tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post1754750080873814917..comments2024-03-16T00:21:43.240+00:00Comments on Separated by a Common Language: snarky, sarky and narkylynneguisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10171345732985610861noreply@blogger.comBlogger35125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-78441426575647622682023-07-13T00:23:09.712+01:002023-07-13T00:23:09.712+01:00I've definitely seen "narc" outright...I've definitely seen "narc" outright listed as a short term for narcissist. Granted, I'm writing this in the future.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-66448019132718066382021-06-25T16:52:47.651+01:002021-06-25T16:52:47.651+01:00...or at least, not a strong reason. ...or at least, not a strong reason. lynneguisthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10171345732985610861noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-71338527283169178972021-06-25T16:52:24.228+01:002021-06-25T16:52:24.228+01:00Who is 'generally regarding it' that way? ...Who is 'generally regarding it' that way? The verb 'snark' goes back further than that and is more clearly related to snarkiness, in that it means 'to snort'. There's no reason to suspect a portmanteau here.lynneguisthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10171345732985610861noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-21796910405622429602021-06-25T16:49:53.778+01:002021-06-25T16:49:53.778+01:00Adjective: snarky. The word snark first appeared i...Adjective: snarky. The word snark first appeared in Lewis Carroll's nonsense poem The Hunting of the Snark (1874). ... In its contemporary sense, the term is generally regarded as a portmanteau word--a blend of "snide" and "remark."Jim Terryhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01920201871011556106noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-4782670523690510492014-02-05T23:33:23.751+00:002014-02-05T23:33:23.751+00:00I suffer from narcolepsy and my husband says he kn...I suffer from narcolepsy and my husband says he knows when I need a nap as I get narky. It made me wonder if there is any connection between the condition and the origin of the word? Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-64442521710601530842012-08-20T21:30:40.845+01:002012-08-20T21:30:40.845+01:00'Snarky' is a favourite of mine, as is ...'Snarky' is a favourite of mine, as is 'snit'. 'Snit' I defintely picked up from my American ex and no British term will quite fit. I'm not sure where I got 'snarky' from but it does a job 'sarky' doesn't. Also 'snark' can stand perfectly well as a noun.<br /><br />Irritability isn't quite it. Nor is it quite taking the piss, although that is involved. I spent my student days in Liverpool and 'snark' fits nicely with something in the Liverpudlian character; it's not hostile but it is debunking, perhaps there's a kind of louche cynicism in there. John Lennon was a master of snark, as were all the other Beatles to a lesser extent.<br /><br />It's been said within the last few weeks that if snarkiness was an Olympic event I'd be a contender for the gold. But let's not go there, hey!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-83177214775899414712011-11-06T16:57:10.175+00:002011-11-06T16:57:10.175+00:00I know both snarky (actually in both uses that see...I know both snarky (actually in both uses that seem to be occuring here, as a snide remark and as grumpy or moody) and a snit (usually as part of the phrase "to be in a snit") from my father's side of the family, mainly my scottish grandfather.<br /><br />It often seems true that my grandfather's vocabulary is often closer to AmE than BE...Henry Bricehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17763526538476939007noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-54966916598767224572011-09-22T19:11:46.063+01:002011-09-22T19:11:46.063+01:00I love "snarky," but I always thought it...I love "snarky," but I always thought it was British. I have no reason to think so, but I did. As you say, we shouldn't assume!ErinBrennerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02068288244422664258noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-86415527602985230022011-04-26T08:03:04.785+01:002011-04-26T08:03:04.785+01:00I'd say the word Narky or 'Narcy' come...I'd say the word Narky or 'Narcy' comes from the word Narcisist. They have very similar meanings, Narky means narcisisrtic-like.Silk Bloomshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08746783062095590131noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-43529331365971110762008-06-03T12:56:00.000+01:002008-06-03T12:56:00.000+01:00I rely on others to be up north for us and to repo...I rely on others to be up north for us and to report their findings! <BR/><BR/>Would be more helpful to comment on <I>eyeball</I> at that post, thanks.lynneguisthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10171345732985610861noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-20101528170100872932008-06-03T09:02:00.000+01:002008-06-03T09:02:00.000+01:00I don't know about anyone else, but it seemed to b...I don't know about anyone else, but it seemed to be common in the north of England and and was used to imply a cross between being snide and bad-tempered. I hope you don't mind me saying this, but perhaps you should go north of Watford a little more often? There are often differences between north and south. (I was born in the north, now live in the south.) And I've never heard 'eyeballing' in the sense of 'measuring, only 'eyeing [it] up'.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-55795429509554014012008-05-23T19:06:00.000+01:002008-05-23T19:06:00.000+01:00My friends and I use "snarky" (describing people o...My friends and I use "snarky" (describing people or their remarks) to refer to a snide, superior tone taken in criticizing something. It is closer to "sarcastic" than to "grumpy", but "sarcastic" doesn't quite cover it. It may be sarcastic to say "Nice job" to someone who has just messed up, but it is not snarky. Snarky is a whole nother level of snide. For something to be really snarky it has to contain an ostentatious cleverness and wit but also a real spitefulness and meanness of spirit. When someone says something really snarky, part of you wants to laugh, part of you wants to applaud, and part of you wants to punch him hard in the face.