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hobsonjobson

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Hob⋅son-Job⋅son

[hob-suhn-job-suhn]
–noun
the alteration of a word or phrase borrowed from a foreign language to accord more closely with the phonological and lexical patterns of the borrowing language, as in English hoosegow from Spanish juzgado.

Origin:
1625–35; Anglo-Indian rendering of Ar yā Ḥasan, yā Husayn lament uttered during taʿziyah; an example of such an alteration
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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