Last Monday, the teacher I have for Business English 101 asked the students in her class to translate a word. She said this word is real and this is how the word is spelled. The word is "Ghoupteibtough".
After a very frustrating week, I learned the word is of the Shavian language from another business instructor at the college I attend. This is a fictional language created at the behest of G.B. Shaw in 1950. The language is phoenetic.
I have grown weary of this exercise, and I just want the answer. What is the definition of this word?
Thank you.
-Colin
Posted by TSN (Member # 31) on :
Weird. I was just talking to a friend of mine about this tonight.
George Bernard Shaw pointed out the silliness of English spelling w/ the following famous example: "fish" can be spelled "ghoti". "Gh" makes an 'f' sound in such words as "cough" and "enough". "O" makes a short 'i' sound in "women". "Ti" makes an "sh" sound in word ending w/ "-tion".
So, "gh" + 'o' + "ti" = 'f' + 'i' +"sh".
That said, w/ a little work, I found that "ghoupteibtough" is as follows:
GH < hiccouGH == 'p' OU < thOUgh == 'o' PT < PTomaine == 't' EI < nEIgh == 'a' BT < deBT == 't' OUGH < thOUGH == 'o'
So, "ghoupteibtough" == "potato". Although the site I found this at shows it spelled "ghoughpteighbteau", derived from "hiccouGH", thOUGH", "PTomaine", "nEIGH", "deBT", and "burEAU". This version seems to make more sense to me...
Posted by Michael_T (Member # 144) on :
Oh my god... my 11th grade English teacher asked my class for a week on what does GHOTI mean. We kept on saying it's the mob guy from New York City, or that it means Get Hot Oversexed Titillation Implants- she basically went nuts that week.
Posted by The Red Admiral (Member # 602) on :
For these very reasons English can be a nightmare to learn for speakers of other languages. I'm so grateful I grew up in an English speaking country.
Posted by Bernd (Member # 6) on :
My English teacher asked us to pronounce "GHOTI" many years ago. When he revealed the surprising solution I objected that the pronounciation as "FISH" was anything but consequent because "GH" is only possible to be pronounced like "F" if there's "OU" in front of it, "women" is a singularity, and "TI" is only "SH" if there's a vowel following. Aside from a couple of words that are really strange, English is rather easy to pronounce although there are no real rules.
Posted by Bernd (Member # 6) on :
-Double post removed-
[ August 25, 2001: Message edited by: Bernd ]
Posted by The Red Admiral (Member # 602) on :
Yes I see that, but there are so many variables and strange inconsistencies that it is this which makes it difficult. Whereas 'GH' can be 'F' when following 'OU', it can also be so when followed by 'AU' as in 'LAUGH', although I do believe that to be the exception. It can also be silent as in 'THOUGH', 'HIGH' 'WEIGH' and 'DOUGH' etc.
Posted by Nimrod (Member # 205) on :
The p in hiccough must be considered very rare since the original word must've hinted at 'cough', as a hiccough is a variation of a cough. Duuh.
Posted by targetemployee (Member # 217) on :
Thanks, guys, for the help.
Posted by Aethelwer (Member # 36) on :
Shavian is an orthography (with a flawed premise), not a language.
I agree with much of what Bernd said.
Posted by targetemployee (Member # 217) on :
I agree that Shavian is not a language. I have cause to place this language in a box I name fictional construct. There are many other languages in this box-Esperanto, Ebonics, and Klingonese.
Posted by Da_bang80 (Member # 528) on :
Musta been a slow week. i guess i didn't miss much.