MDDM23: Female, as It Happens ...
Dave Monroe
davidmmonroe at yahoo.com
Thu Feb 28 05:39:32 CST 2002
"'Wait, wait, this other Duck,-- it's male?
female? For that matter, which are you?'
"'Moi? Female, as it happens. The other, being
yet sexually unmodified, is neither,-- or, if you
like, both. Any Problem?'" (M&D, Ch. 37, p. 377)
Main Entry: duck
Pronunciation: 'd&k
Function: noun
Inflected Form(s): plural ducks
Usage: often attributive
Etymology: Middle English duk, doke, from Old English
duce
Date: before 12th century
1 or plural duck a : any of various swimming birds
(family Anatidae, the duck family) in which the neck
and legs are short, the body more or less depressed,
the bill often broad and flat, and the sexes almost
always different from each other in plumage b : the
flesh of any of these birds used as food
2 : a female duck -- compare DRAKE ...
Main Entry: drake
Pronunciation: 'drAk
Function: noun
Etymology: Middle English; akin to Old High German
antrahho drake
Date: 14th century
: a male duck
http://m-w.com/cgi-bin/dictionary
It IS Vaucanson's DUCK, not Vaucanson's DRAKE, so ...
__________________________________________________
Do You Yahoo!?
Yahoo! Greetings - Send FREE e-cards for every occasion!
http://greetings.yahoo.com
More information about the Pynchon-l
mailing list