Tokyo: When a passenger of the foot heave in sight, tootle the horn. Trumpet at him melodiously at first, but if he still obstacles your passage, then tootle him with vigor.
Bill Bryson The Mother Tongue:...
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In the bustling city of Tokyo, there is a playful guide on how to interact with pedestrians while driving. Initially, when you see a person on foot, you should gently honk your horn to alert them. If they remain in your way despite the friendly alert, a more vigorous honking is advised to encourage them to move aside. This humorous approach illustrates the blend of politeness and insistence that can characterize urban driving etiquette.

Bill Bryson's book "The Mother Tongue: English and How It Got That Way" sheds light on the evolution of the English language through engaging anecdotes and observations. By emphasizing the quirky nature of communication—illustrated through this example of honking in Tokyo—Bryson captures how language and culture influence everyday interactions. His exploration reveals the humor and complexity inherent in language and its practical applications in diverse contexts.

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The Mother Tongue:...
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Other quotes in The Mother Tongue: English and How it Got that Way

From this I think we can conclude that the definitive English holorime has yet to be written. However, an old children's riddle does seem to come close. It is the one that poses the question "How do you prove in three steps that a sheet of paper is a lazy dog?"The answer: {1} a sheet of paper is an ink-lined plane; {2} an inclined plane is a slope up; {3} a slow pup is a lazy dog.
Bill Bryson The Mother Tongue:...
From this I think we can conclude that the definitive English holorime has yet to be written. However, an old children's riddle does seem to come close. It is the one that poses the question "How do you prove in three steps that a sheet of paper is a lazy dog?"The answer: {1} a sheet of paper is an ink-lined plane; {2} an inclined plane is a slope up; {3} a slow pup is a lazy dog.
Some of these words deserve to be better known. Take velleity, which describes a mild desire, a wish or urge too slight to lead to action. Doesn't that seem a useful term? Or how about sluibbergegullion, a seventeenth-century word signifying a worthless or slovenly fellow? Or ugsome, a late medieval word meaning loathsome or disgusting.
Bill Bryson The Mother Tongue:...
Some of these words deserve to be better known. Take velleity, which describes a mild desire, a wish or urge too slight to lead to action. Doesn't that seem a useful term? Or how about sluibbergegullion, a seventeenth-century word signifying a worthless or slovenly fellow? Or ugsome, a late medieval word meaning loathsome or disgusting.
If you have a morbid fear of peanut butter sticking to the roof of your mouth, there is a word for it: arachibutyrophobia… And there's a word for describing a sudden breaking off of thought: aposiopesis… When you are just dropping off to sleep and you experience that sudden sensation of falling, there is a word for it: it's a myoclonic jerk.
Bill Bryson The Mother Tongue:...
If you have a morbid fear of peanut butter sticking to the roof of your mouth, there is a word for it: arachibutyrophobia… And there's a word for describing a sudden breaking off of thought: aposiopesis… When you are just dropping off to sleep and you experience that sudden sensation of falling, there is a word for it: it's a myoclonic jerk.
Not only were the Anglo-Saxons relatively uncultured, they were also pagan, a fact rather quaintly preserved in the names of four of our weekdays, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday, which respectively commemorate the gods Tiw, Woden, and Thor, and Woden's wife, Frig. {Saturday, Sunday, and Monday, to complete the picture, take their names from Saturn, the sun, and the moon.}
Bill Bryson The Mother Tongue:...
Not only were the Anglo-Saxons relatively uncultured, they were also pagan, a fact rather quaintly preserved in the names of four of our weekdays, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday, which respectively commemorate the gods Tiw, Woden, and Thor, and Woden's wife, Frig. {Saturday, Sunday, and Monday, to complete the picture, take their names from Saturn, the sun, and the moon.}
Almost all languages change. A rare exception is written Icelandic, which has changed so little that modern Icelanders can read sagas written a thousand years ago, and if Leif Ericson appeared on the streets of Reykjavik he could find his way around, allowing for certain difficulties over terms like airport and quarter-pound cheeseburger.
Bill Bryson The Mother Tongue:...
Almost all languages change. A rare exception is written Icelandic, which has changed so little that modern Icelanders can read sagas written a thousand years ago, and if Leif Ericson appeared on the streets of Reykjavik he could find his way around, allowing for certain difficulties over terms like airport and quarter-pound cheeseburger.
Consider the oft-quoted statement "the exception proves the rule." Most people take this to mean that the exception confirms the rule, though when you ask them to explain the logic in that statement, they usually cannot. After all, how can an exception prove a rule? It can't. The answer is that an earlier meaning of prove was to test {a meaning preserved in proving ground} and with that meaning the statement suddenly becomes sensible-the exception tests the rule.
Bill Bryson The Mother Tongue:...
Consider the oft-quoted statement "the exception proves the rule." Most people take this to mean that the exception confirms the rule, though when you ask them to explain the logic in that statement, they usually cannot. After all, how can an exception prove a rule? It can't. The answer is that an earlier meaning of prove was to test {a meaning preserved in proving ground} and with that meaning the statement suddenly becomes sensible-the exception tests the rule.
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Relationships and marriages are hard enough, but you add war into the mix and small fissures become gaping wounds. No one sees what you're seeing - again that clear-eyed, unbiased thing - except your fellow soldiers. It's like one of those movies where only the hero can see the ghosts and everyone else thinks the hero is crazy.
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Relationships and marriages are hard enough, but you add war into the mix and small fissures become gaping wounds. No one sees what you're seeing - again that clear-eyed, unbiased thing - except your fellow soldiers. It's like one of those movies where only the hero can see the ghosts and everyone else thinks the hero is crazy.
I think I couldn't love him at all if he was the sort of man to make me choose between him and my writing. And
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I think I couldn't love him at all if he was the sort of man to make me choose between him and my writing. And
Sociologists have a theory of the looking - glass self. You become what the most important person in your life {wife, father, boss, etc.} thinks you are. How would my life change if I truly believed the Bible's astounding words about God's love for me, if I looked in the mirror and saw what God sees?
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Sociologists have a theory of the looking - glass self. You become what the most important person in your life {wife, father, boss, etc.} thinks you are. How would my life change if I truly believed the Bible's astounding words about God's love for me, if I looked in the mirror and saw what God sees?
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