Thursday, June 21, 2007
Jug-Eared
In English, if we say that someone is jug-eared, we mean that he has prominent ears, like the handles of a jug. So, too, jug handles are slang for big ears.
In ancient Greek, words for ear (οὖς, ὠτάριον, ὠτίον) all have the secondary meaning "handle of a jug." See also δίωτος (two-eared) of a two-handled jug.
I can't find anything similar in Latin, although Horace borrows diota from δίωτος.
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In ancient Greek, words for ear (οὖς, ὠτάριον, ὠτίον) all have the secondary meaning "handle of a jug." See also δίωτος (two-eared) of a two-handled jug.
I can't find anything similar in Latin, although Horace borrows diota from δίωτος.
