
cayenne since those are the two spices he has used the most thus far. He might
find some creative uses for cayenne, but that doesn't mean cayenne is suddenly
the most versetile and complex spice.

~~~
wil421
If everyone else is using the word in a new way then who is wrong? The small
minority or the masses who are evolving a language?

~~~
umvi
Well, "history is written by the victors", I suppose, but that doesn't make
the masses who are "evolving" the language "right". Unless you think it's
"right" for the ignorant to redefine words like "literally" and "nonplussed"
to mean the exact opposite of their original meanings or to make "could of" a
valid grammatical construct.

~~~
grepthisab
I really used to think like this. I thought there was a "proper" way to use
words and evolution of language by the "uneducated masses" was a bad thing and
they were "ignorant" for not sticking with dictionary definitions. I was
insufferable.

~~~
umvi
So is there any value in studying or preserving English grammar and vocabulary
at all if it is ultimately meaningless and can easily be redefined by people
who have not studied English?

~~~
apocolyps6
The idea that people who speak differently than you smacks of old-timey
classism, right up there with phrenology. Shakespere was as "vulgar" as it got
in his day, and to call what he did art what others are doing something else
is just bias.

Language is nothing but a set of conventions which necessarily evolves with
its userbase.

------
tyingq
Without the pauses:
[https://youtu.be/r_2x1LrPZ64](https://youtu.be/r_2x1LrPZ64)

------
werber
I was not expecting that audio to kick in, wish there had been a warning

------
notacoward
What's up with all the weird-ass domains lately?

------
xerox13ster
obligatory xkcd [https://xkcd.com/37/](https://xkcd.com/37/)

------
k__
TL;DR no, "shit" is.

I think I saw a comedian doing such a routine with the word "shit" before...

