medal
medal – verbo
podium – verbo
The 1992 Olympics marked the last time an American man medaled in the 10-meter platform.
She has a realistic chance of medalling in at least two events.
In eight starts he has podiumed five times.
I managed to podium in third position to finish off the year.
Abbiamo già parlato della frequenza e della facilità con cui in inglese si creano neologismi attraverso il processo di conversione, e in particolare della conversione in verbi a partire da sostantivi. E nonostante si tratti di un processo linguistico vecchio come il mondo, ancora oggi c’è chi si scandalizza e si erge a difensore della purezza della lingua… I Giochi olimpici in corso di svolgimento hanno mandato in fibrillazione questi valorosi paladini, che a sentire medalling e podiuming devono essersi messi le mani nei capelli, indifferenti al fatto che tali forme sono in circolazione da decenni e puntualmente riaffiorano in occasione di manifesationi sportive. E se atleti e giornalisti sportivi scelgono to medal anziché to win a medal o to podium per dire to secure a place on the podium (cioè vincere una medaglia), che male c’è?
Origini del termine
La comparsa del verbo to medal risale al 1966 e quella di to podium agli anni ’90, mentre prendono sempre più piede anche altre conversioni in verbi a partire da nomi quali final, bronze, silver e gold, per restare in campo sportivo.
medal – verb
podium – verb
The 1992 Olympics marked the last time an American man medaled in the 10-meter platform.
She has a realistic chance of medalling in at least two events.
In eight starts he has podiumed five times.
I managed to podium in third position to finish off the year.
We have talked before about the propensity of English words to take on new life as different parts of speech, a process called conversion, and in particular about verbing, the transformation of nouns into verbs. The fact that this process is as old as the language itself does not prevent outrage among those who see themselves as the guardians of linguistic purity. The appearance of the Olympics on our screens has led to renewed outbursts about perceived horrors such as medalling and podiuming, regardless of the fact that these forms have been around for some decades and will inevitably pop up whenever the global festival of sport comes around. In the jargon of sportspeople and commentators, to medal simply means to win a medal, while to podium means to secure a place on the podium – in effect to win a medal.
Origins
The verb to medal was first recorded in 1966 while to podium has been around since the 1990s. The same process is applied to other sporting nouns, such as final, with bronze, silver and gold undergoing similar conversion.
