What nonsense did you believe in as a kid?Ever thought that you could get flushed down the loo? That girls wee out their bottoms? Or that bumming means two men rubbing their bums together? Tell us about your childhood misconceptions. Thanks to Joefish for the suggestion.
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rob, Wed 18 Jan 2012, 15:21)
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Flammable/inflammableAfter learning with interest that "Flammable" and "Inflammable" meant the same thing, my grammar-challenged friend and I concluded that "non-flammable" must also mean the same thing. Because an "In-" prefix means "Not", like in "Inoffensive" or "Ineffective", right? Game on!
And that's why we wasted a whole box of hard-won matches trying to light a bonfire with a can of emulsion paint nicked from our garage.
(, Thu 19 Jan 2012, 11:17, 1 reply)
What's worrying is that our whole once had a debate with a teacher about this.In a first-aid class, he had written on the board "If the clothes are on fire, douse the flames with water or other inflammable liquid."
"What, like petrol, sir?"
We eventually had to drag him to a dictionary (or vice-versa).
The very worst part - he was head of the English department.
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Amish Information Systems hates misplaced, commas, Wed 25 Jan 2012, 14:40,
closed)
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