'Do you know what a spendthrift is? Most don’t!' blog discussion

JRRD

So I knew the answer, but then when Martin asks the question, perhaps I have been mislead somewhere along the line. It must be the opposite. Only to discover I was right all along.

I'm confused now though !!! lol

Charco_2

Jay1 may have been referring to an oxymoron - when two words of opposite meaning are out together...

- The fight turned pretty ugly!
- Sceptic001 is clearly confused!

However, the meaning of the word does seem to come from the idea that someone is spending from the "thrift" of others.

deborahmcgeachy

My MIL uses the word 'pocket muncher' in all honesty it took me a while to understand it and i think it sounds disgusting and has no air of financial connotation to it at all!!!! LOL!!!

Paul_Varjak

I thought I knew what SPENDTHRIFT meant! I was wrong!

Does anyone know what the word CLEAVE means? Is it:

1. To split OR
2. To stick fast to?

bylromarha

Paul_Varjak wrote: »

I thought I knew what SPENDTHRIFT meant! I was wrong!

Does anyone know what the word CLEAVE means? Is it:

1. To split OR
2. To stick fast to?

You leave and cleave. No. 2.

Paul_Varjak

bylromarha wrote: »

You leave and cleave. No. 2.

You are only half right!

bylromarha

Paul_Varjak wrote: »

You are only half right!

Then you only put half the answer!:rotfl:

krazykidskate

I always thought it meant the opposite but then again its not a word i go around using

GracieP

bylromarha wrote: »

Not among my peers and I!

I cannot remember one conversation with my husband, my peers or my colleagues where the word spendthrift has been used.

I'm mid thirties - I can tell you what ten bob is as mum used that term a bit, but spendthrift? Never had a clue.

I'm 31 and would have assumed everyone knows what it means.

pinktheatrebunny

Interestingly it is used in Ibsen's 1879 "A Doll's House" by Torvald to describe his wife Nora who seems to be terrible with money (it turns out she had to take out a loan to save Torvald and is desperate to pay it back, scrimping and saving all the time)

The play was originally in Norwegian so there must be a Norwegian term which means the same and was in common usage in the late 19th century.