The Queen Was Amused

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 16, Issue 27, 1 December 1950, Page 6

The Queen Was Amused

It is related that Queen Juliana was much amused when a woman to whom she and Prince Bernhard were chatting said: “I’ve just been talking to the Prince,” because this phrase has a slang meaning in colloquial Dutch, “I’m as pickled as an owl.” Idiom is always a pitfall in every language, especially as in some cases words have a nasty habit of changing. To call a person “crafty” was once a way to praise him, meaning that he was skilled in his particular craft. In the same way “libertine” means a man freed from servitude or serfdom and not a leader of a dissolute life. The word “prude” had no suggestion of affected modesty, but a girl who was prudent and circumspect. An “officious” person was given to offices of kindness.

“Silly” has also changed its meaning completely. In its Anglo-Saxon meaning it signified “blessed or holy,” and reference to “silly sheep” in the Christmas carol is meant as a compliment. An “idiot” also meant a private individual as distinguished from a Government servant. In fact, we were all idiots until we got a Government job. Jeremy Bentham used it in this way in the 18th century when he said: “Humility is a duty in great ones as well as in idiots.”

Since those days wars have added all manner of curious words to our vocabulary including “Blighty,” “blitz” and “jeepable.” Before this century colloquial English relied very largely on the horse, including “on a tight rein,” “show his paces,” “high stepper,” “give a legup,” “riding rough shod” over somebody. The motor car, however, has yet to win its spurs in this respect, but maybe the car will eventually jockey a word or two into the language f unless we are content to jog along with the old words straight from the horse’s mouth.