h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

There are a lot of words in English which have the same, or almost
the same meaning. In most cases this is the result of the class barrier
between the old English of Saxon England and the new upper class
French speaking Norman conquerors of 1066.

But there a few pairs which are not the result of this class distinction
and if you think about they aren't really synonyms.
But why is this.

For example: Roast and Bake.
We roast a hip of beef but we bake cakes and cookies.
Some dictionaries claim that covering the food is often the difference
- with roasting being more of an open-grill or grid-iron process
- but that doesn't hold up if you know anything about cooking and
think about it objectively. Cake, bread or cookies are baked in
un-covered pans while a chicken or turkey is roasted in a covered
roasting pan. (And we roast chestnuts on an open fire.)

Another perhaps more interesting pair: Infinity and Eternity.
In science and maths, Infinity is a purely conceptual construct to describe
an endless and unimaginable passage of time or other quantitative
value. (See Carl Sagan:"Billions and billions!")
Eternity on the other hand seems to be linked more to an imagined
human afterlife.

I'd like to hear your thoughts on these and would especially like
to hear about any other examples you have.

~jwf~

Pot roast is not roasted at all, but stewed [probably covered] in a pot on an open flame or stove burner. Clams are baked hence "clambake"], usually covered by seaweed or driftwood to keep the heat in.

I think of infinity in terms of direction [infinity of space] and eternity in terms of time.

Infinity vs Eternity

simples (in my mind, anyway) - when did it change?

Infinity - Space
Eternity - Time

whoops! missed your posting, paulh - just take it as reinforcement...

Just remembered that we bake ham but roast pig.
Possibly because many cultures (Hawaii for example) are famous
for large charcoal pits.
If an animal is turned on a spit over an open flame we usually say
roasted.
The pit or covering or pan often seems to be an irrelevant factor.
Hmm...

OK, how about knowledge and information. Not the same are they.
And yet we say "I have no information in that regard or "I have no
knowledge on that."

Cheers
~jwf~

You can have roast ham, too, but 'baked pig' is one I haven't heard.

'Baking' seems like a thing that has to be done in an oven, but 'roasting' seems only to need a fire of some sort.

Depends on the type of roast. Hollywood needs a large hall, a celebrity roastee, some mischievous roasters, and an audience to laugh at the jokes.

Most of whom are baked before they get there.


~jwf~

Homer Simpson explains the subtle difference between envy and jealousy.

http://youtu.be/Tmx1jpqv3RA