On 8/12/2019 3:33 PM, Steven Boozer wrote:
Klingon word: tuQHa'moH Part of speech: verb Definition: undress _______________________________________________
(HQ 2.4): {qogh} "ear", of course is homophonous with {qogh}, "belt" ... This homophony explains why the Klingon slang expression {qogh tuQmoHHa'}, literally "take off one's belt" is used to mean to not hear, for example, {qogh vItuQmoHHa'pu'} "I've taken off my belt; your secret is safe with me."
The slang expression is, of course, bizarre: *-Ha'* is not in its correct position, and the object of the verb is not predictable by either the Klingon grammar /(I cause the belt to un-wear) /or the given English definition of *tuQHa'moH* /(I undress the belt)./ The best I can guess is that *ghaHvaD qogh vItuQHa'moH* would mean /I take the belt off of him (I cause him to un-wear the belt)./ Maybe the indirect object has been elided without explanation. Whether *qogh tuQmoHHa'* can get away with what it does as a result of slang or error or both, I can't say. -- SuStel http://trimboli.name