I will tred on your dialectal question.  To me the pronunciation of the "sleeping car" and "walking stick" without the eng of the gerund is not standard.  The pronunciation of "sleepin' car" and "walkin' stick" would come across to me as colloquial in their obvious meanings.  They sound all right if the car were sleeping or the stick were walking, but these are clearly unusual interpretations.  When I imagine someone saying "walkin' stick," I immediately think about an old person for whom the stick has become a personal companion with whom they walk.  Maybe it's just me.

I agree. Me too. Thanks, Gerald

Bruce

--- [log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]> wrote:

From: GERALD W WALTON <[log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]>>
To: [log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]>
Subject: Re: grammar question/adverb or adjective
Date: Tue, 15 Jan 2013 17:48:27 +0000

Geoffrey noted that in the phrase "smoking hot" the pronunciation is sometimes emphasized in the spelling "smokin' hot."  This is quite distinct from "smoking jacket" where the phrase "smokin' jacket" can only be contrasted with it, as Craig has pointed out.



A sleeping car on a train does not sleep, and a walking stick does not walk. Pronunciation different? Gww
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