The Question:
Which word in the English language owes its origins to the erstwhile
practice of disgruntled French industrial workers throwing their shoes
into the machinery to halt production ?
The answer:
'Sabotage' from the French word 'Sabot' meaning 'wooden shoe'.
Results of Gopal's Weekly Quiz - 41:
No of respondents: 3
No. of correct answers: 2
The Respondents:
1. Deepa Muthukrishnan
Her Answer: SABOTAGE
.
* SABOTAGE *
"Sabot" is the French word for a wooden shoe, or clog. French industrial
workers, rebelled against the Industrial Revolution by tossing their "sabots"
into the new fangled machinery, bringing production to a halt.
But the story isn't true, and there's no evidence that any "sabots" were
ever
tossed. "Sabotage" actually comes from the French verb "saboter," which
means to
make a loud clattering with wooden shoes. Metaphorically, the French use
"sabotage" to mean a variety of things -- botching a musical performance,
doing
a bad job at anything, or deliberately destroying tools or machinery. This
last
meaning was the one carried over into English, where "sabotage" took on
the
additional meaning of damage done clandestinely to impair an enemy's ability
to
fight.
2. Rhys Patrick
His Answer: The
word is "sabotage" from the French "sabot" = shoe
3. Ash Sharma
His Answer: Strike
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