A is for Applesauce

I don’t like to curse. I do. But I don’t like it at all so I try my hardest not to. Back when I taught I made a point, despite all of the cussing from the students around me, despite being inundated with the Big Bad Seven curses near daily, to not use curse words.

                              

But I knew, even back then, that it isn’t the word itself that is bad, it is the connotation – the meaning that we give the word when we use it – that matters. That’s why, when going to a foreign country, one has to really think about their words before they use them.

I use the phrase “Boogersnot and Applesauce” all the time. Granted, I mean it as a curse. When asked by my students why I would say this, I told them elusively, that the meaning behind a word is just as important as the definition. And when they stared at me blankly, I would tell them to go look up “connotation” in their notes. Those that did would reward me with a sly smile and a nod.

Words are that powerful.

Today’s slang term is actually one I used a lot even though I didn’t know it was slang:

Applesauce, an interjection from the 1920s meaning “nonsense.”

As in: “Arlee Bird! Are you announcing that an angry armada of aardvarks attacked your abode and averted you from accomplishing the arithmetic assignment?  Applesauce!”

As an aside, an ample acknowledgement of appreciation to the architect of April's A to Z adventure, Arlee Bird!

This post has been brought to you by the Letter A and the fine folks at Blogging A to Z. And by the number 19. Check out more A to Z blogs here!