tlhIngan-Hol Archive: Fri Oct 26 12:47:02 2007
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Re: Klingon WOTD: chong (verb)
>This is the Klingon Word Of The Day for Saturday, October 20, 2007.
>
>Klingon word: chong
>Part of Speech: verb
>Definition: be profound, thorough, careful (slang); be good, excellent
>(slang)
Discussed by Okrand:
Literally "be vertical", this word is used to refer to one's intellect, as
in {chong tlhIngan SuvwI'} ("The Klingon warrior is profound"--literally,
"The Klingon warrior is vertical"). In its literal sense, this word is the
opposite of {SaS} ("be horizontal"), and as a slang term, it is an opposite
as well, as {SaS} is used to mean "be shallow, superficial". It is most
likely that {chong} took on its slang meaning because of the prior
existence of {SaS}, which has been used as slang for a much longer time. An
equivalent meaning may be expressed without slang by using a word such as
{Qubchu'} ("think perfectly, think clearly"), as in {Qubchu' tlhIngan
SuvwI'} ("The Klingon warrior thinks clearly"). The word {chong} may also
be used as an exclamation expressing approval or satisfaction, somewhat
like standard {maj} ("good"). Thus, one may describe one's feelings about a
skillfully made knife or about an upcoming social event by saying simply
{chong} (literally, "vertical" but meaning "good, excellent, admirable").
See also {qu'} (literally, "be fierce"), another slang term used to express
approval. [KGT 148-49]
To describe someone as {SaS} is certainly insulting, as in {SaS DIvI' HoD}
("The Federation captain is shallow"--that is, literally, "The Federation
captain is horizontal") ... A slang word with a meaning similar to {SaS} is
{natlh} (literally, "consume, use up" [see page 155]). The opposite
meaning--that is, "profound", "thorough" and "good"--is often expressed by
the slang verbs {chong} (literally, "be vertical") and {qu'} (literally,
"be fierce"). [KGT 164f.]
Slang terms expressing the opposite of {natlh}--that is, approval--are
{chong} (literally, "be vertical") and {qu'} (literally, "be
fierce"). [KGT 155]
Used in (semi?) canon:
chong!
Brilliant! (Spice Williams; ST5 DVD, extra "making of" feature)
Related vocabulary:
{majQa'} "Well done! Very good!" and {val} "be clever, intelligent"
>Homonyms:
> chong (verb) - be vertical
Never used in canon.
Related verbs:
{yoy} "be upside down"; {SaS} "be horizontal"; {taH} "be at a negative
angle"; {nech} "be lateral, move laterally"
{Sal} "ascend}; {ghIr} "descend"
--
Voragh
Ca'Non Master of the Klingons