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Old October 4th 05, 04:49 AM
Nostrobino
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"no_name" wrote in message
om...
Jeremy Nixon wrote:

Floyd Davidson wrote:


*Nobody* cares whether words match precise dictionary meanings, because
*point* is to communicate.

When people *communicate*, the question is not "what did they
say", but "what did they mean".



When things devolve too far in that direction, communication becomes
difficult or impossible.


No, it's when things devolve too farr FROM that direction, or more
precisely when "what did they mean" devolves too far from "what did they
say".

'"Words mean exactly what I want them to mean," the Red Queen informed
Alice in Wonderland.'


That was Humpty Dumpty ("it means just what I choose it to mean"), not the
Red Queen. And actually both were in "Through the Looking Glass," not "Alice
in Wonderland," though the two books are usually printed together so it's
easy to get them confused.

Neil