HIGH SCHOOL THREAT PROBE CONTINUES
February 14, 2019
OLD MAN WINTER RETREATS CREATING SPRINGTIME OPPORTUNITY FOR ANGLERS
February 14, 2019
Joey: All right, Rack The big question is, “does he like you?” All right? Because if he doesn’t like you, this is all a moo point?
Rachel: Huh. A moo paint?
Joey: Yeah, it’s like a cow’s opinion It just doesn’t matter. It’s moo.
Many of you remember the Friends episode entitled “The One Where Chandler Doesn’t Like Dogs,” in which Joey Tribiani further confuses an already confusing phrase. Many people get “moot point” confused with “mute point” but Mr. Tribiani adds another (and a hilarious) phrasal faux pas to the list.
The correct phiase, of course, is “moot point” which is an inconsequential or irrelevant point. “Mute” here certainly makes sense. I think the idea is if you mute something, you can’t bear it any more But “moot” came first So, what exactly is “moot”?
Moot la something that is open for debate. It conies from the Old English word gemot, which was any legislative or judicial court where people would meet to discuss a matter. A moot point was something that hadn’t yet been decided. It’s where we get the word “meet” from.
How did something that meant “up for debate” become known as something trivial and irrelevant? Welcome to Moot Court.
A moot court is where law students competitively hone their arguing skills. It involves a simulated appellate court case, where students focus on the application of the law to a standard set of evidentiary suppositions, facts, and clarifications to which the competitors are introduced In other words, moot court is made up. The debates held at moot courts are purely academic. Other than a nerdy way for law students to get better at lawyering, the outcomes and arguments make absolutely no real-world difference. They’re moot points.
Moot can, therefore, either mean “debatable” or “irrelevant” In the U.S., it will almost always mean “irrelevant.” while, in England if a mare likely to be used as a synonym for “debatable”
Here’s a way to remember moot vs. mute: Since I have two feet owning only one boot is pointless. Boot rhymes with moot. A butts is kind of like a mesa. Butte rhymes with mute. Buttes don’t make any noise. One hoot is moot. One butte is mute. Just like Joey in “Friends” I’ll he there for you to settle any word debates or grammar conundrums.
