Say Uncle
Say Uncle! Who is this Uncle guy who always saves you?
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Posted on July 22, 2008 · Filed Under Lessons
Say Uncle! Who is this Uncle guy who always saves you?
Remember to vote for your teacher over at the Best Weekend Ever Website.
You can vote up to 5 times a day.
Posted on July 22, 2008 · Filed Under Lessons
It’s not the uncle himself that comes to save you. It’s the man from U.N.C.L.E.
Big Brother
1966
Say… “that was cool”
Fantastic vid M, 5*
I tend to scream ‘for f**s sake’ more than I do Uncle and just get on with it.
Having know brothers or sisters - I screamed Uncle last year. My uncle Vern, is like a rock when needed. I am lucky also to be able to scream Aunty too. Aunty Mazz and another is my Aunty Dez. - Think I may be screaming for all of them soon due to one of the most surreal few weeks of my life. Had to let woofer Duke go back to his original owners which was gutting as quite bonded with the fella. Having lunch with my beautiful mother earlier this week, she bravely told me that I have an older half brother. This came about the time my contract collapsed, homeless living out of boxes too but sence of humor with endless amounts of positive energy will rule the day. Already have good things happening again, just got to be patient until September with new home and project to get stuck in to
Besides, my Uncles are a wee bit crazy, at a wedding recently, Vern, Bill, Fred and I were all told to stop fooling about at the back of the church. We were placing bets on which family member was going to go next telling each other jokes that echoed about the church for all to hear. A few shocked faces from the future in-laws accompanied with TUTs followed by much laughter and smiles, once they clicked. The vicor was the best as he lost it completly when told paramedics are on stand by!!
gotta go, see you in class soon
Don’t let your sister bully you around Marina! Don’t you still have your KGB skills?
awwwwwwwwwwww………….. this vid is now one of my fav ever!
I was all smiles while watching Kobe.
I last said “uncle” about three weeks ago. I was taking a combatives class and was unable to tap out, so I said “uncle”.
looking gorgeous as ever
Not just “say uncle!”, but “Say UNCLE SAM!”
You say uncle, I say cheese….
Never surrender!
I think I heard the “Say Uncle” origin differently. I’ve heard it was rooted from Arabic, or something like that. And some people had misheard “uncle”, when in that language, that person was crying “mercy”.
And I never had to say uncle, unless you include, “GET OFF ME!!!”
Marina I sent you a survey thing, and i clicked the wrong button. I ment to click 1 or more years, but i clicked 2 or more so now it looks like im a liar lol. Sorry about that, just thought i’d tell you.
Hola Marina…
I guess you already saw this:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kAhMJHat0cI&feature =rec-fresh
It’s quite affectionate, really
(…and she got the boobs right 
)
Bizoooo!
i got a dutchuncle
I’d like to know the origin of the word DECOLTEE.
coby if funny ,hes trying to dig up a bone in your bed ….lol
and later hes searching for ………..something behind your bed .
i wonder what he is looking for ??????
Hi Marina,
Greetings from Poland:)
There’s one very anoying word you may hear quite often when you play online games (Guild Wars, WoW). The word is “noob”. Could You explain the origin of this word?
Cheers!:)
I request the word Wedgie.
Probally has something to do with the wedge between our but cheeks.
Marina, in another video you mentioned Russian girls even wear high heels to McDonalds and the airport like you did. On Yahoo they just reported on the annual Moscow high heels race.
Here is the Moscow glamor race from last year.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=14GzFOPmM4Q
Hello Marina,
I would like to request a word.
The word is “cuckold” and then “cuckolded”, “to be cuckold”, and even “cuckoldress”.
Somebody told me it comes from a kind of bird.
For me it is a very sexy word, because one of my strongest fantasy is to have a wife or girlfriend who is unfaithfull to me, or cuckolds me, or makes me a cuckold… strange but it makes me aroused. In spanish we have also a word with funny origin for the same meaning.
Thank you in advance for your help and your work.
Best regards
All right all ready, UNCLE!
Hey Marina, are you teaching Kobe to be a ventriloquist?
At 1:21 it looks like Kobe is making the squak sound for the parrot.
Very talented.
