Funny Words: Hushpuppies

Tue, 29 Nov 2005 19:24:52 GMT

I'd really like to know the etymology behind this one. Who on earth thought of dropping cornbread dough in hot grease and calling them hushpuppies? I'm sure there's a great Aunt Jemimah-esque story in there somewhere, but regardless - "hushpuppies" is a funny word.

There's the literal connotation to make it amusing, of course. However, the phrase "shut up dogs" conveys the same meaning, but without the same level of amusement.

The ever popular "slushpuppies," an obvious homage to hushpuppies, is doubly funny because it is not only a parody of a funny word, but it still sounds funny - AND - they taste great! Especially the cherry ones!

Maybe it has something to do with the "sh" preceding a consonant. Like "shtick (but then, ALL Yiddish words are funny)," or "Shropshire," "shmo," "shrew," "shwa," "shrimp," "shrubberies," "mushroom (funny for a lot of reasons)", and the acursed "shmoopy," a la Seinfeld fame (or ignominy, as the case were.)

I also think that "hushpuppies" would make a great swear word, kind of like "fiddlesticks." For instance, if you flatten your thumb with a hammer, you could shout, "Oh, HUSHPUPPIES!" Or to express surprise, you could say "what the hushpuppies?!" Or: "what, do you have hushpuppies for brains?"

People may disagree about a lot of things, but there's one thing that we can all agree on - that "hushpuppies" is a funny word. Now go say "hushpuppies" three times fast at the top of your lungs in say, your office, and see if people don't think that's funny.

Heh-heh. "Hushpuppies."

Funny Words: "Weenies"

Wed, 21 Sep 2005 03:31:33 GMT

Is "weenie" a funny word because of what it represents, or are weenies funny because they have that name? Is it kind of like an inferred onomatopoeia? What makes a word funny, its sound or its meaning? Or both? A weenie by any other name is still a weenie. Although "frankfurter" is also funny. And "hot dog," while less hysterical, still provides an amusing mental image. So does the fact that there is no non-funny name for weenies mean that weenies are simply funny things and therefore demand amusing names? Can you think of a single weenie synonym that isn't funny? If you were from Vienna (spelled "Wien" in Austria), would it bother you that people referred to you as a Wiener? Likewise if you were from Frankfurt? What IS it with the Germanic people naming sausages after their cities? (Even "sausage" is a funny word, actually.) Does every city, village, or hamlet in greater-Deutchland have a sausage named for it? Is there an Oberamergauwurst? (Well if there is, it already has a funny name.) Would you be proud if your city became famous for the kind of sausage made there? Especially if it was weenies? Heh-heh. "Weenies."

Hungry Hungry Hippo Habitat: Funny Words

Funny Words: Hushpuppies

Funny Words: "Weenies"