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Is "ideot" a euphemistic form of idiot?

 
 
Reply Mon 29 Jun, 2015 11:03 am


Context:

Johnson's tall and robust figure combined with his odd gestures were confusing to some; when William Hogarth first saw Johnson standing near a window in Samuel Richardson's house, "shaking his head and rolling himself about in a strange ridiculous manner", Hogarth thought Johnson an "ideot, whom his relations had put under the care of Mr. Richardson".[195] Hogarth was quite surprised when "this figure stalked forwards to where he and Mr. Richardson were sitting and all at once took up the argument ... [with] such a power of eloquence, that Hogarth looked at him with astonishment, and actually imagined that this ideot had been at the moment inspired".[195] Beyond appearance, Adam Smith claimed that "Johnson knew more books than any man alive",[196] while Edmund Burke thought that if Johnson were to join Parliament, he "certainly would have been the greatest speaker that ever was there".[197] Johnson relied on a unique form of rhetoric, and he is well known for his "refutation" of Bishop Berkeley's immaterialism, his claim that matter did not actually exist but only seemed to exist:[198] during a conversation with Boswell, Johnson powerfully stomped a nearby stone and proclaimed of Berkeley's theory, "I refute it thus!"[194]

More:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samuel_Johnson#Character_sketch
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Type: Question • Score: 0 • Views: 2,194 • Replies: 25

 
View best answer, chosen by oristarA
tsarstepan
 
  1  
Reply Mon 29 Jun, 2015 11:06 am
@oristarA,
It looks to be an intentional typo. Maybe the author wrote it as thus so it could get past whatever editor/censor of the time. Ideot isn't a recognized slang spelling I've ever seen.

Maybe they didn't have enough I's for the 18th century printing press.
Walter Hinteler
 
  4  
Reply Mon 29 Jun, 2015 11:18 am
@tsarstepan,
"Ideot" is the obsolete form of idiot.

Oxford English Dictionary:
Quote:
ideot ideom(e), ideot
obs. ff. idiom, etc.
tsarstepan
 
  1  
Reply Mon 29 Jun, 2015 11:19 am
@Walter Hinteler,
Walter Hinteler wrote:

"Ideot" is the obsolete form of idiot.

Now I know. And knowing is half the ....
0 Replies
 
oristarA
 
  1  
Reply Mon 29 Jun, 2015 11:56 am
@Walter Hinteler,
Walter Hinteler wrote:

"Ideot" is the obsolete form of idiot.

Oxford English Dictionary:
Quote:
ideot ideom(e), ideot
obs. ff. idiom, etc.



The link to your Oxford?
Not here:
http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/spellcheck/english/?q=ideot
ehBeth
 
  1  
Reply Mon 29 Jun, 2015 12:04 pm
@Walter Hinteler,
http://findwords.info/term/ideot

http://findwords.info/term/idiot
Quote:
Forms: 4 ydyote, 4–5 ydiotte, 4–6 -ot(e, yd-, idyot, 5 idyote, -othe, ydeote, 6 ydeot(te, ideot(t)e, idiotte, 4–7 idiote, 4–9 ideot, 4– idiot.
tsarstepan
 
  1  
Reply Mon 29 Jun, 2015 12:07 pm
@ehBeth,
ehBeth wrote:

Quote:
Forms: 4 ydyote, 4–5 ydiotte, 4–6 -ot(e, yd-, idyot, 5 idyote, -othe, ydeote, 6 ydeot(te, ideot(t)e, idiotte, 4–7 idiote, 4–9 ideot, 4– idiot.


That looks like advanced doctoral level chemistry: advanced isotopes involving the element of fool.
0 Replies
 
Walter Hinteler
 
  1  
Reply Mon 29 Jun, 2015 12:27 pm
@oristarA,
oristarA wrote:
Oxford English Dictionary (Not "my Oxford" but THE Oxford English Dictionary)

oristarA
 
  0  
Reply Mon 29 Jun, 2015 10:41 pm
@Walter Hinteler,
It needs logging in and I failed to find Register button there. Did you register?
Walter Hinteler
 
  1  
Reply Mon 29 Jun, 2015 10:43 pm
@oristarA,
It's on subscription only or via your university/library.
0 Replies
 
ehBeth
 
  1  
Reply Mon 29 Jun, 2015 10:48 pm
@oristarA,
If you google the word + oxford

findword will show you what is in the registration only version of the oxford that Walter has access to
oristarA
 
  0  
Reply Tue 30 Jun, 2015 02:43 am
@ehBeth,
Google has been blocked long before here.
ehBeth
 
  1  
Reply Tue 30 Jun, 2015 07:42 am
@oristarA,
Do you have access to any search engines?
oristarA
 
  1  
Reply Tue 30 Jun, 2015 08:27 am
@ehBeth,
ehBeth wrote:

Do you have access to any search engines?


Two, but very crappy compared to Google:
http://cn.bing.com/
https://www.baidu.com/
ehBeth
 
  1  
Reply Tue 30 Jun, 2015 08:31 am
@oristarA,
Can you access http://findwords.info/ ?

oristarA
 
  1  
Reply Tue 30 Jun, 2015 09:28 am
@ehBeth,
ehBeth wrote:

Can you access http://findwords.info/ ?



Yes. But can you find "ideot" there? I found :"ideotype" instead in the site.
ehBeth
 
  1  
Reply Tue 30 Jun, 2015 09:56 am
@oristarA,
If you'll look up this page, I found ideot there - and provided the link.
oristarA
 
  1  
Reply Tue 30 Jun, 2015 10:13 am
@ehBeth,
ehBeth wrote:

If you'll look up this page, I found ideot there - and provided the link.


I tried to no avail.
Take a screenshot if you'd like and pasted here.
ehBeth
 
  1  
Reply Tue 30 Jun, 2015 10:37 am
@oristarA,
Quote:
Definition of ideot
Oxford English Dictionary

ideot ideom(e, ideot
obs. ff. idiom, etc.
Usage examples of "ideot".

He concluded that he was an ideot, whom his relations had put under the care of Mr.

In short, he displayed such a power of eloquence, that Hogarth looked at him with astonishment, and actually imagined that this ideot had been at the moment inspired.

But he was no ideot and I promise you that he had a very precise sense of its value.

Which thing many moderne ideots doe confound, being ignorant in Locall distribution.

- See more at: http://findwords.info/term/ideot#sthash.wdAXvgGh.dpuf
oristarA
 
  1  
Reply Tue 30 Jun, 2015 11:18 am
@ehBeth,
ehBeth wrote:

Quote:
Definition of ideot
Oxford English Dictionary

ideot ideom(e, ideot
obs. ff. idiom, etc.
Usage examples of "ideot".

He concluded that he was an ideot, whom his relations had put under the care of Mr.

In short, he displayed such a power of eloquence, that Hogarth looked at him with astonishment, and actually imagined that this ideot had been at the moment inspired.

But he was no ideot and I promise you that he had a very precise sense of its value.

Which thing many moderne ideots doe confound, being ignorant in Locall distribution.

- See more at: http://findwords.info/term/ideot#sthash.wdAXvgGh.dpuf



It does not explicitly indicate that the word ideot is an obsolete form of the word idiot.
 

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