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Conference thebay::joyoflex

Title:The Joy of Lex
Notice:A Notes File even your grammar could love
Moderator:THEBAY::SYSTEM
Created:Fri Feb 28 1986
Last Modified:Mon Jun 02 1997
Last Successful Update:Fri Jun 06 1997
Number of topics:1192
Total number of notes:42769

181.0. "A burning question..." by ENGINE::MCKINLEY () Tue May 06 1986 11:05

flammable -   Capable of igniting easily and burning rapidly.
inflammable - Tending to ignite easily, flammable.

What if something doesn't burn?  Ininflammable?  Unflammable?

---Phil
T.RTitleUserPersonal
Name
DateLines
181.1ERIS::CALLASJon CallasTue May 06 1986 12:093
    Non-flammable.

    	Jon
181.2Fire-resistantFURILO::BLINNDr. Tom @MROTue May 06 1986 15:560
181.3One word, not one and a half?EUCLID::MCKINLEYTue May 06 1986 17:435
RE: non-flammable,  fire-resistant

Got any non-hy-phen-ated solutions?

---Phil
181.4A fewLYMPH::LAMBERTSam LambertTue May 06 1986 18:0812
incombustable
unburnable
uninflammible
asbestic
amiantine

These are just the non-hyphenated entries from Roget's.
(They also list "non-inflammible"...)  

-- Sam

181.5wet 8-)STAR::OBERLINWed May 07 1986 09:490
181.6SUMMIT::NOBLEWed May 07 1986 10:486
    re; 181.5
    
    It could be wet with a flamible liquid-- gasoline, lighter fluid,
    etc.
    
    
181.7** FIREPROOF **TOPDOC::SLOANEWed May 07 1986 14:361
    
181.8water-cooled reactor ;-)NY1MM::BONNELLJersey GirlWed May 07 1986 17:050
181.9In JOYOFLEX, yet!FURILO::BLINNDr. Tom @MROWed May 07 1986 19:016
.6>    It could be wet with a flamible liquid-- gasoline, lighter fluid,
.6>    etc.
        
        Yes, and it could be wet with a flammable liquid, too.
        
        Tom :^)
181.10ERIS::CALLASJon CallasThu May 08 1986 11:437
    re .9
    
    I should think that in this conference we'd be concerned with the
    loftier issues of language and thus could tolerate the occasional typo
    without wasting disk space to point it out. 

    	Jon
181.11Let this be a lesson to you...SUMMIT::NOBLEThu May 08 1986 14:3911
    re: .6 & .9
    
    Don't try to wordsmith a note when you are also on the phone.
    
    re: .10
    
    I appreciate your forgiveness,  and will pay more attention next
    time.
    
    - chuck
    
181.12Occasional flamer respondsFURILO::BLINNDr. Tom @MROFri May 09 1986 20:057
        re .10
    
        I should think that in this conference we'd be concerned with the
        loftier issues of language and thus could tolerate the occasional
        flame without wasting disk space to point it out. 
        
        Tom
181.13Apologies are in order, thenERIS::CALLASJon CallasSun May 11 1986 15:3115
    I didn't recognize your message as a flame; I thought it was merely
    didactic nit-picking. I find flames amusing. Had you written something
    along the lines of:
    
        Soandso, you ignorant slut! Who did you have to sleep with to
        get write access to this conference? Why, if a thousand monkeys
        were set in front of a thousand terminals, they would have
        produced an equivalent missive with fewer mistakes in less
        time than it takes to make tea.
        
    then there would have been no mistaking it. I guess there wasn't enough
    caffeine flowing through the flame-recognition parts of my brain. 
    
    	Mea culpa,
    	Jon
181.14Flames?!? Here? You flammable fools!PABLO::LEVANSusan E. LeVanWed Aug 06 1986 14:282
Obviously this note is _not_ incombustable, unburnable, uninflammible, asbestic,
amiantine, fireproof or non-inflammible.
181.15Can anyone define the rule for this?NOGOV::GOODENOUGHJeff Goodenough, IPG Reading-UKFri Aug 22 1986 08:291
    Re: .14  That's incombustIble, and uninflammAble.
181.16rule(s)REGENT::MERRILLWin one for the Glypher.Fri Aug 29 1986 17:4413
    
    Unuh, that which will not burn is "non-flammable"; that which 
    	burns easily is "inflammable" from the Latin `to flame'. That
    which CAN catch fire is "combustible".  
    
    If you wanted rigorous usage I suppose there would be four levels
    incombustible - you cannot burn this stuff;
    non-flammable - will not burn all by itself;
    combustible - makes a nice fire;
    inflammable - that sucker will explode!
    
    	RMM
    
181.17TKOV52::DIAMONDThu Feb 15 1990 12:533
    Well, since no one else pointed it out...
    
    In French, the opposite of "inflammible" is indeed "ininflammable".