Subject: Re: [AUD]: "Song Stuck in Your Head" phenomenon From: Roland Mathijssen <R.W.M.Mathijssen(at)INAME.COM> Date: Mon, 22 Jan 2001 08:55:06 +0100The dictionary translates Oorworm (that's Dutch for Ohrwurm) into Earwig. Can't help it. It's the animal, not the exact translation, that one needs (I guess). Otherwise a Butterfly should be translated into Butterfliege instead of Vlinder (Dutch) or Schmetterling (German).... (or how do you write it in German). Cheers, Roland http://www.didgeweb.com/ > -----Original Message----- > From: Christian Spevak [SMTP:christian(at)SPEVAK.DE] > Sent: Sunday, January 21, 2001 12:17 PM > To: AUDITORY(at)LISTS.MCGILL.CA > Subject: Re: [AUD]: "Song Stuck in Your Head" phenomenon > > > This may or may not be of interest, but in German a song stuck in your > > head is called an "Ohrwurm" (lit. "earwig"). Very descriptive! :) > > I may be wrong here, since I'm not a native English speaker, but I think > "wig" is not the correct translation for "wurm", because the German word > "Wurm" means "worm", while "wig" has (according to Merriam Webster's > dictionary the following meanings: > > 1 a : a manufactured covering of natural or synthetic hair for the head > b : TOUPEE 2 > 2 : an act of wigging : REBUKE > > Therefore I'd suggest "earworm"... > > ____________________________ > Christian Spevak > Music Department > University of Hertfordshire, UK > christian(at)spevak.de > www.spevak.de