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A comment on Language homogenization at Harvard. Parent comment

Re:Language homogenization at Harvard by woodruffw on Friday February 11, 2022 @07:05PM (#30308571)
I think that's why they say "old-fashioned" instead of "has an extremely old (attestable) etymology."

As a native English speaker, "poppycock" sounds more "old-fashioned" (maybe "quainter") than "snail," even though "snail" might actually be older.

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Re:Language homogenization at Harvard by thaumasiotes on Friday February 11, 2022 @08:08PM (#30308965)
Well, it's pretty easy to assume that snail is very, very old. As I said above, in my opinion it doesn't sound "old-fashioned" because it's still current, and how old it might be is irrelevant.

But see also my observation about the English female names Gertrude and Etheldreda. Which one is more old-fashioned?

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