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Cornhole (sometimes corn hole) is a sexual slang vulgarism for the anus.[1] The term came into use in the 1910s in the United States.[2] Its verb form, to cornhole, which came into use in the 1930s, means 'to have anal sex'.[2][3]

Connotations and variants

The term is apparently derived "from the practice in the days of the outhouse of using dried corn cobs for toilet paper."[4][5]

By the middle of the 20th century, the term was used among American criminals.[6] According to a 1944 report on male-male prison rape, the term had taken on a more specific meaning of taking the penetrative role in anal sex.[7] It was also popularized in part through use in gay culture.[8][9]

In a similar context, a corn husk is a "condom", especially one manufactured for anal intercourse.[10]

According to linguist Jonathan Lighter, to cornhole and variant non-derived synonyms have developed as compound verbs: to corncob [1975] and to corndog [1985].[11] Linguists have noted the verb form as an example of possible compound verbs in English. There is debate whether such words are genuine compounds or pseudo-compounds.[12]

Cornholio, the alter ego of Beavis from Beavis and Butt-head, is a play on the word cornhole, as his catch phrase is “I am the Great Cornholio! I need TP for my bunghole!"[13][14] The personality of Cornholio, in turn, became inspiration for the cocktail called the "Flaming Cornholio".[15]

Comedian George Carlin performed a short skit about the word cornhole in his 2005 show "Life Is Worth Losing", praising it for being tough-sounding and thus more honest than politically correct terms like anal intercourse or anal rape. He elaborated on the word repeatedly in earlier shows, including a famous rant about the euphemism treadmill which caused the term shell shock to evolve into post-traumatic stress disorder. He then imagined its use in a forensic investigation scene of a police procedurals television series ("That there is a posthumous, multiple cornhole entry wound") and pointed out that "in prison it's a social activity".[16]

See also

References

  1. ^ Munier, Alexis (2010). The Big Black Book of Very Dirty Words. Adams Media, ISBN 9781440509605
  2. ^ a b Green, Jonathon (2006). Cassell's Dictionary of Slang: A Major New Edition of the Market-Leading Dictionary of Slang. Sterling Publishing Company, Inc., ISBN 9780304366361
  3. ^ Burke, David (2003). The Slangman Guide to Dirty English: Dangerous Expressions Americans Use Every Day. Slangman Publishing, ISBN 9781891888236
  4. ^ McConville, Brigid; Shearlaw, John (1984). The Slanguage of Sex. Macdonald, ISBN 9780356103402
  5. ^ Richter, Alan (1987). The Language of Sexuality. McFarland, ISBN 9780899502458
  6. ^ Monteleone, Vincent Joseph (1949). Criminal Slang: The Vernacular of the Underground Lingo. The Lawbook Exchange, Ltd., ISBN 9781584773009
  7. ^ Greco, MC; Wright, JC (1944). The correctional institution in the etiology of chronic homosexuality. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, Volume 14, Issue 2, pages 295–307, April 1944 doi:10.1111/j.1939-0025.1944.tb04878.x
  8. ^ Baker, Paul (2004). Fantabulosa: A Dictionary of Polari and Gay Slang. Continuum International Publishing Group, ISBN 9780826473431
  9. ^ Reuter, Donald F. (2006). Gay-2-Zee: A Dictionary of Sex, Subtext, and the Sublime. Macmillan, ISBN 9780312354275
  10. ^ Victor/Dalzell eds (2007). The Concise New Partridge Dictionary of Slang and Unconventional English. Psychology Press, ISBN 9780415212595
  11. ^ Lighter, Johnathan E. (1997). Random House Historical Dictionary of American Slang, Vol. 2: H-O. Random House Reference, ISBN 9780679434641
  12. ^ Erdmann, Peter (1999). Compound verbs in English: are they pseudo? In Dekeyser Xavier; Tops, Guy A. J.; Geukens, Steven Thinking English Grammar: To Honour Xavier Dekeyser, Professor Emeritus. Volume 12 of Orbis / Supplementa. Peeters Publishers, ISBN 9789042907638
  13. ^ Weinstock, Jeffrey Andrew (2008). "Simpsons Did It!" South Park as differential signifier. in Taking South Park Seriously. SUNY Press, ISBN 9780791475669
  14. ^ Kellner, Douglas (2004). Beavis and Butt-Head: No Future for Postmodern Youth. In Steinberg, Shirley R.; Kincheloe, Joe. Kinderculture: The Corporate Construction Of Childhood. Westview Press, ISBN 9780813391540
  15. ^ Gatti, Susan Irvin (2003). Fuzzy navels and slippery nipples: A sociolinguistic reading of the cocktail menu. The Journal of American Culture, Volume 26, Issue 1, pages 104–110, March 2003 doi:10.1111/1542-734X.00078
  16. ^ "GEORGE CARLIN: LIFE IS WORTH LOSING (2006) - Full transcript". Scraps from the loft. 2016-12-28. Archived from the original on 2020-04-25. Retrieved 2019-11-29.
source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cornhole_(slang)