Re: RARA-AVIS: RE: pants and stuff

From: Thomas Johnston ( jimzilla@johnston55.greatxscape.net)
Date: 09 Aug 2000


In the UK, if something is pants, it is used in an arch sense of being unspeakably awful. Students usually use it.

I'm coming in on the end of this discussion, so this may have been dealt with before.

Jim~>

>Between us, Girvan and I have probably just confused the transAtlantic
>linguistic question. As he points out, "pants" in the sense of trousers
>or slacks is American; here in England (not to mention Scotland), they
>are underpants/knickers/panties/whatever.
>
>Kids' slang meaning of "pants" STILL presumably derives from the
>embarrassing situation of being caught with your nether garments down or
>missing in public, and therefore being in a very "naff" situation.
>Personally, I'd rather on balance be caught with ONLY my jeans down in
>public. That I could probably carry off. Beyond that, it gets silly.
>
>(Oh, wicked of me....)
>
>Marianne

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