

Hip-hop and rap is characterised by creative lyrical wordplay, and in addition to abbreviating master of ceremonies -> MC -> emcee, you'll see disc jockey -> DJ -> deejay.Īnother important part of hip-hop is individuality and rejection of the status quo.

emcee (something) to introduce guests or people who provide entertainment at a formal occasion synonym compère. Meaning, pronunciation, picture, example sentences, grammar, usage notes, synonyms and more. That's why they rarely become dominant - if they did, they'd no longer have the slight "edginess" that justified using them in the first place. Definition of emcee1 verb in Oxford Advanced Learners Dictionary. lang, etc.).Įffectively, we like them because they suggest we're part of a "counter-culture", kicking against the bland orthodoxy of correct spelling and grammar. I think for the rest, it's a mild form of "linguistic subversion" (cf Old Skool, honest injun, Windoze, k.d. Turning to OP's specific question (why does the "phonetic spelling" form exist at all?), I would say okay is a special case for the reasons given above. are bored with "deejay", but still like using the technique on their own names. I assume people calling themselves dj Pee Tee, dj Jay Kay, etc. Others, such as teevee (TV, television), deejay, (DJ, disc jockey), See-Threepio (C-3PO, Star Wars robot) are easily understood, but the spelled-out versions aren't as popular as the initialisms. By far the most common is okay, which one of a very few where the longer "phonetic spelling" form occurs more often than the short form (possibly because people aren't sure whether "ok" should be in capitals or not, and they're not sure what it stands for anyway).Ī couple more where we very often see the longer form are emcee (MC, Master of Ceremonies)) and Dubya (ex-president George W Bush). There aren't actually very many in common use. But it seems to have no currency as yet, and personally I much prefer acronomatopoeia as suggested by ELU's in a comment to that question. Show me a liar, and I will show you a thief.Per answer in this related question, the coinage vocologue was proposed for such words over a decade ago. Alex : Sort of a show of skill? Talent show?ġ6. Show me a liar, and I'll show you a thief.ġ4. In England they call a talk show a chat show.ġ3. 5 The emcee announces that we have raised close to $ 700, 000 today.ġ2.

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Emcee: Firstly, the bridegroom need to present his inaugural address to us.ġ1. To serve as master of ceremonies of: emcee a variety show. And now Sam Zell will be in a conversation with Joanne Lipman.ġ0. 8 Emcee: Firstly, the bridegroom need to present his inaugural address to us.ĩ. 6 Emcee: OK, bridegroom can hug your wife.Ĩ. Emcee: OK, bridegroom can hug your wife.ħ. 7 He's a better emcee than I thought he'd be.Ħ. The Rockets have three guest stars and no emcee for their game show.ĥ. 12 The Rockets have three guest stars and no emcee for their game show.Ĥ. 2 Who was emcee of the show last night?ģ. 10 Who was ( the ) emcee of the show last night?Ģ. We can refer to these sentence patterns for sentences in case of finding sample sentences with the word "emcee a show", or refer to the context using the word "emcee a show" in the English Dictionary.ġ. Below are sample sentences containing the word "emcee a show" from the English Dictionary.
