Is blackbeetle as common as cockroach?
English translation: No
| 09:41 Sep 1, 2008 |
| English language (monolingual) [Non-PRO] Art/Literary - Poetry & Literature / usage question | |||||||
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|  Selected response from: Ken Cox Local time: 08:31 | ||||||
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| SUMMARY OF ALL EXPLANATIONS PROVIDED | ||||
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| 4 +6 | No |
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| Discussion entries: 1 | |
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Answers
9 mins confidence: 
peer agreement (net): +6
peer agreement (net): +6| is blackbeetle as common as cockroach? No Explanation: Neither in the linguistic sense or the biological sense, as 'blackbeetle' is apparently a *type* of cockroach (an Asian variant that has now spread all over the world). It is probably a literal translation of the Chinese name. sample ref: blackbeetle - definition of blackbeetle by the Free Online ... Noun, 1. blackbeetle blackbeetle - dark brown cockroach originally from orient now nearly cosmopolitan in distribution. Asiatic cockroach, Blatta orientalis ... www.thefreedictionary.com/blackbeetle -------------------------------------------------- Note added at 41 mins (2008-09-01 10:23:21 GMT) -------------------------------------------------- In response to your revised question, IMO whether or not someone would understand this meaning is not a question of college education but instead of exposure the use of the term. It is thus (much) more likely to be understood in cities with significant ethnic Asian communities, major port cities (which are probably the main points of entry and thus have the largest populations of blackbeetle), large urban areas, etc. That being said, as my college education took place well in the past, before anyone in North America ever heard of blackbeetles, I can't provide a well-founded answer to your question. In case of doubt, I suggest an explanatory paraphrase such as 'blackbeetle (Asiatic cockroach)'. |
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