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Wednesday, May 23, 2018

Gaelic Roots or What's Your Irish Surname Name Mean? A Constrained Alphabet

MacAdamia 
Motel in-room snack bar nut? Or toxin frackin’ Fido’s gut?*
     * Macadamias are severely toxic to dogs.  

MacBeth 
Toney Tony-winning part? Or tough transgender's nom-de-tart?

McCormick 
Baltimorons' spice vendeur? Or 'mick'? Or 'M(a)c'? (I'm not quite sure.)

McDuck 
Grasping geezer? Loon de loot? Or Ebenezer, cast as coot.*
     * A canvasback or gallinule or bufflehead – but no one’s fool

MacEdonia 
Where Phillip* plants his totem pole? Or country tasked with crowd control.** 
     * The Man of Macedonia, of course 
     ** Cf recent refugee crisis at Greek border

McFries 
Slipp'ry slope towards childhood lard? Or I've misspelled 'McFlies'? (Canard!)  

MacGuffin 
Hitchcock movie plot technique? Or letters from my 'muffin' leak?*.
     * An ‘a,’ a ‘c’ and a ‘G’ dropped from ‘MacGuffin’ leave ‘muffin.’

MacHu (Picchu) 
Abandon'd Incan real estate? Or Irish sneeze? (Gesundheit, mate!)

McIntosh 
Apple breed? Or leakproof coat? Or Gael immersed in nonsense quote.*
     * Mc in 'tosh'

Mick Jagger 
UK knighthood candidate?* Or packhorse manager’s work state.
     * I.e., Sir Mick  
     ** In England the owner or manager of a pack of horses was called a jagger.

MacKinac 
Island in a Huron Lac? Or relatives of Mac called ‘Ac.’? 

McLean 
Virginia home to CIA? Or new McDonald's meal? (No way!)

McMansion 
The nouveau-riches’ “garage mahal"? Or (sans 'i') Erse M.,* C.,** et al.***
     * Marilyn, the rocker   ** Charles, the nutter   
     *** Other members of the so-called “Manson family.”

MacNutt 
A dude dubbed Boob (Rube's* handiwork)? Or laptop user's Apple quirk.
     * I. e., Goldberg  

McCo
A Star Fleet officer called "Bones"? Or how a Jew from Galway moans?

MacPherson (Strut) 
Suspension system in fine cars? Or move on "Dancin' With Scots Stars"?

McQueen 
Prissy to Leigh's Scarlett O'?* Or Irish guy in gay floor show.
     * I. e, Butterfly

McRib 
Fast food made of barbie’d pork? Or baby's bunk from Leith or Cork?*
     * Mac Crib?

McSweeney's 
Innovative publishing? Or "What-if-Todd-were-Irish?" thing? 

("Soap") MacTavish 
"Call of Duty" go-to guy? Or suds for Irish drip 'n' dry. 

MacUlar (Degeneration) 
Age-related loss of sight? Or Quarter Pounder burger blight?

McVeigh 
Homely home-grown terror bird?* Or Irish “Oy! Vey!” spelt absurd?
     * Oklahoma bomber Timothy

MaxWell (House) 
Caffeine good to final drop? Or where Mac keeps his mops to sop.*
     * I.e., Mac's well house.  

MaXimilien 
Major "Reign of Terror"ist”* Or beaucoup bucks within one's fist.**
     * I.e., Robespierre   ** I.e., maxi million

MacY's: 
Sponsor of a big parade? Or Irish inn where young men stay'd.?*
     * An Irish YMCA?

MCZSGT: 
Sgt. "Jim"'s* own CAPTCHA word? Or prayer in church Sarge overheard?
     * That’s Sgt. N. (“Jim”) Smithe-Magee (the N stands for ‘(k)Nack)

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