From owner-freebsd-chat Sun Apr 21 07:55:11 1996 Return-Path: owner-chat Received: (from root@localhost) by freefall.freebsd.org (8.7.3/8.7.3) id HAA21591 for chat-outgoing; Sun, 21 Apr 1996 07:55:11 -0700 (PDT) Received: (from jmb@localhost) by freefall.freebsd.org (8.7.3/8.7.3) id HAA21583 Sun, 21 Apr 1996 07:55:09 -0700 (PDT) From: "Jonathan M. Bresler" Message-Id: <199604211455.HAA21583@freefall.freebsd.org> Subject: Re: A request about comments in programs To: bde@zeta.org.au (Bruce Evans) Date: Sun, 21 Apr 1996 07:55:08 -0700 (PDT) Cc: bde@zeta.org.au, jkh@time.cdrom.com, freebsd-chat@FreeBSD.ORG In-Reply-To: <199604211000.UAA18538@godzilla.zeta.org.au> from "Bruce Evans" at Apr 21, 96 08:00:16 pm X-Mailer: ELM [version 2.4 PL24] Content-Type: text Sender: owner-chat@FreeBSD.ORG X-Loop: FreeBSD.org Precedence: bulk moot is indeed debatable or open to dispute, but that is a limiting modifier not an encompassing one. a moot point is one that has no practical significance, but we can argue about it ;) how many angels did you say? on which pinhead? wish that i had an OED here to consult. Bruce Evans wrote: > > [Redirected to -chat from -core] > > >> I think this meaning is netspeak. All my (old) dictionaries say that > >> it means "arguable, debatable, open to debate, etc". > > >That's actually pretty interesting - I've never heard it used in that > >way. This should probably be redirected to -chat, but I'd still be > >curious if any of the other core members here have heard "moot" used > >in the manner you've seen it defined! > > I checked some more (small, old) dictionaries. The above meaning survives > translations: > > Putnam's Contemporary French Dictionary (copyright 1969 by Collins, 1972 by > Putnam, Berkeley Medallion edition 1976): > moot a discutable > discutable a debatable, disputable > > Collins German-English English-German Dictionary (copyright 1953 by Collins, > reprinted 1963): > Moot-point n. strittiger Punkt > Strittig a. in dispute > > Collins seems to agree with itself :-). > > Bruce >