From Newsgroup: alt.usage.english

"Can you imagine seeing the words 'shame lips' on your medical notes?
The term, which can also be translated as 'pubic lips', is the Dutch
word for a women's body part. But, for some, it's just one of countless examples that are outdated and loaded with stigma.

"Last month, leading Dutch dictionary Dikke van Dale said it would
include a new term for the labia, 'vulvalippen' - in its upcoming online addition - alongside the traditional term 'schaamlippen'" - <https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cn4klprmr0go>

"Other Dutch words, relevant to both men and women, could carry similar connotations - from 'schaamhaar' (pubic or shame hair) or 'schaambeen'
(pubic or shame bone) to even 'schaamluis' for pubic lice."

--- Synchronet 3.22a-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: alt.usage.english

Op 24/09/2026 om 11:03 schreef Hibou:

"Can you imagine seeing the words 'shame lips' on your medical notes?
The term, which can also be translated as 'pubic lips', is the Dutch
word for a women's body part. But, for some, it's just one of
countless examples that are outdated and loaded with stigma.

"Last month, leading Dutch dictionary Dikke van Dale said it would
include a new term for the labia, 'vulvalippen' - in its upcoming
online addition - alongside the traditional term 'schaamlippen'" - <https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cn4klprmr0go>

"Other Dutch words, relevant to both men and women, could carry
similar connotations - from 'schaamhaar' (pubic or shame hair) or 'schaambeen' (pubic or shame bone) to even 'schaamluis' for pubic lice."

All sound and seasoned Dutch words. BTW pubic=shame-.
I feel 'plaatsvervangende schaamte' (vicarious shame?) for the Dikke.
They can add the word 'Wokeschaamte' too.
--
guido wugi
--- Synchronet 3.22a-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: alt.usage.english


Ar an ceathr|| l|i is fiche de m|! M|-an F||mhair, scr|!obh guido wugi:

Op 24/09/2026 om 11:03 schreef Hibou:

"Can you imagine seeing the words 'shame lips' on your medical notes? The term, which can also be translated as 'pubic lips', is the Dutch word for a women's body part. But, for some, it's just one of countless examples that are outdated and loaded with stigma.

"Last month, leading Dutch dictionary Dikke van Dale said it would include a new term for the labia, 'vulvalippen' - in its upcoming online addition - alongside the traditional term 'schaamlippen'" - <https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cn4klprmr0go>

"Other Dutch words, relevant to both men and women, could carry similar connotations - from 'schaamhaar' (pubic or shame hair) or 'schaambeen' (pubic or shame bone) to even 'schaamluis' for pubic lice."

All sound and seasoned Dutch words. BTW pubic=shame-.

No; pubic = related to maturity, confer puberty.

Pudendum had the shame meaning but is a very dry word in English. The German and Dutch is likely a calque of labia (majora) pudendi.

I feel 'plaatsvervangende schaamte' (vicarious shame?) for the Dikke.
They can add the word 'Wokeschaamte' too.

Vicarious shame is well-phrased.
--
rCyAs I sat looking up at the Guinness ad, I could never figure out /
How your man stayed up on the surfboard after fourteen pints of stoutrCO
(C. Moore)
--- Synchronet 3.22a-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: alt.usage.english

Hibou <vpaereru-unmonitored@yahoo.com.invalid> wrote:

"Can you imagine seeing the words 'shame lips' on your medical notes?
The term, which can also be translated as 'pubic lips', is the Dutch
word for a women's body part. But, for some, it's just one of countless examples that are outdated and loaded with stigma.

More generally, part of the 'schaamstreek'
The best English translation is 'crotch'.
It is not female omly. Men have a 'schaamstreek' too.
It is roughly the part covered by underpants.

"Last month, leading Dutch dictionary Dikke van Dale said it would
include a new term for the labia, 'vulvalippen' - in its upcoming online addition - alongside the traditional term 'schaamlippen'" - <https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cn4klprmr0go>

Van Dale pretends to sample existing usage, not to make new language.

