I'm constantly hearing people say that someone has "a heart condition." This seems silly to me. Since the word means, "a state of being," the phrase omits stating WHAT condition. Does this seem absurd, or is it only my poor mental condition that finds it so?

heart condition

The A-H Dictionary lists a whole bunch of definitions for condition (link). Number 3 looks like the pertinent one.

Yes, so I suppose it is used correctly from a linguistic point of view. However, from a medical point of view, it's almost useless because it is so broad.

from a medical point of view

Cancer is a word that was rather vague a half a millennium ago, as was the vapors back in the century before last, but as with most language, these words mean something to the people who use them, even if they are hypochondriacal as all get out.

As Kalleh said, it seems so utterly vague as to be nonsense to me.

It means something along the lines: "John is not a well man. It's something to do with his heart."

A similar, vague. phrase is heart problem.

We live in a world of information gluttony. How is it any less vague to me, the man in the cube, to know that "John has been diagnosed with arrhythmogenic right ventricular dysplasia and not myocarditis? Ask somebody the time, and they'll tell you down to the minute. Nobody uses round divisions like a quarter past five; instead, they say "It's 5:13". On a language note, after our crash course in cardiac diseases, maybe we could learn how to use the IPA.

The IPA--that's a supermarket, right?

Asa, I think this expression is comparable to "We have a situation here," or "He has issues with that." It's a hinting, tantalizing kind of remark to make. You immediately have to know more. Somehow, I think, it's so much easier to impart gossip of a medical or political nature with a juicy, vague lead-in using words that only hint at the worst. That's one of the reasons for vague euphemisms to exist.

Wordmatic

quote:

maybe we could learn how to use the IPA

I'm up for it. I think we should start an IPA forum, and a thread for each symbol. In the thread we could discuss the sound itself, how it's produced, how to input the symbol into text, examples in English, examples in other languages, confusions with other phonemes, etc.

That's a good idea. Are there links to any little MP3 files where we could actually listen to the pronunciations?

I think we should start an IPA forum

I'll confab with the other admins and get back to youse. Might just make it a technical forum.

All that for India Pale Ale?

I had to think about that, too, Asa.

I would so much like to learn about IPA. I think it's a grand idea.

quote:

Nobody uses round divisions like a quarter past five; instead, they say "It's 5:13"

Surely it depends on whether or not the person asked wears a traditional analogue watch (as do some older people) a digital watch (as do some younger people) or no watch at all (as is the case with many teenagers - who tend to use their mobile 'phone or other multi-function electronic device).

By the way, it's just before 0825 as I write (or 8.25 am for those who prefer the 12-hour clock).