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Thread: Etymology of "moreish"

  1. #1
    Elephant Feirefiz's avatar
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    Default Etymology of "moreish"

    Recently was the first time that I came across the word moreish, as in "This crack is really moreish."

    After seeing explanations of the meaning but not the etymology my first assumption was that it was derived from latin mos (pl. mores) meaning something like habit or custom among other things.

    Now I see that according to some people on the web it is derived from English more, as in "You want more of it." That surprised me, especially because I have seen it described as a quaint expression. Then again that was also just some random internet guy.

    Now I ask you native speakers: What's the stra... correct etymology?

  2. #2
    The Apostabulous Inner Stickler's avatar
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    I'm not familiar with the word. I want to break it down as more+ish. That's a construction I know and have used a lot to create ad hoc adjectives when I can't think of the appropriate one. Moreish doesn't make sense to me in that context, though. Do you have more examples of it being used?
    I don't think so, therefore I'm probably not.

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    Stegodon
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    There is "more" (MO-ray) as in "social more" which is a Latin thing referring to customs, or habits of a larger society.

    And then there is "more" which simply means "additional."

    I've never heard "moreish" in the US, sounds like British English slang to me. "The quality of a food item that makes you want more." If that's the context you heard it in (and by all accounts, crack certainly has a moreish quality about it) then it's derived from "more," meaning "increased."
    Last edited by Inigo Montoya; 07 Jan 2010 at 05:50 PM.
    "It's Quite Cool." -Gandalf

  4. #4
    Elephant Feirefiz's avatar
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    I first encountered it in that sentence. It's a quote from the British series Peep Show. In context it makes a bit more sense.

    ETA: Here is the clip in question.

    The British National Corpus has the following examples that aren't all that helpful:
    BMC 3121 Fascinating and definitely moreish.

    BPF 204 Try it neat or with ice, you'll find its languorous and intense taste very moreish.

    KCP 6932 Trouble is they're moreish.

    KD2 2490 They're quite er moreish .

    KPV 2382 and it's just so moreish, isn't it?

    (http://sara.natcorp.ox.ac.uk/cgi-bin...sh&mysubmit=Go )
    Wikitionary
    WordWebOnline

    The more I google the more support for the "more" version I find. I guess the first explanation I read that said it was a quaint expression for "habit-forming" or "mildly addictive" without any reference to "more" just got me on the wrong track and I overlooked the simplest explanation.
    Last edited by Feirefiz; 07 Jan 2010 at 06:04 PM.

  5. #5
    Administrator CatInASuit's avatar
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    It's british slang with multiple meanings

    Moreish means you just want to have a bit more, and then a bit more, and then a bit more. Usually until it is gone.

    Threeish usually means about 3pm in the afternoon possibly a bit before, maybe a bit after.

    But everything is better when it's ish
    In the land of the blind, the one-arm man is king.

  6. #6
    Oliphaunt The Original An Gadaí's avatar
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    That line in Peep Show is fucking hilarious. We quote it ad nauseum. I've heard that term in British food ads. It's understood here but not commonly used.

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