"Other Dutch words, relevant to both men and women, could carry similar connotations - from 'schaamhaar' (pubic or shame hair) or 'schaambeen'
(pubic or shame bone) to even 'schaamluis' for pubic lice."

Dozens of others, it has been part of the language for centuries.
Bible translators, Adam and Eve and all that,

Jan


--- Synchronet 3.22a-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: alt.usage.english

Den 24.09.2026 kl. 11.03 skrev Hibou:

"Can you imagine seeing the words 'shame lips' on your medical notes?

Easily. That's what they were called in Denmark before. A search
suggests that "skaml|aber" is out and "k|+nsl|aber" (sexlips) is the
present word. That change will affect also the hair and the bones.

(pubic or shame bone) to even 'schaamluis' for pubic lice."

"Skamlus" has never been a Danish word. We call them "fladlus"
(flat-lice"). What's the English word? Frank Zappa has someone say
"Cooties? No cooties on me!". Is that the word?
--
Bertel, Kolt, Danmark

--- Synchronet 3.22a-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: alt.usage.english

On 24/09/2026 11:03, Hibou wrote:

"Can you imagine seeing the words 'shame lips' on your medical notes?

Only if the doctor hates me. Sounds like a euphemism for "what a cunt!"

Dr. Phil Hammond, a British medical doctor and a stand up comedian once revealed that doctors would annotate medical notes with cryptic three
letter abbreviations. These described the patient in crude terms but
which only fellow doctors could decipher.






--- Synchronet 3.22a-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: alt.usage.english


Ar an ceathr|| l|i is fiche de m|! M|-an F||mhair, scr|!obh occam:

On 24/09/2026 11:03, Hibou wrote:

"Can you imagine seeing the words 'shame lips' on your medical notes?

Only if the doctor hates me. Sounds like a euphemism for "what a cunt!"

Dr. Phil Hammond, a British medical doctor and a stand up comedian once revealed that doctors would annotate medical notes with cryptic three
letter abbreviations. These described the patient in crude terms but
which only fellow doctors could decipher.

Forbidden these days.

One technique that persists (though not everyone uses it) is to describe a patient with rCLthis pleasant 94 year old gentlemanrCY as a personal default and
omit the rCLpleasantrCY if the patient is, well, unpleasant, as an aide-memoire for
future review.
--
rCyAs I sat looking up at the Guinness ad, I could never figure out /
How your man stayed up on the surfboard after fourteen pints of stoutrCO
(C. Moore)
--- Synchronet 3.22a-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: alt.usage.english

Op 24/09/2026 om 12:08 schreef Aidan Kehoe:

Ar an ceathr|| l|i is fiche de m|! M|-an F||mhair, scr|!obh guido wugi:

> Op 24/09/2026 om 11:03 schreef Hibou:

> > "Can you imagine seeing the words 'shame lips' on your medical notes? The
> > term, which can also be translated as 'pubic lips', is the Dutch word for
> > a women's body part. But, for some, it's just one of countless examples
> > that are outdated and loaded with stigma.
> >
> > "Last month, leading Dutch dictionary Dikke van Dale said it would include
> > a new term for the labia, 'vulvalippen' - in its upcoming online addition
> > - alongside the traditional term 'schaamlippen'" -
> > <https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cn4klprmr0go>
> >
> > "Other Dutch words, relevant to both men and women, could carry similar
> > connotations - from 'schaamhaar' (pubic or shame hair) or 'schaambeen'
> > (pubic or shame bone) to even 'schaamluis' for pubic lice."
>
> All sound and seasoned Dutch words. BTW pubic=shame-.

No; pubic = related to maturity, confer puberty.

Ah yes, with uncertain origin but possibly cognate of puber, puerile,
pupil, puppet, and via paedo-: few, foal, paucity, poverty, ...

Pudendum had the shame meaning but is a very dry word in English. The German and Dutch is likely a calque of labia (majora) pudendi.

Yes, with OE translation "scamlim", shame-limb, dixit etymonline.
Also uncertain etymo, perhaps ~speed but doubtful. Well, in Spanish I
hear sometimes expressions like "Me da apuro" conveying a sensation of
shame.