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-79199993712584650562008-05-15T09:20:00.000+01:002008-05-15T09:20:00.000+01:00Thank you for the link to The Railway Children. I...Thank you for the link to The Railway Children. I couldn't sleep last night so I read through the book, and it bought back good memories of the film for me. :)JohnBhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17557412116309148129noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-69030422656139530102008-05-14T11:39:00.000+01:002008-05-14T11:39:00.000+01:00Cameron is ably demonstrating snarky and sarky. T...Cameron is ably demonstrating <I>snarky</I> and <I>sarky</I>. Thanks, Cameron!<BR/><BR/>Welcome to the conversation, Jackie.lynneguisthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10171345732985610861noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-33341385943750444272008-05-14T10:20:00.000+01:002008-05-14T10:20:00.000+01:00Anon, "parky" stands for "perishing and really kol...Anon, "parky" stands for "perishing and really kold, y'know?" along the same sort of pattern as OK from "oll korrekt."<BR/><BR/>No really. It does.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-91903500503569466402008-05-14T07:58:00.000+01:002008-05-14T07:58:00.000+01:00Howdy. Just popping by to say that I stumbled onto...Howdy. Just popping by to say that I stumbled onto your blog (when searching the web for an explanation as to why the British have weird -zza nicknames for people) and I love it! I am an avid Anglophile living in the the US (you can probably tell what area just by my greeting, right? haha) and I have always been very amused by linguistics, particularly that of the UK and also the area I am from (I'm in a place called Bowling Green, where ridiculously enough most residents don't know what a bowling green actually is). Anyhoo, I've added the feed onto my Livejournal and will probably pop back up to say things from time to time!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-33388716316471003602008-05-13T18:17:00.000+01:002008-05-13T18:17:00.000+01:00When did "snarky" become popular? I moved to the ...When did "snarky" become popular? I moved to the UK about 15 years ago and I always assumed it was BrE, perhaps because I don't remember ever hearing itin the States.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-406402059673084642008-05-13T11:09:00.000+01:002008-05-13T11:09:00.000+01:00This would seem to be a good time to take a stab a...This would seem to be a good time to take a stab at guessing the origin of the BrE slang parky, meaning chilly.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-65644878066444463092008-05-13T08:28:00.000+01:002008-05-13T08:28:00.000+01:00Besides which, etymologies which rely on acronyms ...Besides which, etymologies which rely on acronyms and/or portmanteaus are almost invariably and inevitably wrong, viz. Gentlemen Only, Ladies Forbidden; For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge; Port Out Starboard Home... and so endlessly on.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-92026140596158173202008-05-12T22:27:00.000+01:002008-05-12T22:27:00.000+01:00I'm only disagreeing with the etymology on Urban D...I'm only disagreeing with the etymology on Urban Dictionary...it has the markings of a folk etymology--i.e. an interpretation of a word's history that makes sense to the present-day speaker, but that isn't the actual way that the word developed. Real etymology is done by checking dates and sources and making sure that they match up--not just by putting together an explanation that seems to make sense.<BR/><BR/>The senses that are being discussed for <I>snarky</I> all seem to be consistent with its historical use. My definition, reliant on the OED, didn't catch the nuances that some of the further comments have.lynneguisthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10171345732985610861noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-52257900300634379422008-05-12T16:57:00.000+01:002008-05-12T16:57:00.000+01:00In my mind, there is definitely an element of "iss...In my mind, there is definitely an element of "issuing possibly unjust and usually petty criticism." involved in being snarky. It's not just being irritable, although one is often irritable while being snarky. It often involves sarcasm, but doesn't have to.Robinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04807410189983092576noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-2868055722755730422008-05-12T16:44:00.000+01:002008-05-12T16:44:00.000+01:00I personally think that Snarky implies both being ...I personally think that Snarky implies both being sarcastic and irritable.<BR/>It implies (to me) sarcasm that is meant to be biting as opposed to just being sarcastic for the sake of being funny.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-90276682012628930662008-05-12T16:19:00.000+01:002008-05-12T16:19:00.000+01:00MW 10C (AmE) lists "snippy" as "ca. 1848" (without...MW 10C (AmE) lists "snippy" as "ca. 1848" (without further etymological notes), so it's not a new coinage. This matches my intuition, as I'd expect it in the vocabulary of a waspish grandmother rather than a youth.<BR/><BR/>I can't speak to its usage in BrE.Doug Sundsethhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01848091504066560951noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-18191316630451147932008-05-12T14:51:00.000+01:002008-05-12T14:51:00.000+01:00I have to agree with Jonathan Bogart. In the blogo...I have to agree with Jonathan Bogart. In the blogosphere at least, snarky posts tend to involve mockery rather than substantive criticism. Sarcasm isn't necessary, but it might push a post into "high snark".Ginger Yellowhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06103410278129312943noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28787909.post-39564440663656320292008-05-11T23:23:00.000+01:002008-05-11T23:23:00.000+01:00She said she met you. I am surprised that she wan...She said she met you. I am surprised that she wanted to associate with me, as she knows I post outrageous things on otherpeoples Blogs every so often :)<BR/><BR/>Still, I was able to check the porn spam over while she was out of the house.JohnBhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17557412116309148129noreply@blogger.com