I feel igry,
Oh so igry ...
We already have that concept in Spanish-speaking countries - it's called "vergüenza ajena": literally, other's shame, or shame on behalf of the other (who's usually blissfully unaware of your sufferings).
I've seen psychology texts in which this was referred to as "Spanish shame".
Posted by aa at January 28, 2004 05:58 PMI've read that snapping your fingers at the waitstaff is normal in Germany. (Or was 30-40 years ago. I shall wear the bottoms of my trousers rolled.)
Posted by zizka at January 28, 2004 06:55 PMBut the noun would be "iger".
Posted by noonless at January 29, 2004 07:18 AMI'm waiting for the day this word enters the dictionary. I feel igry all the time, especiallty when I have to deal with one of my colleagues
Posted by Sean at January 29, 2004 07:25 AMWhat are some more scenarios that make you igry? Here's one:
When you're in mixed company and a particularly brash and tactless individual makes the offhand comment, in his usual high-volume voice, that he has not masturbated in almost three years.
Groans abound, and I suddenly notice that igry feeling in the pit of my stomach.
Posted by Jeremiah at January 29, 2004 10:05 AMStarted writing a comment - but it became a post.
Posted by Kerim Friedman at January 29, 2004 10:48 AMNot to be a party-pooper, but I must confess that even though I know the cringe-laden sentiment well (having once been addicted to I love Lucy and, more recently, The Office), the neologism "igry" just doesn't do it for me. Perhaps it's too close to angry, and doesn't have enough 'ungh' or 'ow' or there but for the grace of...
Posted by gail at January 29, 2004 03:16 PMThe Office makes me so igry I can't even watch it.
Posted by language hat at January 29, 2004 04:02 PMRegarding the addendum, compare the word "hot" in the sexual sense. It is possible for somebody to make you hot by being hot.
I've also heard "yiffy" used that way, but not for a long time. Besides, since it's practically synonymous with my other example, it might not be a great example.
Posted by Justin at January 29, 2004 08:13 PMIf I were proofreading my posts, I might not repeat words or repeat words so much.
Posted by Justin at January 29, 2004 08:14 PMThe "or descriptive of such poor social behavior" part of the igry definition wasn't part of the original definition we came up with. I was merely describing how the word came to be used among my acquaintances. Such is language. After seeing enough people do igry-making things, it just became easier to say "Oh, my god, did you see that igry thing he just did?"
Anyway, another word that shows a similar transitiveness of sense is "nauseous" (which has a nice thematic similarity to "igry"; perhaps that similarity is why it was so easy to make the "igry" usage shift), which can mean both "causing nausea" and "affected with nausea". Some people think that the "affected with nausea" sense is incorrect, and that only the word "nauseated" should be used for it, but Merriam-Webster slaps them down:
http://www.m-w.com/cgi-bin/dictionary?book=Dictionary&va=nauseous
Posted by Francis at January 30, 2004 12:55 AMI don't know - where I am we use "cringy" - which is just the adjectival form of the slightly bastardised meaning of the word cringe - but any spelling looks wrong for some reason. "Cringeworthy" is also an option.
Posted by dan at January 30, 2004 01:05 AMAnother two-way adjective: suspicious.
Posted by Roger at February 7, 2004 03:11 AMThe welcome screen for AOL had a headline yesterday which said, "Bush could of ..."
Igry indeed !! Shame, shame.