Shel Belinkoff wrote:
Contemporary usage indicates another meaning, John, the way in which I used
the phrase, which gaining ground. Some recent dictionaries claim that it is
now acceptable—the New Oxford Dictionary of English, for example, says it
is “widely accepted in modern standard English”. However, some people are
sticking with the concept as put forth by Aristotle in 350BC
Shel
Hah, hah... good for you, Shel.
I was wondering what sort of response we'd get from you, and I was not
disappointed! Love it!
After all, languages evolve in just that way; a word's meaning at any
given time is derived from how the native speakers are using it.
Historically, word meanings change all the time. This is just one example.
keith
amateur etymologist
[Original Message]
From: John Francis
No it doesn't. For someone as precise as you, Shel, I'm more than
a little astonished that you continue to mis-use 'begs the question'.
To "beg a question" is to side-step it, and to assume the answer;
to ignore the fact that there possibly might be a question there.
It doesn't mean "calls for further investigation of this issue"
