Date:    Thu, 23 Apr 1998 16:19:51 -0400
<br>From:    Jesse T Sheidlower <jester[AT SYMBOL GOES HERE]PANIX.COM>
<br>Subject: wailing was:Re: P.S. on banshees
<br>
<br>Andrea Vine wrote:
<br>
<br>> Hmm, I tend to associate that with "whaling" rather than "wailing", though I
<br>> truly don't know the origin.  Does anyone know the origins of that "teen
<br> slang"?
<br>
<br>There are two unrelated words which have fallen together, _whale_
<br>meaning 'to thrash soundly' (often, confusingly, spelled _wail_),
<br>used figuratively in a variety of positive senses, and _wail_ in
<br>its familiar sense, used by jazz musicians to mean 'to perform in
<br>an exciting or satisfying way', and also used figuratively in a
<br>variety of positive senses. Once you get past the jazz period,
<br>it's not possible to tell what comes from where.
<br>
<br>Jesse Sheidlower
<br>Random House Reference
<br><jester[AT SYMBOL GOES HERE]panix.com>
<br>