> I feel 'plaatsvervangende schaamte' (vicarious shame?) for the Dikke.
> They can add the word 'Wokeschaamte' too.

Vicarious shame is well-phrased.

Thanks. We have also "tenenkrommend", toes-bending (embarrassment).
--
guido wugi
--- Synchronet 3.22a-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: alt.usage.english

Le 24/09/2026 |a 14:57, guido wugi a |-crit :

Op 24/09/2026 om 12:08 schreef Aidan Kehoe:

Vicarious shame is well-phrased.

Thanks. We have also "tenenkrommend", toes-bending (embarrassment).

I wonder if that's a borrowing from English. We have 'toe-curling'rCa

<https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/toe-curling>

rCa which goes back to about 1979 (the examples from ~1900 appear to be medical)rCa

<https://books.google.com/ngrams/graph?content=toe-curling&year_start=1880&year_end=2022&corpus=en&smoothing=3&case_insensitive=false>

rCa while the earliest example of 'tenenkrommend' in Google Books is from
1987 (Kuitenbrouwer, 'Turbo-taal: van socio-babble tot yuppie-speak'.

--- Synchronet 3.22a-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: alt.usage.english

Le 24/09/2026 |a 10:31, guido wugi a |-crit :

Op 24/09/2026 om 11:03 schreef Hibou:

"Can you imagine seeing the words 'shame lips' on your medical notes?
The term, which can also be translated as 'pubic lips', is the Dutch
word for a women's body part. But, for some, it's just one of
countless examples that are outdated and loaded with stigma.

"Last month, leading Dutch dictionary Dikke van Dale said it would
include a new term for the labia, 'vulvalippen' - in its upcoming
online addition - alongside the traditional term 'schaamlippen'" -
<https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cn4klprmr0go>

"Other Dutch words, relevant to both men and women, could carry
similar connotations - from 'schaamhaar' (pubic or shame hair) or
'schaambeen' (pubic or shame bone) to even 'schaamluis' for pubic lice."

All sound and seasoned Dutch words. [...]

I'm having trouble accepting that as a valid argument. After all, would
we agree that 'nigger' is all right because it's a /sound and seasoned
English word/? It's a stronger word, certainly, but the argument is the
same I think.

--- Synchronet 3.22a-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: alt.usage.english

Den 25.09.2026 kl. 09.33 skrev Hibou:

Thanks. We have also "tenenkrommend", toes-bending (embarrassment).

I wonder if that's a borrowing from English. We have 'toe-curling'rCa

I don't think it needs to be imported. "T|Nkrummende" is older than the English influence on Danish. I think that it's a natural reaction to wiggle/curl your toes if you need a bodily reaction but don't want
others to be aware. I do it when I'm not comfortable in large groups.
--
Bertel, Kolt, Danmark

--- Synchronet 3.22a-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: alt.usage.english

Den 24.09.2026 kl. 15.28 skrev Aidan Kehoe:

One technique that persists (though not everyone uses it) is to describe a patient with rCLthis pleasant 94 year old gentlemanrCY as a personal default and
omit the rCLpleasantrCY if the patient is, well, unpleasant, as an aide-memoire for
future review.

Whwen I was a teacher we sometimes had to give a recommendation to the
pupils. The requirement was that negative word must'nt be used. The
people receiving our notes, knew how to dechiffer the statements.
--
Bertel, Kolt, Danmark

--- Synchronet 3.22a-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: alt.usage.english

Le 25/09/2026 |a 09:20, Bertel Lund Hansen a |-crit :

Den 25.09.2026 kl. 09.33 skrev Hibou:
[...]

Thanks. We have also "tenenkrommend", toes-bending (embarrassment).

I wonder if that's a borrowing from English. We have 'toe-curling'rCa

I don't think it needs to be imported. "T|Nkrummende" is older than the English influence on Danish.

The earliest example in Google Books is from 1987, as in Flemish. Do you
have one that predates it?

