And as the OED claims, it is most often either idea or notion. An American writer, in 1967, actually stated an antecedent 'idea.' That, and to some degree my experience, suggest to me that Americans like to state what it is of which they haven't the foggiest. Only one citation of 'foggiest' in the OED deviates from the model, the model being, 'I haven't the foggiest,' with the referent omitted. Curiously, the word 'foggiest' seems to be used by Brits most often without any expressed referent, starting (in print) in 1917, with 'I haven't the foggiest.' Or, as the OED puts it, the word is 'Used negatively in superl., with ellipsis of idea, notion.' (VSD)ĭavid is, of course, right about 'foggiest.' Dickens is the first author quoted by the OED for the expression 'foggy idea': 'A dull and foggy sort of idea,' in Barnaby Rudge. helter-skelter, hanky-panky, roly-poly, willy-nilly, hocus-pocus), coupling 'jibber' and 'jabber' would have been a natural formation at any time in the last 400 years, and it may have been commonplace for many years before it finally appeared in print. Given English-speakers' love of reduplicated words (e.g. gabble, yabber, gab, jabble.) The earliest sighting of 'jibber-jabber' recorded in the Oxford English Dictionary is in 1922, but that doesn't mean that was 'the year it first appeared'. Find the right people, see whether and how they’re available, and collaborate more effectively. (There are a number of similar words in English all meanig much the same thing - e.g. Cisco Jabber delivers instant messaging, voice and video calls, voice messaging, desktop sharing, conferencing, and presence.

'Jibber' (spelt 'gibber') was used by Shakespeare 'jabber' is recorded in 1499. Horsemeat gallop into 2021 on fiery hooves with some more colossus Prunge hot. : Jibber-jabber is a coupling of 'jibber' and 'jabber', which are themselves variants of the same onomatopoeic verb meaning 'To speak rapidly and inarticulately to chatter, talk nonsense'. Horsemeat: Jibber Jabber – new single and video premiere. : : Not having even the 'foggiest' idea is having no idea at all not even a badly formed, undefined one. Learn where the phrases and terms you use everyday came from with this list of origin of phrases and expressions. See if you can spot the unwritten rule in the following list of ablaut reduplication. Ablaut reduplication pairs words with internal vowel alternations.

English has at least six types of reduplication. : : As for the second part, something that is 'foggy' is unclear, hard to discern - for fairly obvious reasons - so a foggy idea (if such a phrase existed) would be a vague one. Estes Park, Colorado Members 5. Below you will find out such interesting things as the jibber jabber origin, stool pigeon origin, and the etymology of common phrases and sayings. In linguistics, reduplication is the expressive repetition of a single word, or the pairing of a word with another of similar sound or spelling. To celebrate this milestone, Ross invites audiences to join him for an evening of the. Also, where did the phrase 'I haven't the foggiest idea' come from? Jibber Jabber Jamboree marks Ross Nobles 21st solo stand-up tour. : : : Where did the phrase 'jibber jabber' come from? I need the year it first appeared. In Reply to: Jibber jabber posted by Victoria S Dennis on Novemat 16:32:

Jibber e jabber