SWMBO, abbreviations?

[watson]

I always liked WOFTAM,
Waste Of F(reakin') Time And Money.

[silentC]

Who got attacked?

Probably me, I missed it too. Some people don't like to be corrected

[Vernonv]

Probably me ...

I'm sure you're just being paranoid

[AlexS]

As far as I can tell, the port starboard thing came from a song written for the movie Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.

Don't think so, it was around before CCBB (unless there was an earlier version than the 1950 or 60s one).

[silentC]

Yeah fair enough. I got that wrong, the song is from a recent musical version of the movie.

It's still a backronym though

[artme]

Maybe the axe wielder thought I was attacking Silent! Not so, just disputing. If he wants an attack I can oblige.

I still maintain my position on POSH. Learnt that when very young and it sparked a bit of an interest in words."Ask Oxford" backs up my claim. So there!

As for TIP, the "tippen'' seems to be correct. I was Given the promptness explanation by an older American gentleman many years ago and assumed it to be correct because tipping is an American thing.

As for SPIV other sources back up my assertion on suspected person etc, but it appears to be a police acronym for suspected persons and itinerant vagrants.

The word Spiv is also associated, as silent said, with the Romany sparrow, as in a petty thief.
Who knows for sure?

OK is possibly from early US Army checklisting - Orl Kerrect! That was possibly poor spelling or smart arsery.

How come nobody had yet mentioned CGRA? Come on fellas, tou are letting the side down.

[RETIRED]

Who got attacked? What did I miss? Is that being a mongrel again? Someone should salt his tea!

mine.... SWUTBO..... She Who Used To Be Obeyed, the "EX"

Yep.

[RETIRED]

Maybe the axe wielder thought I was attacking Silent! Not so, just disputing. If he wants an attack I can oblige.

.

Not so lucky.

[jerryc]

,

If it was me that the axe should fall on then humbly I bow my head to the blow.

Jerry

War does not decide who is right. War only decides who is left.

[Groggy]

posh
poshly, adverb. poshness, noun.
/posh/. Colloquial
adjective
1. elegant; luxurious; smart; first-class.
phrase
2. posh up, to make smart or elegant.
[origin unknown; ? obsolete posh a dandy. The conjectured acronym from p(ort) o(ut,) s(tarboard) h(ome), a reference to the better (i.e. cooler) accommodation on vessels sailing from Britain to India, Australia, etc., is not supported by available evidence]

[tea lady]

Someone should salt his tea!

[joe greiner]

My late Dad had an earlier career as a wireless operator in the Merchant Marine (1920s). The original purpose of many acronyms was to reduce transmission time (and therefore cost) of Morse code telegrams (landline) and radiograms. Newspaper homicide reports of the era almost always included the stilted phrase "shot and instantly killed" which was sent in code as SAIK from the scene of the offence.

Ham radio operators use CQ (seek you) as a general call of "anybody listening?" Tonnes more.

Joe

[ubeaut]

Back in the early days of computing most computers were called FRED - "Freakin' Ridiculous Electronic Device"

Then there's the TWAIN device, referring to scanners: "Thing Without An Interesting Name"

Lucky I remembered those two because I have CRAFT disease: "Can't Remember A Freakin' Thing"

[artme]

Bosh and tosh to other opinions on posh!
Yahoo = Yet another officious hierachical organ.

[silentC]

I still maintain my position on POSH. Learnt that when very young ...

I learnt about the tooth fairy and Santa Claus when I was very young, too