I think that it's a natural reaction to
wiggle/curl your toes if you need a bodily reaction but don't want
others to be aware. I do it when I'm not comfortable in large groups.

Well, yes - but when did we coin a specific term for it? Toes curled,
but when did we start saying 'toe-curling'?

--- Synchronet 3.22a-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: alt.usage.english

Op 25/09/2026 om 9:40 schreef Hibou:

Le 24/09/2026 |a 10:31, guido wugi a |-crit :

Op 24/09/2026 om 11:03 schreef Hibou:

"Can you imagine seeing the words 'shame lips' on your medical
notes? The term, which can also be translated as 'pubic lips', is
the Dutch word for a women's body part. But, for some, it's just one
of countless examples that are outdated and loaded with stigma.

"Last month, leading Dutch dictionary Dikke van Dale said it would
include a new term for the labia, 'vulvalippen' - in its upcoming
online addition - alongside the traditional term 'schaamlippen'" -
<https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cn4klprmr0go>

"Other Dutch words, relevant to both men and women, could carry
similar connotations - from 'schaamhaar' (pubic or shame hair) or
'schaambeen' (pubic or shame bone) to even 'schaamluis' for pubic
lice."

All sound and seasoned Dutch words. [...]

I'm having trouble accepting that as a valid argument. After all,
would we agree that 'nigger' is all right because it's a /sound and
seasoned English word/? It's a stronger word, certainly, but the
argument is the same I think.

Nothing like that here. It's neutral vocabulary, used in educational
parlance as well.
https://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schaamstreek https://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schaamhaar https://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schaambeen https://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Venusheuvel also schaamheuvel though
forgotten there.
--
guido wugi
--- Synchronet 3.22a-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: alt.usage.english

Op 25/09/2026 om 11:06 schreef guido wugi:

Op 25/09/2026 om 9:40 schreef Hibou:

Le 24/09/2026 |a 10:31, guido wugi a |-crit :

Op 24/09/2026 om 11:03 schreef Hibou:

"Can you imagine seeing the words 'shame lips' on your medical
notes? The term, which can also be translated as 'pubic lips', is
the Dutch word for a women's body part. But, for some, it's just
one of countless examples that are outdated and loaded with stigma.

"Last month, leading Dutch dictionary Dikke van Dale said it would
include a new term for the labia, 'vulvalippen' - in its upcoming
online addition - alongside the traditional term 'schaamlippen'" -
<https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cn4klprmr0go>

"Other Dutch words, relevant to both men and women, could carry
similar connotations - from 'schaamhaar' (pubic or shame hair) or
'schaambeen' (pubic or shame bone) to even 'schaamluis' for pubic
lice."

All sound and seasoned Dutch words. [...]

I'm having trouble accepting that as a valid argument. After all,
would we agree that 'nigger' is all right because it's a /sound and
seasoned English word/? It's a stronger word, certainly, but the
argument is the same I think.

Nothing like that here. It's neutral vocabulary, used in educational parlance as well.
https://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schaamstreek https://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schaamhaar https://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schaambeen https://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Venusheuvel also schaamheuvel though
forgotten there.

I forgot the trigger ;-)
https://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schaamlippen
--
guido wugi
--- Synchronet 3.22a-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: alt.usage.english

Op 25/09/2026 om 11:12 schreef guido wugi:

I forgot the trigger ;-)
https://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schaamlippen

(A pun of mine:
Zij schaamde zich over haar lippen.)
--
guido wugi
--- Synchronet 3.22a-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: alt.usage.english

On 25/09/26 18:20, Bertel Lund Hansen wrote:

Den 25.09.2026 kl. 09.33 skrev Hibou:

Thanks. We have also "tenenkrommend", toes-bending
(embarrassment).

I wonder if that's a borrowing from English. We have
'toe-curling'rCa

I don't think it needs to be imported. "T|Nkrummende" is older than
the English influence on Danish. I think that it's a natural reaction
to wiggle/curl your toes if you need a bodily reaction but don't want
others to be aware. I do it when I'm not comfortable in large
groups.

