There are words and then there are WORDS

[drwex]

In our household we try to work off the concept that there are no 'bad words.' The requirement is that the kids know what the words they use mean and understand their context. I don't care if K calls someone a "fathead" or a "f**khead" - he has to know what both words mean and what likely reaction he'll get before we agree that the word is OK. This leads to some interesting conversations.

Sunday in the car on the way to apple-picking.

sweetmmeblue: Bleah, I have tuna breath!

K: Tunabreath! Tunabreath! (six-year-old sense of humor, remember)

Me: Please don't do that.

K: Daddy, what does 'tuna' mean?

Me: I think you know what it is.

...

K: Well, I knew but I forgot.

Me: OK, that's fair. A 'tuna' is a kind of fish.

L (extremely pleased with his insight): Like a tunafish!!

(much adult laughter)

Me: Yes. Rather a lot like a tuna fish.

Comments

[dpolicar]

Hee! I enjoyed this.

One of the interesting things about my level of native-bilingual semiliteracy is that there are many Spanish phrases I know only as phrases... that is, I don't know where the wordbreaks are, or even if there are any.

So I've had the experience L had here, where I notice that two "words" are similar when in fact I've simply repeated the same word twice without knowing it, when I was old enough to remember it now.

It's disorienting, but kinda fun.