What does the verb nig mean? - English Language Usage Stack Exchange One might assume that "nig" is a back-formation from "renege", which according to Wiktionary can pronounced like "re-nig" "Renege" means to break a promise, and filling a jug from a self-service soda fountain certainly breaks the implied promise that the customer made to the restaurant to fill only the cup that the customer bought
meaning - English Language Usage Stack Exchange I used the word "renege" in a meeting the other day (something like, "the vendor decided to renege on their offer of shipping replacement SAN disks"), and got a few wide eyes My supervisor sat me
Origin of picnic? - English Language Usage Stack Exchange The word was originally derived from the term pick-a-nig Pick-a-nig was a gathering for slave traders and their families back in the 17th 18th centuries They would get together after slave trading and have a big party, called pick-a-nig
19th century American English slang? Nig can also be short for niggle: to find fault constantly and trivially; carp (as in argue over your hand or something? Shuck is a verb, to remove the outer husk of corn The husks (also called shucks, see etymonline) aren't worth anything Hence, "shucks, 'twert nothin'"
how did the epithet nigger come into usage? My research has resulted in theoretical reasons for the usage of the term "nigger", and I have failed to uncover any evidence as to how this nasty little epithet evolved into the usage and connotat
Can I use the phrase nigh-on-impossible in a report? I'm currently writing an academic report and I began to write out the phrase 'nigh-on-impossible' without a second thought It then occurred to me that this phrase may actually be slang I did a q