A more extreme form of toe-curling is well-known to those who suffer
from foot cramps, and it's very painful. I would expect multiple
languages to have had a name for this for centuries.
--
Peter Moylan peter@pmoylan.org http://www.pmoylan.org
Newcastle, NSW
--- Synchronet 3.22a-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: alt.usage.english

On 25/09/2026 09:32, Hibou wrote:

Le 25/09/2026 |a 09:20, Bertel Lund Hansen a |-crit :

Den 25.09.2026 kl. 09.33 skrev Hibou:
[...]

Thanks. We have also "tenenkrommend", toes-bending (embarrassment).

I wonder if that's a borrowing from English. We have 'toe-curling'rCa

I don't think it needs to be imported. "T|Nkrummende" is older than the
English influence on Danish.

The earliest example in Google Books is from 1987, as in Flemish. Do you have one that predates it?

I think that it's a natural reaction to wiggle/curl your toes if you
need a bodily reaction but don't want others to be aware. I do it when
I'm not comfortable in large groups.

Well, yes - but when did we coin a specific term for it? Toes curled,
but when did we start saying 'toe-curling'?

Not to be confused with "lip curling" which implies a very different
emotion.

Toe-curling seems analogous to "buttock-clenching".

Other body parts are available - eyes narrowing, brow furrowing, ears burning...
--
Sam Plusnet
--- Synchronet 3.22a-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: alt.usage.english

On Fri, 25 Sep 2026 08:33:52 +0100, Hibou <vpaereru-unmonitored@yahoo.com.invalid> wrote:

Le 24/09/2026 |a 14:57, guido wugi a |-crit :

Op 24/09/2026 om 12:08 schreef Aidan Kehoe:

Vicarious shame is well-phrased.

Thanks. We have also "tenenkrommend", toes-bending (embarrassment).

I wonder if that's a borrowing from English. We have 'toe-curling'rCa

<https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/toe-curling>

rCa which goes back to about 1979 (the examples from ~1900 appear to be >medical)rCa

What I seem to remember from perhaps that far back (1979) was that
curled toes is used in erotic drawings from China. Or maybe it was
pictures accompanying the Kama Sutra.

Google gets me some association assumed between toe curling and
orgasm, but I didn't see any confirmation of it being a signal used
in the art.

<https://books.google.com/ngrams/graph?content=toe-curling&year_start=1880&year_end=2022&corpus=en&smoothing=3&case_insensitive=false>

rCa while the earliest example of 'tenenkrommend' in Google Books is from >1987 (Kuitenbrouwer, 'Turbo-taal: van socio-babble tot yuppie-speak'.

--
Rich Ulrich
--- Synchronet 3.22a-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: alt.usage.english

guido wugi <wugi@brol.invalid> writes:

Op 25/09/2026 om 11:06 schreef guido wugi:

Op 25/09/2026 om 9:40 schreef Hibou:

Le 24/09/2026 |a 10:31, guido wugi a |-crit :

Op 24/09/2026 om 11:03 schreef Hibou:

"Can you imagine seeing the words 'shame lips' on your medical
notes? The term, which can also be translated as 'pubic lips', is
the Dutch word for a women's body part. But, for some, it's just
one of countless examples that are outdated and loaded with
stigma.

"Last month, leading Dutch dictionary Dikke van Dale said it
would include a new term for the labia, 'vulvalippen' - in its
upcoming online addition - alongside the traditional term
'schaamlippen'" -
<https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cn4klprmr0go>

"Other Dutch words, relevant to both men and women, could carry
similar connotations - from 'schaamhaar' (pubic or shame hair) or
'schaambeen' (pubic or shame bone) to even 'schaamluis' for pubic
lice."

All sound and seasoned Dutch words. [...]

I'm having trouble accepting that as a valid argument. After all,
would we agree that 'nigger' is all right because it's a /sound and
seasoned English word/? It's a stronger word, certainly, but the
argument is the same I think.

