What is the etymology of the word “snooker”
I have heard that the word "snooker" originally meant "beginner" and was coined at the time when the game was first invented.
Is there any truth in this theory?
etymology
asked Aug 8 '11 at 12:28
Urbycoz
8,86152108173
add a comment |
I have heard that the word "snooker" originally meant "beginner" and was coined at the time when the game was first invented.
Is there any truth in this theory?
etymology
asked Aug 8 '11 at 12:28
Urbycoz
8,86152108173
add a comment |
I have heard that the word "snooker" originally meant "beginner" and was coined at the time when the game was first invented.
Is there any truth in this theory?
etymology
asked Aug 8 '11 at 12:28
Urbycoz
8,86152108173
I have heard that the word "snooker" originally meant "beginner" and was coined at the time when the game was first invented.
Is there any truth in this theory?
etymology
etymology
asked Aug 8 '11 at 12:28
Urbycoz
8,86152108173
asked Aug 8 '11 at 12:28
Urbycoz
8,86152108173
asked Aug 8 '11 at 12:28
Urbycoz
8,86152108173
asked Aug 8 '11 at 12:28
Urbycoz
8,86152108173
asked Aug 8 '11 at 12:28
Urbycoz
8,86152108173
8,86152108173
add a comment |
add a comment |
3 Answers
3
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A check on OED
snooker
1889, the game and the word said to have been invented in
India by British officers as a diversion from billiards. The name is
perhaps an allusion (with reference to the rawness of play by a fellow
officer) to British slang snooker "newly joined cadet" (1872).
Tradition ascribes the coinage to Col. Sir Neville Chamberlain (not
the later prime minister of the same name), at the time subaltern in
the Devonshire Regiment in Jubbulpore.
and word origins
The most widely canvassed theory of the origins of the term snooker is
that it is an adaptation of late 19th-century army slang snooker ‘new
cadet’ (‘These embryo generals were called by the somewhat sneering
terms of “snookers” or “last-joined”,’ Routledge’s Every Boy’s Annual
1872)... The ancestry of snooker (to mean) ‘new cadet’, however, remains a mystery.
answered Aug 8 '11 at 12:49
JoseK
6,75394763
That's interesting. I wonder whether the army cadet meaning was related to cocking a snook meaning showing contempt. The Oxford dictionary says that the term snook in this sense is from the late 18th century but of unknown origin so the timing is consistent. The term could have referred either to the contempt in which old hands would hold cadets or, possibly more likely given many cadets' aristocratic origins, to the arrogance of the cadets themselves.
– BoldBen
Nov 6 '17 at 8:28
add a comment |
The online etymology dictionary suggests it derives from a slang term for "newly joined cadet"
http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=snooker
So, yes, that would seem to be true.
answered Aug 8 '11 at 12:48
SteveM
93574
add a comment |
“Snoo” for “new”; “ker” for “ca”. So “snooker” is a transliteration or slang for the words “new cadet”.
With reference to the term, “cocking a snook” meaning to show contempt, perhaps the word snooker in the game of that name refers to the contempt being showed to the player when placing him in a position in which he cannot strike a ball.
answered 12 hours ago
Jeremy Stone
1
New contributor
Jeremy Stone is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
add a comment |
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3 Answers
3
active
oldest
votes
3 Answers
3
active
oldest
votes
active
oldest
votes
active
oldest
votes
A check on OED
snooker
1889, the game and the word said to have been invented in
India by British officers as a diversion from billiards. The name is
perhaps an allusion (with reference to the rawness of play by a fellow
officer) to British slang snooker "newly joined cadet" (1872).
Tradition ascribes the coinage to Col. Sir Neville Chamberlain (not
the later prime minister of the same name), at the time subaltern in
the Devonshire Regiment in Jubbulpore.
and word origins
The most widely canvassed theory of the origins of the term snooker is
that it is an adaptation of late 19th-century army slang snooker ‘new
cadet’ (‘These embryo generals were called by the somewhat sneering
terms of “snookers” or “last-joined”,’ Routledge’s Every Boy’s Annual
1872)... The ancestry of snooker (to mean) ‘new cadet’, however, remains a mystery.
answered Aug 8 '11 at 12:49
JoseK
6,75394763
That's interesting. I wonder whether the army cadet meaning was related to cocking a snook meaning showing contempt. The Oxford dictionary says that the term snook in this sense is from the late 18th century but of unknown origin so the timing is consistent. The term could have referred either to the contempt in which old hands would hold cadets or, possibly more likely given many cadets' aristocratic origins, to the arrogance of the cadets themselves.