I just started watching your show yesterday on YouTube and I love learning the origins of all these words. The word I want to learn the origin of is “flying buttress.” I learned about them in art history back in university, but never the origin of the word. I mean, it doesn’t look like a butt, so why is it called that?
i was wondering why amerika calls his country UNCLE SAM
whats up with that???
i still dont know after all this time.
It is rumored that the name Uncle Sam came for WWI when the crates were marked US and someone said they was going to there Uncle Sam. At is what is told on AFRTS (Armed Forces Radio & Television Service).
their not there.
The last time I said “Uncle” was just a few days ago when I cried out to God for help with my finances, and he heard me. Where did the word “LIAR”
come from?
Sheesh… the last time I ever had to say uncle was probably when I was a kid and my brother and I were fighting/wrestling.
this do you? Suit you, Sir.
Never had to say uncle as a kid or adult, wrestled in High school refused to lose, but had a few draws, quit wrestling to play rugby cause I could run away or pass the ball before getting hurt to bad. Nowadays graplers replace “uncle” with the Tapoutor pass out. Kobe might learn to Tapout, before he says “uncle”.
What is she saying from 2:12 to 2:21 ?
“I’m sad to say that there doesn’t appear to be a mysterious uncle that comes to save you (when you scream “Say Uncle”) but at least we know there is a Santa Claus.”
Or…. “was” a Santa Claus?
Marina, I loved how you pronounced Santa Klaus… you know what I mean?
Thank you, Marina! I wasn’t sure you would answer my boring question and save me. Can you help me out whenever I scream “say uncle”?
Deep love from a Japanese using your site as an English text.
And what is the Santa Claus in common law?
Hello Marina, I heard “Hanky Panky” in the movie “Once” and I wondered where it came from. My favorite e-mail everyday is your video. I’d give it a 12 if I could. Thanks, ibtree
At 6′3″ and 200 lbs, I’m usually the one that says “Say Uncle!”. BTW Marina, I don’t think that Kobe can say “Uncle”. I know, I know. Just in case YOU didn’t know
Love the vid.
jnaples, he’s very talented! I’ll get him to say uncle one of these days!
Uncle in dog is “ruff.”
There’s proof that Marina is gone bonkers.
So, Marina, are you going to have an “official” birthday and share it with Capt.Jack?
What would you like for a present?
Jack, after that last remark of yours you stand no chance of Marina going bonkers with you!
Bob I think I burned that bridge a long time ago. What I say can and will be used against me in a court of women.
Ok there is a word “Bonkers” maybe Marina could enlighten us with that word. To ‘Bonk’ as in to hit? or as to have sexual intercourse with? Going ‘Bonkers’ as in going crazy?
I think Marina can get Kobe to say Uncle.
Here are some videos of dogs talking 
http://youtube.com/watch?v=ZCYaw5tGYAs
yeah, raven, and she can probably walk on water, too.
I still haven’t gotten past Kobe in the vampire video. Very scary and he’s so damn cute. Did he say “Uncle” before you (or your sister) bit him? That’s just mean.
Marina ! And what about ТЁТЯ “tiotia” = AUNTIE ?
In Slavic countries when a girl has her period and can not have sex one says “Auntie is there”. What about this in America ? I am curious.
Pilots say, “The Red Baron is in the hangar.”
THANKS !
I have a new word request. I recently visited the mountains in Kentucky. I got lost and asked a resident there for directions. He told me to go down the “hollar” as part of his direction. I’m curious to learn what this word means and what is it origin. HOTFORWORDS please investigate. BTW, I love your videos and find them intertainingly educational.
The same for me : I wanted to go to BIRMINGHAM and the Brits told me to go to BIRMHAM ! Why ?
it’s a corruption of “hollow”…basically a hole (i.e., valley) in the landscape…
now, if they hollar at you while you’re goin’ down the hollar, hollar back at ‘em…
You won’t need to, surely. If it’s a hollow there’ll be an echo when they hollar.
That’s HOLLER! Not hollar, he hollered.
Hi marina ,
How could something Sub be the best ? Whats it got to do with a lime ? Thanks my trusty teacher for everything you have taught me so far.Keep up the good work. 
I love your site.I like to read the comments.I’m not the smartest person in the world,but then again who is?
I heard a word I haven’t heard for a while.>Sublime ?