Nothing like that here. It's neutral vocabulary, used in educational
parlance as well.
https://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schaamstreek
https://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schaamhaar
https://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schaambeen
https://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Venusheuvel also schaamheuvel though
forgotten there.

I forgot the trigger ;-)
https://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schaamlippen

On the other hand, I can't think of a good ordinary English term for
this. American vernacular is "pussy lips", but that is both slang and offensive to polite company. "Labia" is medicalese, and kind of silly
because it should apply just as well to those lips around the pie hole.
I guess "labia minora" and "labia majora" are unambiguous, but
overspecific medicalese terms. "Nether lips" sounds too poetic and obfuscatory, not the sort of vocabulary one would use for explanations
to a child.

I think many would just say "vagina", particularly with children, but
that is just wrong.
--

--- Synchronet 3.22a-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: alt.usage.english

Op 25/09/2026 om 20:40 schreef Sam Plusnet:

On 25/09/2026 09:32, Hibou wrote:

Le 25/09/2026 |a 09:20, Bertel Lund Hansen a |-crit :

Den 25.09.2026 kl. 09.33 skrev Hibou:
[...]

Thanks. We have also "tenenkrommend", toes-bending (embarrassment).

I wonder if that's a borrowing from English. We have 'toe-curling'rCa

I don't think it needs to be imported. "T|Nkrummende" is older than
the English influence on Danish.

The earliest example in Google Books is from 1987, as in Flemish. Do
you have one that predates it?

I think that it's a natural reaction to wiggle/curl your toes if you
need a bodily reaction but don't want others to be aware. I do it
when I'm not comfortable in large groups.

Well, yes - but when did we coin a specific term for it? Toes curled,
but when did we start saying 'toe-curling'?

Not to be confused with "lip curling" which implies a very different emotion.

Toe-curling seems analogous to "buttock-clenching".

Other body parts are available - eyes narrowing, brow furrowing, ears burning...

I quite like the verb 'wince', it's figuratively expressive, a bit of shrinking back, of eyeblinking, of shuddering...
I have no proper translation, in other languages available to me
(including my own), conveying the same "picture". My dico uses
periphrasis and verbs limited to one aspect...
--
guido wugi
--- Synchronet 3.22a-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: alt.usage.english

Remember when Hibou bragged outrageously? That was Friday:

Le 25/09/2026 |a 09:20, Bertel Lund Hansen a |-crit :

Den 25.09.2026 kl. 09.33 skrev Hibou:
[...]

Thanks. We have also "tenenkrommend", toes-bending (embarrassment).

I wonder if that's a borrowing from English. We have 'toe-curling'rCa

I don't think it needs to be imported. "T|Nkrummende" is older than the
English influence on Danish.

The earliest example in Google Books is from 1987, as in Flemish. Do you have
one that predates it?

I think that it's a natural reaction to wiggle/curl your toes if you need a >> bodily reaction but don't want others to be aware. I do it when I'm not
comfortable in large groups.

Well, yes - but when did we coin a specific term for it? Toes curled, but when did we start saying 'toe-curling'?

Maybe when we went bald ....

/dps
--
The presence of this syntax results from the fact that SQLite is really
a Tcl extension that has escaped into the wild. <http://www.sqlite.org/lang_expr.html>
--- Synchronet 3.22a-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: alt.usage.english

Le 25/09/2026 |a 19:55, Radey Shouman a |-crit :

guido wugi writes:

I forgot the trigger ;-)
https://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schaamlippen

On the other hand, I can't think of a good ordinary English term for
this. American vernacular is "pussy lips", but that is both slang and offensive to polite company. "Labia" is medicalese, and kind of silly because it should apply just as well to those lips around the pie hole.
I guess "labia minora" and "labia majora" are unambiguous, but
overspecific medicalese terms. "Nether lips" sounds too poetic and obfuscatory, not the sort of vocabulary one would use for explanations
to a child.

I think many would just say "vagina", particularly with children, but
that is just wrong.

I think I'd just say 'labia'. It's not too medical, and one knows where
to direct one's attention. Major and minor is supplementary information
that can come later if needed.

