misnomer
an unsuitable name
TRANSLATION
misnomer = die Fehlbennung, unzutreffende Bezeichnung --- GOOGLE INDEX misnomer: approximately 4,000,000 Google hits
STATISTICS
IN THE PRESS
I can see no reason, but the most deceitful one, for calling the religion of this land Christianity. I look upon it as the climax of al MISNOMERS, the boldest of all frauds, and the grossest of all libels.
(Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass; An American Slave)
---
The stomach flu is a MISNOMER: it's not actually caused by an influenza virus at all, but rather from a variety of other viruses.
(U.S. News & World Report)
(Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass; An American Slave)
---
The stomach flu is a MISNOMER: it's not actually caused by an influenza virus at all, but rather from a variety of other viruses.
(U.S. News & World Report)
Did you
know?
misnomer
noun
- a name that does not suit what it refers to, or the use of such a name
(Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary)
---
Misnomer is from the 15th century and stems from the Old French "misnomer," meaning "to misname, wrongly name."
Misnomers occur for a variety of reasons, such as when an older name is retained even though it no longer technically applies. For example, even though it is called pencil lead, the material inside a pencil is actually a mixture of graphite and clay. This is because the Englishmen who discovered graphite simply mistook it for lead and the name stuck.
Tin cans are no longer made from pure tin, but from steel that is then plated with a layer of tin. And what we call tin foil is usually aluminium. When a teacher asks a student to go to the chalkboard, these days, the chalk in the student's hand is normally gypsum, not to mention the fact that chalkboards are being replaced by whiteboards and markers.
Catgut is another good example. This is a cord material made from the natural fibres of animal intestines. Catgut was once the most common material for the strings of harps, violins and other stringed instruments. It was also frequently used as medical sutures for closing wounds and incisions. Catgut is not made from the guts (intestines) of a cat however. Instead, it usually comes from sheep or goat intestines, and sometimes cattle, which may provide a clue as to the word's origin.
Even more interesting is headcheese, which is meat jelly made with flesh from the head of a calf or pig (known in Germany as Sülze and Pressack in southern Germany). It has nothing to do with cheese. The names stems from the French "fromage," which derives from the Latin "forma," which in turn translates as a basket or wooden box for making cheese. And since headcheese is made by pressing the meat from a pig's head into a form, the French phrase is "fromage de tête," which more or less translates to "pressed head."
---
SMUGGLE OWAD into today's conversation
"Don't refer to the people of Ireland as British. That's a misnomer."
noun
- a name that does not suit what it refers to, or the use of such a name
(Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary)
---
Misnomer is from the 15th century and stems from the Old French "misnomer," meaning "to misname, wrongly name."
Misnomers occur for a variety of reasons, such as when an older name is retained even though it no longer technically applies. For example, even though it is called pencil lead, the material inside a pencil is actually a mixture of graphite and clay. This is because the Englishmen who discovered graphite simply mistook it for lead and the name stuck.
Tin cans are no longer made from pure tin, but from steel that is then plated with a layer of tin. And what we call tin foil is usually aluminium. When a teacher asks a student to go to the chalkboard, these days, the chalk in the student's hand is normally gypsum, not to mention the fact that chalkboards are being replaced by whiteboards and markers.
Catgut is another good example. This is a cord material made from the natural fibres of animal intestines. Catgut was once the most common material for the strings of harps, violins and other stringed instruments. It was also frequently used as medical sutures for closing wounds and incisions. Catgut is not made from the guts (intestines) of a cat however. Instead, it usually comes from sheep or goat intestines, and sometimes cattle, which may provide a clue as to the word's origin.
Even more interesting is headcheese, which is meat jelly made with flesh from the head of a calf or pig (known in Germany as Sülze and Pressack in southern Germany). It has nothing to do with cheese. The names stems from the French "fromage," which derives from the Latin "forma," which in turn translates as a basket or wooden box for making cheese. And since headcheese is made by pressing the meat from a pig's head into a form, the French phrase is "fromage de tête," which more or less translates to "pressed head."
---
SMUGGLE OWAD into today's conversation
"Don't refer to the people of Ireland as British. That's a misnomer."
