Talk:2919: Sitting in a Tree

2024-04-13T11:05:26Z

172.71.222.210: Whaling

Meh, they're just dropping burning pine cones on the wargs. [[User:BunsenH|BunsenH]] ([[User talk:BunsenH|talk]]) 04:06, 13 April 2024 (UTC)

I hope I did this right, seeing as this was my first ever edit! [[User:Name of User|Name of User]] ([[User talk:Name of User|talk]]) 04:15, 13 April 2024 (UTC)

Did Randall mean e-filing as in submitting your tax return on the web, and how is that more alarming than ironing sitting on a branch? Or is there some other meaning to efiling? [[Special:Contributions/172.68.243.77|172.68.243.77]] 06:46, 13 April 2024 (UTC)
:Could be that they're sitting in a ''data tree'', selectively traversing it to find [[2918: Tick Marks|a fraudulent subset of transactional records]] to 'declare'... [[Special:Contributions/141.101.99.74|141.101.99.74]] 10:18, 13 April 2024 (UTC)

So, "whaling" can mean hitting (usually in the form "whaling on"), but "whaling" also means spending a lot of money, such as when gambling or in a video game.

2871: Definitely

2023-12-23T18:12:21Z

172.71.222.210: /* Explanation */

{{comic
| number = 2871
| date = December 22, 2023
| title = Definitely
| image = definitely_2x.png
| imagesize = 463x461px
| noexpand = true
| titletext = A really mean prank you can play on someone who's picky about words is to add a 'definitely->definitively' autocorrect rule to their keyboard.
}}

==Explanation==
{{incomplete|Created by a DEFIANT DEFINITION - Please change this comment when editing this page. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.}}

The word "''{{wiktionary|definitely}}''" is commonly {{wiktionary|misspelt}}, perhaps because it may be voiced as "def-in-ATE-ly", or with other vowels/emphisis. (The wiktionary link mentions three, /ˈdɛf.ɪ.nɪt.li/, /ˈdɛf.ə.nɪt.li/, /ˈdɛf.nɪt.li/, which are just some of the differences you might encounter.) Remembering that it ultimately has a common root with "finite", and thus has the two 'i's, does not help if you also/instead perhaps link it in your head to "''define''" (which might erroneously lead to "''defin'''e'''tely''") and not "definition").

The comic gives twelve 'words' that the subtitle claims are all real, and gives their definitions, whereas in reality only the first (the definitely definitive spelling of "''definitely''" and the last (defying the trend by being the actual word "''{{wiktionary|defiantly}}''") are indeed so.

The first three alternate 'words' listed do have Wiktionary entries that indicate they are common mis-spellings of the first (with "definately" having been used previously in [[1238: Enlightenment]]), and the last has a secondary 'meaning' of possibly being such an error, but (as of the publication of this comic/edit) the words "''defenitely''", "''defintely''", "''definetely''" [defined as "{{w|Definitely, Maybe}}"], "''definantly''", "''defanitely''", "''defineatly''" and "''definitly''" are ''so'' wrong that they don't even have a corrective article created for them. Some of them don't even look like they'd even be sufficiently homophonic substitutes, though the actions of accent and dialect may indeed be capable of creating compatible (mis)elocutions for each.

The title text adds to the word confusion by suggesting the real word "''{{wiktionary|definitively}}''" (for which Wiktionary has a 'See also' link to "definitely") be made to be used (against the will of a word-wise individual) as a substitution for the original definitely definitive spelling. In certain contexts it even fulfils the same basic sense as the original and so may survive proofreading by a third party. Or even the author glancing through their own work, and the brain not twigging the increased number of riser-rich characters but mentally voicing the intended word anyway... Even if it is noticed, it may be considered more a "''{{wiktionary|thinko}}''" than a "''{{wiktionary|typo}}''" as it keeps happening, at least until the afflicted typist starts to pay close and distracting attention to their output.

==Transcript==
{{incomplete transcript|Do not delete this tag too soon.}}

:<u>Word</u>   <u>Meaning</u>

:Definitely - Definitely
:Definetly - ''Almost'' definitely
:Definately - Probably
:Definatly - Probably not
:Defenitely - Not telling (it's a surprise)
:Defintely - Per the prophecy
:Definetely - Definitely, maybe
:Definantly - To be decided by coin toss
:Defanitely - In one universe out of 14 million
:Defineatly - Only the gods know
:Definitly - Unless someone cute shows up
:Defiantly - Defiantly

:[Caption below the panel:]
:People think the word "definitely" is often misspelled, but it's actually just several words with different meanings.

{{comic discussion}}

[[Category:Language]]

explain xkcd - User contributions [en]

Talk:2919: Sitting in a Tree

2871: Definitely