– BoldBen
Nov 6 '17 at 8:28
add a comment |
A check on OED
snooker
1889, the game and the word said to have been invented in
India by British officers as a diversion from billiards. The name is
perhaps an allusion (with reference to the rawness of play by a fellow
officer) to British slang snooker "newly joined cadet" (1872).
Tradition ascribes the coinage to Col. Sir Neville Chamberlain (not
the later prime minister of the same name), at the time subaltern in
the Devonshire Regiment in Jubbulpore.
and word origins
The most widely canvassed theory of the origins of the term snooker is
that it is an adaptation of late 19th-century army slang snooker ‘new
cadet’ (‘These embryo generals were called by the somewhat sneering
terms of “snookers” or “last-joined”,’ Routledge’s Every Boy’s Annual
1872)... The ancestry of snooker (to mean) ‘new cadet’, however, remains a mystery.
answered Aug 8 '11 at 12:49
JoseK
6,75394763
That's interesting. I wonder whether the army cadet meaning was related to cocking a snook meaning showing contempt. The Oxford dictionary says that the term snook in this sense is from the late 18th century but of unknown origin so the timing is consistent. The term could have referred either to the contempt in which old hands would hold cadets or, possibly more likely given many cadets' aristocratic origins, to the arrogance of the cadets themselves.
– BoldBen
Nov 6 '17 at 8:28
add a comment |
A check on OED
snooker
1889, the game and the word said to have been invented in
India by British officers as a diversion from billiards. The name is
perhaps an allusion (with reference to the rawness of play by a fellow
officer) to British slang snooker "newly joined cadet" (1872).
Tradition ascribes the coinage to Col. Sir Neville Chamberlain (not
the later prime minister of the same name), at the time subaltern in
the Devonshire Regiment in Jubbulpore.
and word origins
The most widely canvassed theory of the origins of the term snooker is
that it is an adaptation of late 19th-century army slang snooker ‘new
cadet’ (‘These embryo generals were called by the somewhat sneering
terms of “snookers” or “last-joined”,’ Routledge’s Every Boy’s Annual
1872)... The ancestry of snooker (to mean) ‘new cadet’, however, remains a mystery.
answered Aug 8 '11 at 12:49
JoseK
6,75394763
A check on OED
snooker
1889, the game and the word said to have been invented in
India by British officers as a diversion from billiards. The name is
perhaps an allusion (with reference to the rawness of play by a fellow
officer) to British slang snooker "newly joined cadet" (1872).
Tradition ascribes the coinage to Col. Sir Neville Chamberlain (not
the later prime minister of the same name), at the time subaltern in
the Devonshire Regiment in Jubbulpore.
and word origins
The most widely canvassed theory of the origins of the term snooker is
that it is an adaptation of late 19th-century army slang snooker ‘new
cadet’ (‘These embryo generals were called by the somewhat sneering
terms of “snookers” or “last-joined”,’ Routledge’s Every Boy’s Annual
1872)... The ancestry of snooker (to mean) ‘new cadet’, however, remains a mystery.
answered Aug 8 '11 at 12:49
JoseK
6,75394763
answered Aug 8 '11 at 12:49
JoseK
6,75394763
answered Aug 8 '11 at 12:49
JoseK
6,75394763
answered Aug 8 '11 at 12:49
JoseK
6,75394763
6,75394763
That's interesting. I wonder whether the army cadet meaning was related to cocking a snook meaning showing contempt. The Oxford dictionary says that the term snook in this sense is from the late 18th century but of unknown origin so the timing is consistent. The term could have referred either to the contempt in which old hands would hold cadets or, possibly more likely given many cadets' aristocratic origins, to the arrogance of the cadets themselves.
