Honey (hun' ē), n. [ME hony, OE hunig; c. D, G honig, Icel hunang; akin to Gk knēkós pale yellow, tawny]1. A sweet, viscid fluid produced by bees from the nectar collected from flowers.
2. Something sweet, delicious, or delightful.
3. (often cap.) Used as a term of endearment for a loved one. “Honey, did you pay the school tax bill?”
4. (in a sarcastic tone) A signifier of disapproval, typically with a drawn-out second syllable. “Hon-eee. I’m still waiting!”
5. A request for silence. Intoned with a firm, percussive first syllable. “HUN-ee!”
6. A pre-admission of wrongdoing, simultaneously announcing one’s presence after one has failed to do whatever it was that one was sent out to do in the first place. Second syllable rises with a nauseating glissando. “Hon - eeeeeee?”
7. A sickening display of obsequiousness, usually after a prolonged and bitter argument, spoken with a vocal tremble. “Honnn ... eeee.”
8. As above, but with a seductive fillip on the final vowel, suggesting that sex could be at hand if you’d only calm the hell down. “Honnn ... eee-ye.
9. A term of satisfaction, murmured in almost a monotone, implying that all is forgiven for now, but you’d better remain on your guard, forestalling a future fracas with – what else? – sweet nothings.
1 comment:
I love these distinctions honey. -- Susan
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