science

Pseudo-anglicism

Pseudo-anglicism is a science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Pseudo-anglicism rather than just read about it. In short: A pseudo-anglicism is a word in another language that is formed from English elements and may appear to be English, but that does not exist as an English word with the same meaning. For example, English speakers traveling in France may be struck by the "number of anglicisms—or rather words that look English—which are used in a different sense than they have in English, or which do not exist in English (such as rally…

Key takeaways

Pseudo-anglicism belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Pseudo-anglicism to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Pseudo-anglicism from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

A pseudo-anglicism is a word in another language that is formed from English elements and may appear to be English, but that does not exist as an English word with the same meaning. For example, English speakers traveling in France may be struck by the "number of anglicisms—or rather words that look English—which are used in a different sense than they have in English, or which do not exist in English (such as rallye-paper, shake-hand, baby-foot, or baby-parc)". This is different from a false friend, which is a word with a cognate that has a different main meaning; in some cases, pseudo-anglicisms become false friends.

Definition and terminology Pseudo-anglicisms are also called secondary anglicisms, false anglicisms, or pseudo-English. Pseudo-anglicisms are a kind of lexical borrowing where the source or donor language is English, but where the borrowing is reworked in the receptor or recipient language. The precise definition varies. Duckworth defines pseudo-anglicisms in German as "neologisms derived from English language material." Furiassi includes words that may exist in English with a "conspicuously different meaning".

Typology and mechanism Pseudo-anglicisms can be created in various ways, such as by archaism, (i.e. words that once had that meaning in English but have since been abandoned); semantic slide (where an English word is used to mean something different from its English meaning); conversion of existing words from one part of speech to another; or re-combinations by reshuffling English units. Onysko speaks of two types: pseudo-anglicisms and hybrid anglicisms. The common factor is that each type represents a neologism in the receptor language resulting from a combination of borrowed lexical items from English. Using German as the receptor language, an example of the first type is Wellfit-Bar, a combination of two English lexical units to form a new term in German, which does not exist in English, and which carries the meaning, "a bar that caters to the needs of health-starved people." An example of the second type, is a hybrid based on a German compound word, Weitsprung (long jump), plus the English "coach", to create the new German word Weitsprung-Coach. According to Filipović, pseudo-anglicisms can be formed through compounding, suffixation, or ellipsis. For example, the Serbo-Croatian word голман, golman was created from the English word goal, which the word man was added to. Alternatively, suffixes such as -ер, -er or -ист(а), -ist(a) may be added to an English word to create a new word in Serbo-Croatian, such as тенисер, teniser or ватерполист(а), vaterpolist(a). Ellipsis may also occur, wherein a component of an English word is dropped, such as the suffix -ing; examples include бокс, boks from boxing, or хепиенд, hepiend from happy ending. Another process of word formation that can result in a pseudo-anglicism is a blend word, consisting of portions of two words, like brunch or smog. Rey-Debove & Gagnon attest tansad in French in 1919, from English tan[dem] + sad[dle].

Scope Pseudo-anglicisms can be found in many languages that have contact with English around the world, and are attested in nearly all European languages. The equivalent of pseudo-anglicisms derived from languages other than English also exist. For example, the English-language phrase "double entendre", while often believed to be French and pronounced in a French fashion, is not actually used in French. For other examples, see dog Latin, list of pseudo-French words adapted to English, and list of pseudo-German words adapted to English.

Examples

Many languages Some pseudo-anglicisms are found in many languages and have been characterized as "world-wide pseudo-English", often borrowed via other languages such as French or Italian:

autostop – hitchhiking in French, Italian, Czech, Polish, Serbo-Croatian, Greek οτοστόπ, Russian автостоп, Spanish, Bulgarian, Romanian, Hungarian, etc. basket – a shortening of basketball in French, Italian, Romanian baschet, Spanish básquet, Swedish, Turkish, etc. (may also refer to sneakers/trainers, e.g. in French and Romanian) camping – campsite or campground in French, Dutch, Greek κάμπινγκ, Bulgarian къмпинг, Russian ке́мпинг, Czech and Polish kemping, Portuguese, Spanish, etc. smoking – dinner jacket, tuxedo, or smoking jacket in Danish, French, Czech, Portuguese, German, Italian, Dutch, Greek σμόκιν, Russian, etc.

Korean

one shot – "bottoms up" (원샷 [wʌn.ɕjat̚]) hand phone – "cellphone" (핸드폰 [hɛn.dɯ.pon]) skinship – platonic hand-holding, hugging, etc. (스킨십; [sɯ.kʰin.ɕip̚])

Romance

French French includes many pseudo-anglicisms, including novel compounds (baby-foot), specifically compounds in -man (tennisman), truncations (foot), places in -ing (dancing meaning dancing-place, not the act of dancing), and a large variety of meaning shifts.

baby-foot (m, pronounced [ba.bi.fut]) – table football baby-parc – playpen before – drinks in privileged company before a party, a.k.a. "pregame" (opposite of after) blind test – music quiz / "name that tune" brushing – blow-dry and styling building – high-rise building, tower block box – wifi router or parking space dancing – dance hall dressing (noun) – walk-in closet flirt – a brief romance, flirtation, a boyfriend or girlfriend footing – jogging (though the real English word is also used in French with the same meaning) pressing – dry cleaning shop, rallye-paper – a "fox-and-hounds" like game, except with paper scraps instead of foxes recordman (m; pl: recordmans; f:recordwoman) – record holder, especially in sports relooker (verb) to make over; also: relooking (n; masc.) – a makeover scratch (noun) – velcro shake-hand speaker, speakerine (feminine) – radio or television announcer tennisman – a professional tennis player wheeling – a wheelie

Italian autogrill (Italian pronunciation: [autoˈɡril]) – rest area (used for any brand, not only for Autogrill chain) beauty farm (Italian pronunciation: [bjutiˈfarm]) – spa The French borrowing bloc-notes (French pronunciation: [blɔknɔt]) is sometimes written in the pseudo-English form block-notes (Italian pronunciation: [blɔkˈnɔts]) – notebook jolly – the joker in a pack of cards pullman – a bus smart working Italian pronunciation: [zmartˈworking] – remote work, where "smart" is used referring to other devices with an Internet connection, such as smartphones and smartwatches. water (Italian pronunciation: [vater]) – flush toilet (from English water closet)

… excerpt ends here. Continue reading the full article.

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Pseudo-anglicism

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Pseudo-anglicism claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Pseudo-anglicism before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Pseudo-anglicism ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Pseudo-anglicism

In research: Pseudo-anglicism appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Pseudo-anglicism in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Pseudo-anglicism is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics English-language influence on other languages, Forms of English, Language histories, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Pseudo-anglicism outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Pseudo-anglicism in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Pseudo-anglicism means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Pseudo-anglicism out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Pseudo-anglicism in simple terms?

Why does Pseudo-anglicism matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Pseudo-anglicism?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Pseudo-anglicism.