Boy: miasma Mrs. Olsen: Very good. Now use it in a sentence. Boy: "It's hard to play soccer when miasma is acting up." Mrs. Olsen: That's not what it means, dear. Boy: When you've got it, that's all it ever means.
Obsolete theory of origins of disease, before they figured out the germ thing. Heck of a thing to be teaching in elementary school, except as setup for this joke. Next there’ll be classes in henway and snoo.
My Dad got me a book a long time ago called “Abuse This Word” that was nothing but these type of jokes. My favorite was the sentence given for asphalt – “We could’ve won until the asphalted his serve”.
prcrstn8 over 12 years ago
Oy. I remember this one from when we were slogging thru Edgar Allan Poe in ’63. Oy.
gjsjr41 over 12 years ago
Geeezzzz, lol
Cathy38c over 12 years ago
So what does it mean?
dtaylor404 over 12 years ago
Obsolete theory of origins of disease, before they figured out the germ thing. Heck of a thing to be teaching in elementary school, except as setup for this joke. Next there’ll be classes in henway and snoo.
ennui_rudy over 12 years ago
An unwholesome atmosphere or unhealthy vapors rising from the ground. A miasma of cigar smoke.
kingstonave over 12 years ago
Oh, a hen weighs about 2 or 3 lbs. Now, if I could only find the smatta I lost.
SkyFisher over 12 years ago
(OK, I’ll bite.)What’s smatta?
jessegooddoggy over 12 years ago
Aw, Mrs Olsen has a sweet side…
Varnes over 12 years ago
Actually, foul air is bad for asthma……
SwimsWithSharks over 12 years ago
Vocab can be such a morass.
Big_Tex over 12 years ago
Origionally, the Greeks thought that it was a contagious power that has an independent life of its own.
SkyFisher over 12 years ago
Eschew obfuscation.
ChemSteve over 12 years ago
My Dad got me a book a long time ago called “Abuse This Word” that was nothing but these type of jokes. My favorite was the sentence given for asphalt – “We could’ve won until the asphalted his serve”.
kcostell over 12 years ago
What a Hamm of a joke that was.
lectricdude over 12 years ago
… i’ve got a couple of them…i could send you one…
Jhony-Yermo almost 2 years ago
Great word to learn. Thank you Jef and Frazz 230121sa