this post was submitted on 29 Oct 2023
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[–] [email protected] 71 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (3 children)

This is just because English sucks, or English speaking people suck at naming things. Let me show you how it's done:

In Dutch:

Horseshoe crabs are called "dagger crabs", and look what it's dragging behind.

Cuttlefish are called "ink fish", and tadaa.

Jellyfish are "kwallen", which means roughly "annoying person", and they're pretty annoying.

Bald eagles are "American Eagles", you're welcome.

A sand dollar is called a "sea coin", because of where it lives and what it resembles, which is way more accurate.

And a fly is still a fly.

[–] [email protected] 52 points 1 year ago (1 children)

In Dutch, the Common Drone Fly is also called "Blinde Bij", which means "Blind Bee". This is because this animal is neither blind nor a bee and the Dutch are very good at naming things

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[–] [email protected] 40 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Animals who do not live up to thier names Dutch edition.

Dagger Crabs - Don't have daggers and not crabs.

Ink Fish - Not actually fish.

Kwallen- Not actually a person.

American Eagles - Found all over Canada and upper Mexico.

Sea Coins - Can't actually be used as coins.

[–] [email protected] 28 points 1 year ago (8 children)

Canada and Mexico are still America so I‘d say it does live up to its name

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[–] [email protected] 9 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Canada and Mexico are still part of the Americas.

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[–] [email protected] 68 points 1 year ago (3 children)

Secretarybird: refuses to schedule my meetings

[–] [email protected] 16 points 1 year ago

Nevermind, I found oneSecretary secratarybird
I'm sorry.. just... so sorry..

[–] [email protected] 9 points 1 year ago

I really like this one

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[–] [email protected] 62 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (2 children)

king cobra - not a true cobra & snakes are largely self-organizing without monarchs

[–] [email protected] 14 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

We’re more of an autonomous collective!

I like the philosophical implications of the word king in the context of king snakes. For snakes, it just means that their diet consists primarily of other snakes. This implies that to be a king is to be a predator who preys on his own subjects.

[–] [email protected] 11 points 1 year ago (2 children)

They're probably anarchist

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[–] [email protected] 53 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Animals that live up to their acronym:

  • Goat

Change my mind

[–] [email protected] 27 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Animals that live up to their backronym:

  • pig

Pink inquisitive grunter

[–] [email protected] 10 points 1 year ago (1 children)

It's probably a typo but 'backronym' is a great word and concept. Backwards acronym.

[–] [email protected] 26 points 1 year ago

It's a real word. And used correctly in context so unlikely to be a typo.

https://www.dictionary.com/browse/backronym

https://www.wordnik.com/words/backronym

Acronyms were very rare prior to about mid 20thC.

A number of words sound like they should be an acronym or people searching for an explanation of them make backronyms out of them.

Posh and rap being turned into acronyms as per the first like are good examples of a backronym.

[–] [email protected] 32 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Bat (useless as a blunt weapon)

[–] [email protected] 17 points 1 year ago (2 children)

A bat bat on the other hand...
bat bat

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[–] [email protected] 29 points 1 year ago (6 children)

In my town there's a shop that sells rocks and crystals etc. They also sell sand dollars for $1. That's right, there's a 1:1 conversion rate between sand dollars and USD.

[–] [email protected] 11 points 1 year ago (1 children)

They probably never change that price either, so it's actually pinned to the dollar.

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[–] [email protected] 28 points 1 year ago (4 children)

Animals that live up to their names ;

  • Sea cucumber
  • Woodpecker
  • Babadook
[–] [email protected] 24 points 1 year ago (3 children)

Do babadooks actually dook any babas?

[–] [email protected] 13 points 1 year ago

All the time.

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[–] [email protected] 23 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (1 children)

This leads me to one of my favourite dad jokes:

What do you call a fly without wings?

A walk

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[–] [email protected] 23 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Animal that does not live up to its name:

cuttlefish - is not a fish

Animal that does live up to its name:

woodpecker

[–] [email protected] 12 points 1 year ago

TIL woodpeckers have a massive wooden cock

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[–] [email protected] 22 points 1 year ago (1 children)

I was wondering, why it's called "vampire squid". I guess, due to this:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vampire_squid

[–] [email protected] 9 points 1 year ago

I was actually fine not knowing holy shit that's nightmare fuel.

[–] [email protected] 21 points 1 year ago

Praying mantis had me rolling haha.

[–] [email protected] 19 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Animal that does not live up to its name:

Red Panda. Not Red, not a panda

Animal that lives up to its name:

Sloth

[–] [email protected] 12 points 1 year ago

Panda bears were actually named that after the red panda, so really it's they who aren't pandas

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[–] [email protected] 19 points 1 year ago

Bearded dragons do have beards! Just made of spikes instead of hair.

[–] [email protected] 19 points 1 year ago (2 children)

I'm pretty sure ca. 50% of peacocks have one.

[–] [email protected] 28 points 1 year ago (1 children)

actually, all or nearly all peacocks have cocks. the ones that don't are peahens.

[–] [email protected] 14 points 1 year ago (1 children)

I was under the impression that male birds do not possess a protruding organ but indeed have a hole too, hence ‘no cock’.

[–] [email protected] 25 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (1 children)

didn't think i would be googling "peacock genitalia" today. anyway, you are right. i was confused because I know that ducks have penises, but as I just found out, ducks are actually an exception in the bird world. most birds just kind of rub their holes together. this is sometimes called "cloacal kiss", which is really funny.

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[–] [email protected] 20 points 1 year ago (3 children)

Peacocks actually have no penis whatsoever. Be glad. You give a bird a penis and they get really into rape

[–] [email protected] 17 points 1 year ago (1 children)
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[–] [email protected] 19 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (7 children)

Peacocks have cocks. Peahens do not.

Also:

Spider (doesn't actually spy)

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[–] [email protected] 15 points 1 year ago (2 children)

AWAIL (A while ago I learned) that butterflies are named that because they like to drink the fatty cream that form atop of fresh milk that's used to make butter.

This also goes for german. The Schmetter in Schmetterling has ethymological connections to Schmalz

[–] [email protected] 12 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Stop trying to make AWAIL happen. It's not going to happen.

[–] [email protected] 19 points 1 year ago

I tried to. But, alas, to no awail

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[–] [email protected] 14 points 1 year ago (4 children)

Bird that does not live up to its name: tit.

Estonian edition (I'm not a native speaker): viinamäetigu. Not related to any alcohol (viin), does not live on mountains (mäe), mostly found outside of vineyards (viinamäe). At least it is a snail (tigu).

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[–] [email protected] 12 points 1 year ago (3 children)

Bald Eagles have no hair. Ergo, bald? /S

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[–] [email protected] 12 points 1 year ago

Im 99.9% certain that whomever named the ping pong tree sponge was high, drunk or both at the moment of inspiration 😄

The sunfish checks out, though, since it likes sunbathing.

[–] [email protected] 11 points 1 year ago (1 children)

What about a roadrunner? They do occasionally run on roads in real life, so they do live up to their name.

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[–] [email protected] 11 points 1 year ago

Hermit crab - I would not expect hermits to spend so much time and effort on acquiring bigger houses.

[–] [email protected] 10 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Elephant shrew: not an elephant, not a shrew

Golden mole: not a mole

Otter shrew: not an otter, not a shrew

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[–] [email protected] 10 points 1 year ago (1 children)

I can’t believe it’s not butterfly

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