Talk:catfish

RFV

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"Any fictional fish whose face is of a cat." Added by Daniel Carrero, I think. I don't even know what this means — does it relate to Japanese animation or something? Cites? Equinox ◑ 22:24, 19 February 2012 (UTC)

diff, my reaction is the same, it needs some sort of fiction or humorous tag. Mglovesfun (talk) 22:27, 19 February 2012 (UTC)

Deleted as uncited. - -sche (discuss) 04:24, 11 April 2012 (UTC)

RfV January 2013

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Etymology 2: (Internet, psychology, slang) a person who sets up or runs a false puppet social networking identity profile for fraudulent or deceptive purposes.

A neologism c. 2010 that needs cites.

Also, is this really a separate etymology, rather than a different sense of the same cat + fish etymology with different glosses on cat and fish? DCDuring TALK 16:16, 20 January 2013 (UTC)

The derivation is not from the word catfish, but from the use of catfish. It derives from this quote

They used to tank cod from Alaska all the way to China. They'd keep them in vats in the ship. By the time the codfish reached China, the flesh was mush and tasteless. So this guy came up with the idea that if you put these cods in these big vats, put some catfish in with them and the catfish will keep the cod agile. And there are those people who are catfish in life. And they keep you on your toes. They keep you guessing, they keep you thinking, they keep you fresh. And I thank god for the catfish because we would be droll, boring, and dull if we didn't have somebody nipping at our fin.

[1][2][3]

So it is a different etymology, since it has nothing to do with the origin of the older word "catfish", but with the use of catfish in the fishing industry. -- 76.65.128.43 08:21, 23 January 2013 (UTC)

Using an existing word in a different way doesn't make it a new etymology. Quite the opposite in fact, words acquire new meanings all the time, like random meaning 'unexpected' or 'for no apparent reason'. Mglovesfun (talk) 11:10, 23 January 2013 (UTC)

However we want to note it, I think we should point out that it's not, as DCDuring puts it "a different sense of the same cat + fish etymology with different glosses on cat and fish", but instead of a metaphorical use of the catfish fish.--Prosfilaes (talk) 01:31, 24 January 2013 (UTC)

I think this one has been overtaken by events. bd2412 T 16:36, 31 July 2013 (UTC)

Why? And how is it relevant? Mglovesfun (talk) 17:30, 31 July 2013 (UTC)

Google "Manti Te'o" "catfish", and you'll get about a million results describing how Te'o was deceived by a catfish, or in a catfish scam, when he fell for a fake internet identity. There are many news and discussion hits as well, and these will likely continue for years to come, since Te'o is at the beginning of his professional football career. The etymological issue aside (clearly there is only one etymology here), the term has entered widespread use as defined. bd2412 T 17:56, 31 July 2013 (UTC)

For example:

• 2013, Jim Edwards, "Hearst Exec May Have Been Victim Of 'Catfish' Sexting Scam", Business Insider (April 12, 2013):

  Scott Sassa, the former president of entertainment and syndication at Hearst who left his job after sexual text messages he wrote were sent to the company's legal department, may have been the victim of a "catfish" scam, three sources tell Business Insider.

bd2412 T 18:00, 31 July 2013 (UTC)

Earliest cite I could find is from January. It might prove impossible to find cites spanning at least a year, since it only became popular after the Te’o fiasco, which happened less than a year ago. — Ungoliant ^(Falai) 06:01, 10 September 2013 (UTC)

Failed. Had four cites, but they don’t span a year. — Ungoliant ^(Falai) 11:58, 17 September 2013 (UTC)

RFV discussion: January–September 2013

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catfish

Etymology 2: (Internet, psychology, slang) a person who sets up or runs a false puppet social networking identity profile for fraudulent or deceptive purposes.

A neologism c. 2010 that needs cites.

Also, is this really a separate etymology, rather than a different sense of the same cat + fish etymology with different glosses on cat and fish? DCDuring TALK 16:16, 20 January 2013 (UTC)

The derivation is not from the word catfish, but from the use of catfish. It derives from this quote

They used to tank cod from Alaska all the way to China. They'd keep them in vats in the ship. By the time the codfish reached China, the flesh was mush and tasteless. So this guy came up with the idea that if you put these cods in these big vats, put some catfish in with them and the catfish will keep the cod agile. And there are those people who are catfish in life. And they keep you on your toes. They keep you guessing, they keep you thinking, they keep you fresh. And I thank god for the catfish because we would be droll, boring, and dull if we didn't have somebody nipping at our fin.

[4][5][6]

So it is a different etymology, since it has nothing to do with the origin of the older word "catfish", but with the use of catfish in the fishing industry. -- 76.65.128.43 08:21, 23 January 2013 (UTC)

Using an existing word in a different way doesn't make it a new etymology. Quite the opposite in fact, words acquire new meanings all the time, like random meaning 'unexpected' or 'for no apparent reason'. Mglovesfun (talk) 11:10, 23 January 2013 (UTC)

However we want to note it, I think we should point out that it's not, as DCDuring puts it "a different sense of the same cat + fish etymology with different glosses on cat and fish", but instead of a metaphorical use of the catfish fish.--Prosfilaes (talk) 01:31, 24 January 2013 (UTC)

I think this one has been overtaken by events. bd2412 T 16:36, 31 July 2013 (UTC)

Why? And how is it relevant? Mglovesfun (talk) 17:30, 31 July 2013 (UTC)

Google "Manti Te'o" "catfish", and you'll get about a million results describing how Te'o was deceived by a catfish, or in a catfish scam, when he fell for a fake internet identity. There are many news and discussion hits as well, and these will likely continue for years to come, since Te'o is at the beginning of his professional football career. The etymological issue aside (clearly there is only one etymology here), the term has entered widespread use as defined. bd2412 T 17:56, 31 July 2013 (UTC)

For example:

• 2013, Jim Edwards, "Hearst Exec May Have Been Victim Of 'Catfish' Sexting Scam", Business Insider (April 12, 2013):

  Scott Sassa, the former president of entertainment and syndication at Hearst who left his job after sexual text messages he wrote were sent to the company's legal department, may have been the victim of a "catfish" scam, three sources tell Business Insider.

bd2412 T 18:00, 31 July 2013 (UTC)

Earliest cite I could find is from January. It might prove impossible to find cites spanning at least a year, since it only became popular after the Te’o fiasco, which happened less than a year ago. — Ungoliant ^(Falai) 06:01, 10 September 2013 (UTC)

Failed. Had four cites, but they don’t span a year. — Ungoliant ^(Falai) 11:58, 17 September 2013 (UTC)

Also a wolffish?

Chambers 1908 thinks so. Equinox ◑ 20:21, 18 April 2020 (UTC)