– BoldBen
Nov 6 '17 at 8:28
add a comment |
That's interesting. I wonder whether the army cadet meaning was related to cocking a snook meaning showing contempt. The Oxford dictionary says that the term snook in this sense is from the late 18th century but of unknown origin so the timing is consistent. The term could have referred either to the contempt in which old hands would hold cadets or, possibly more likely given many cadets' aristocratic origins, to the arrogance of the cadets themselves.
– BoldBen
Nov 6 '17 at 8:28
That's interesting. I wonder whether the army cadet meaning was related to cocking a snook meaning showing contempt. The Oxford dictionary says that the term snook in this sense is from the late 18th century but of unknown origin so the timing is consistent. The term could have referred either to the contempt in which old hands would hold cadets or, possibly more likely given many cadets' aristocratic origins, to the arrogance of the cadets themselves.
– BoldBen
Nov 6 '17 at 8:28
That's interesting. I wonder whether the army cadet meaning was related to cocking a snook meaning showing contempt. The Oxford dictionary says that the term snook in this sense is from the late 18th century but of unknown origin so the timing is consistent. The term could have referred either to the contempt in which old hands would hold cadets or, possibly more likely given many cadets' aristocratic origins, to the arrogance of the cadets themselves.
– BoldBen
Nov 6 '17 at 8:28
add a comment |
The online etymology dictionary suggests it derives from a slang term for "newly joined cadet"
http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=snooker
So, yes, that would seem to be true.
answered Aug 8 '11 at 12:48
SteveM
93574
add a comment |
The online etymology dictionary suggests it derives from a slang term for "newly joined cadet"
http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=snooker
So, yes, that would seem to be true.
answered Aug 8 '11 at 12:48
SteveM
93574
add a comment |
The online etymology dictionary suggests it derives from a slang term for "newly joined cadet"
http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=snooker
So, yes, that would seem to be true.
answered Aug 8 '11 at 12:48
SteveM
93574
The online etymology dictionary suggests it derives from a slang term for "newly joined cadet"
http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=snooker
So, yes, that would seem to be true.
answered Aug 8 '11 at 12:48
SteveM
93574
answered Aug 8 '11 at 12:48
SteveM
93574
answered Aug 8 '11 at 12:48
SteveM
93574
answered Aug 8 '11 at 12:48
SteveM
93574
93574
add a comment |
add a comment |
“Snoo” for “new”; “ker” for “ca”. So “snooker” is a transliteration or slang for the words “new cadet”.
With reference to the term, “cocking a snook” meaning to show contempt, perhaps the word snooker in the game of that name refers to the contempt being showed to the player when placing him in a position in which he cannot strike a ball.
answered 12 hours ago
Jeremy Stone
1
New contributor
Jeremy Stone is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
add a comment |
“Snoo” for “new”; “ker” for “ca”. So “snooker” is a transliteration or slang for the words “new cadet”.
With reference to the term, “cocking a snook” meaning to show contempt, perhaps the word snooker in the game of that name refers to the contempt being showed to the player when placing him in a position in which he cannot strike a ball.
answered 12 hours ago
Jeremy Stone
1
New contributor
Jeremy Stone is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
add a comment |
“Snoo” for “new”; “ker” for “ca”. So “snooker” is a transliteration or slang for the words “new cadet”.
With reference to the term, “cocking a snook” meaning to show contempt, perhaps the word snooker in the game of that name refers to the contempt being showed to the player when placing him in a position in which he cannot strike a ball.
answered 12 hours ago
Jeremy Stone
1
New contributor
Jeremy Stone is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
“Snoo” for “new”; “ker” for “ca”. So “snooker” is a transliteration or slang for the words “new cadet”.
With reference to the term, “cocking a snook” meaning to show contempt, perhaps the word snooker in the game of that name refers to the contempt being showed to the player when placing him in a position in which he cannot strike a ball.
answered 12 hours ago
Jeremy Stone
1
New contributor
Jeremy Stone is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
answered 12 hours ago
Jeremy Stone
1
New contributor
Jeremy Stone is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
answered 12 hours ago
Jeremy Stone
1
answered 12 hours ago
Jeremy Stone
1
1
New contributor
Jeremy Stone is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
New contributor
Jeremy Stone is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
Jeremy Stone is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
add a comment |
add a comment |
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