Reminds me of Diderot's 'Les bijoux indiscrets', which I've tried and
failed to read twice. It's a roman |a clef, and I don't recall having the clef. A genie gives a sultan (Louis XV) a magic ring that can make any
woman's 'jewel' tell her amorous secrets - cue much fun in the salons.

Shame lips. When they talk, everyone's - er, face - turns red.

--- Synchronet 3.22a-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: alt.usage.english

On 25/09/2026 20:49, Rich Ulrich wrote:

On Fri, 25 Sep 2026 08:33:52 +0100, Hibou <vpaereru-unmonitored@yahoo.com.invalid> wrote:

Le 24/09/2026 |a 14:57, guido wugi a |-crit :

Op 24/09/2026 om 12:08 schreef Aidan Kehoe:

Vicarious shame is well-phrased.

Thanks. We have also "tenenkrommend", toes-bending (embarrassment).

I wonder if that's a borrowing from English. We have 'toe-curling'rCa

<https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/toe-curling>

rCa which goes back to about 1979 (the examples from ~1900 appear to be
medical)rCa

What I seem to remember from perhaps that far back (1979) was that
curled toes is used in erotic drawings from China. Or maybe it was
pictures accompanying the Kama Sutra.

Google gets me some association assumed between toe curling and
orgasm, but I didn't see any confirmation of it being a signal used
in the art.

Some association with Chinese foot-binding, which caused extreme toe
curling?

I read that some in China found the result to be erotic (!?!)>

<https://books.google.com/ngrams/graph?content=toe-curling&year_start=1880&year_end=2022&corpus=en&smoothing=3&case_insensitive=false>

rCa while the earliest example of 'tenenkrommend' in Google Books is from
1987 (Kuitenbrouwer, 'Turbo-taal: van socio-babble tot yuppie-speak'.

--
Sam Plusnet
--- Synchronet 3.22a-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: alt.usage.english

On 26/09/2026 07:07, Hibou wrote:

Le 25/09/2026 |a 19:55, Radey Shouman a |-crit :

guido wugi writes:

I forgot the trigger ;-)
https://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schaamlippen

On the other hand, I can't think of a good ordinary English term for
this.-a American vernacular is "pussy lips", but that is both slang and
offensive to polite company.-a "Labia" is medicalese, and kind of silly
because it should apply just as well to those lips around the pie hole.
I guess "labia minora" and "labia majora" are unambiguous, but
overspecific medicalese terms.-a "Nether lips" sounds too poetic and
obfuscatory, not the sort of vocabulary one would use for explanations
to a child.

I think many would just say "vagina", particularly with children, but
that is just wrong.

I think I'd just say 'labia'. It's not too medical, and one knows where
to direct one's attention. Major and minor is supplementary information
that can come later if needed.

Reminds me of Diderot's 'Les bijoux indiscrets', which I've tried and
failed to read twice. It's a roman |a clef, and I don't recall having the clef. A genie gives a sultan (Louis XV) a magic ring that can make any woman's 'jewel' tell her amorous secrets - cue much fun in the salons.

Shame lips. When they talk, everyone's - er, face - turns red.

Not a synonym, but I think "vulva" deserves more of an outing (if you
see what I mean).
--
Sam Plusnet
--- Synchronet 3.22a-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: alt.usage.english

Op 26/09/2026 om 20:45 schreef Sam Plusnet:

On 25/09/2026 20:49, Rich Ulrich wrote:

What I seem to remember from perhaps that far back (1979) was that
curled toes is used in erotic drawings from China.-a Or maybe it was
pictures accompanying the Kama Sutra.

Google gets me some association assumed between toe curling and
orgasm, but I didn't see any confirmation of it being a signal used
in the art.

Some association with Chinese foot-binding, which caused extreme toe curling?

I read that some in China found the result to be erotic (!?!)>

I feel toe-curling vicarious embarrassment.
--
guido wugi

--- Synchronet 3.22a-Linux NewsLink 1.2