Thread: Kipling's word shortening

Probably not a good idea to think that these abbreviations are in general use. They aren't, and I doubt if they were even when he was writing. The one you'll hear nowadays is 'scuse me. But if someone knew the meaning of the words insatiable, curiosity, and astute, they would not abbreviate them. But my curiosity is piqued and I'd like to know the context in which you found these things!

Originally Posted by chaika

Probably not a good idea to think that these abbreviations are in general use. They aren't, and I doubt if they were even when he was writing. The one you'll hear nowadays is 'scuse me.

I think the only occasion one might hear 'satiable or 'scruciating (outside of Kipling!) would be from a young child who had heard an adult use the word and was trying to imitate it. In this case, "imitating" the word not quite successfully! So, Kipling was an adult imitating a little kid imitating an adult.

Sample dialogue with my nephew, who recently turned four:

NEPHEW: Omple Rob, I got a new LEGO for my birfday! Guess what it is?!?! It's a BULLDOZER!!!!!
ME: A bulldozer? [confused voice] Oh, that's like a boy cow, right?
NEPHEW: NO!! Not a bull!! A bulldozer's a 'struction machine!!
ME: Okay, then, let's put the bulldozer together.
NEPHEW: Wait! [with immense gravity] Omple Rob, FIRST we gotta lookit da 'structions...

(Note that to him, 'struction can mean either "construction" or "instruction." Young children often have difficulty with unstressed prefixes, especially when the unstressed prefix comes before the stressed syllable. Sometimes, my nephew will pronounce "the instructions" as "dun 'structions" -- i.e., "dun" = "the-in." So in that case, he's not totally dropping the prefix in-, but instead the prefix becomes "elided" to the definite article.)

P.S. I agree with what others have said, that 'scuse me is очень часто встречается even in the speech of highly-educated adults.

Originally Posted by Throbert McGee

I think the only occasion one might hear 'satiable or 'scruciating (outside of Kipling!) would be from a young child who had heard an adult use the word and was trying to imitate it. In this case, "imitating" the word not quite successfully! So, Kipling was an adult imitating a little kid imitating an adult.

Sample dialogue with my nephew, who recently turned four:

NEPHEW: Omple Rob, I got a new LEGO for my birfday! Guess what it is?!?! It's a BULLDOZER!!!!!
ME: A bulldozer? [confused voice] Oh, that's like a boy cow, right?
NEPHEW: NO!! Not a bull!! A bulldozer's a 'struction machine!!
ME: Okay, then, let's put the bulldozer together.
NEPHEW: Wait! [with immense gravity] Omple Rob, FIRST we gotta lookit da 'structions...

(Note that to him, 'struction can mean either "construction" or "instruction." Young children often have difficulty with unstressed prefixes, especially when the unstressed prefix comes before the stressed syllable. Sometimes, my nephew will pronounce "the instructions" as "dun 'structions" -- i.e., "dun" = "the-in." So in that case, he's not totally dropping the prefix in-, but instead the prefix becomes "elided" to the definite article.)

P.S. I agree with what others have said, that 'scuse me is очень часто встречается even in the speech of highly-educated adults.

In Kipling's stories "How the first letter was written" and "How the alphabet was made" there is a little girl Taffy who talks with many words shortened this way, (oh, and she is the only who talks this way in these stories):

'splaining - explaining
'fended - offended
s'prise - surprise
etc.

So it seems that using such a shortening Kipling did wish to imitate childish talking or to narrate these stories to children in their own children's language.