Talk:his nibs
Add topicLatest comment: 15 years ago by Jusjih
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Shouldn't this just be at nibs with usage examples or redirects for "his/her/my/your/their((/our?) nibs"? DCDuring TALK 02:40, 8 April 2009 (UTC)
- Well it is an awkward way to refer to someone, kinda like Your Majesty. It should probably be redirected, to nibs or where else I'm not certain. DAVilla 03:00, 8 April 2009 (UTC)
- Keep as a set phrase. It's quite common in speech, but as it's informal it might be hard to cite in print. I don't think I have ever heard anything other than his, and would challenge her/my/your/their etc.--Dmol 04:41, 8 April 2009 (UTC)
- This is not RfV. It is easy enough to cite, just as one could cite "his holiness" or "his car". One could also cite "her nibs", "my nibs", "your nibs", and "their nibs" (but probably not "our nibs"}. All might warrant a redirect to nibs, which has the appropriate sense. I don't think an entry at [[one's nibs]] has much value. DCDuring TALK 09:59, 8 April 2009 (UTC)
- There's a world of difference between "his holiness" and "his car". You don't talk to your car, much less address it with a proper title. I'm sure Dmol means he's never heard anything other than "his nibs" as a form of address. 72.177.113.91 00:46, 9 April 2009 (UTC)
- That's exactly what I meant. I have never heard "her nibs", "my nibs", "your nibs", and "their nibs" or "our nibs". But "his nibs" is common, and means exactly what it says in the definition.--Dmol 11:02, 9 April 2009 (UTC)
- That you haven't heard of them is a useful datapoint. Perhaps "nibs" is no longer productive, like "word" in my word.
- But my preliminary research seemed to show "her nibs" to be almost as common as his nibs. The other forms also would probably be attestable, if not common. Dictionaries don't seem to choose to waste their users' time (clicks) showing any of such phrases as "Your Majesty", "His Majesty", "Her Majesty", "Their Majesty", "Our Majesty", "My Majesty" and some attestable plurals and capitalisations thereof, instead drawing the user to "majesty". The analog seems possible here as well. DCDuring TALK 15:34, 9 April 2009 (UTC)
- That's exactly what I meant. I have never heard "her nibs", "my nibs", "your nibs", and "their nibs" or "our nibs". But "his nibs" is common, and means exactly what it says in the definition.--Dmol 11:02, 9 April 2009 (UTC)
- I'm not sure nibs should be defined that way if it's only in the two very specific phrases his nibs and her nibs; perhaps instead it should include =See also= links to those two phrases? But if nibs is to be defined that way, then I suppose we should redirect the phrases to it.—msh210℠ 20:41, 20 August 2009 (UTC)
- There's a world of difference between "his holiness" and "his car". You don't talk to your car, much less address it with a proper title. I'm sure Dmol means he's never heard anything other than "his nibs" as a form of address. 72.177.113.91 00:46, 9 April 2009 (UTC)
- "His nibs" appeared in Webster 1913. More recent dictionaries not copying Webster mostly have "nibs", "usually 'his nibs' or 'her nibs'". Some say that one would never refer to someone as "nibs" to their face, but "your nibs" is attestable. Late 19th century slang dictionaries had it as meaning "self" and included "my nibs". I have added some citations at nibs, which could still benefit from a usage note. DCDuring TALK 00:50, 21 August 2009 (UTC)
- Kept for no consensus.--Jusjih 03:17, 25 October 2009 (UTC)