And I thought
Hello Marina, my enthralling teacher,
My word origin request is for the word “clams” as referring to money ( dollars ). How did that originate?
Also of interest would be the origin of other words that refer to paper money in America … “fin”, “sawback”, “bucks” … where did they come from?
And it would be interesting to know if Russia also has a similar strange set of words which refer to the ruble?
ps: Be nice to Kobe!
MWAAA!! xoxoxGwillikers (being more conservative, lol)
And what about the word THRALL ???
i would be enTHRALLed to learn the meaning of that word…
but, then, i’m a slave to learning…
163rd
How old is that younger sister of yours……?
Foxbow must investigate
If she is a true twin then she is old as Miss M. Which now we really don’t know how old Miss M is. She has been 27 now for about 2 years. 
Good Morning Mr. Mike. She was born in Dec, 1980. Must suck having a B-day so close to the Holiday. My step bro was born on New Years. He had hoped that his B-day was like mine, further apart from the holiday. My sisters B-day is easy to remember. I take my B-day and subtract one month and one day from mine. That makes it June 24. And you know what. I still forget her B-day. My bad.
My niece was born two days before Christmas, and she has adopted the practise of the Queen by having an “official” birthday in June.
It seems that way, right capman911!? When you are born in December you get practically a whole extra year at being a year younger!
Thats funny. I did the quick math and came out that Marina was a year older. I said thats not right. I forgot to subtract a year if the computation is before the birthday. I wish I knew Marina when she was 25 so I could say to her she is now a quarter of a century older now. My sister called me up on the phone on my 25 birthday and said just that. I returned the insult 4 years later.
So Marina. Do you get many B-day presents or just one. My brother received only one or two presents where as my sister and I received much more.
You ……. and the video is ……., the same as usual
Hum, can´t remember if I ever said it
, I prefer calling for mama 
Yeah mama always came to the rescue. Good ole mama. We love em.
she said “hello my dear student”
yeah, she ment me
it thought you were going on vacation or something…?
I am but it’s 10am and also my alarm didnt go off.
I am but it’s 10am and also my alarm didnt go off. but my my dad is driving me there
Hey don’t hog all of the dear student there.
maybe she said, “My deer student”…
are you BUCKing the system, or are you getting beHIND?
Doe!…
Your wao today aren’t you.
I wanted to be a little more personal this time… each and every one of you is getting your own special version of this video where I ONLY talk to you!
Jeez… and here I thought you were ALWAYS just talking to me….
You mean, you aren’t batting those baby-blues at me personally? When you blow a kiss from those luscious, pouty, bee-stung lips, it’s not just fired off at me?
You cut me, Marina…. you cut me deep….
prospero811, in your case, your video was always your own special one… but don’t tell everyone, I’ll end up having to make 95,400 more personal ones!
*rolleyes*
I knew it!
With each new video I will know that each flash of your eyes is just for me, the light from your smile shines only upon me…. although….hey wait…. if the videos are just for me… how come you say “…my dear students” with a plural “s.” Shouldn’t it be “my dear student?”
Hmmm…….
You tryin’ to pull a fast one? Or, maybe the wool over my eyes?
Quick someone go out and by Prospero a larger hat. His head is swelling.
Cap’nJack -I already use Magnums… is there a larger size jimmy hat?
Hey Miss M. did I miss something about the personal videos. I had something try to come through my e-mail, but I didn’t get anything.
154th!
259th!
Bob’s Your Uncle.
Hey Bob, You just reminded me about one of my students wanted to know the origin of “Mind Your P’s & Q’s”. He heard of the Pints and Quarts theory and I heard of the type setting theory. I didn’t see a P&Q in the lesson list. Maybe professor M can investigate.
I have another request, the phrase “Who’s your Daddy?’ That still stumps me today.
There’s another theory that it had to do with sailors who wore Pea Jackets and had their long hair braided up in a single pigtail at the back of the head, a Queue. This Queue was often powdered and so would leave a white mark on the back of the jacket.
I wonder if that has anything to do with the traditional square sailors collar on the naval uniform?
You know Bob, I really don’t know. I still have my pea coat from the Navy and I wore crackerjacks. The Navy has used many uniform styles in the past years. Now days its all about traditions of long ago is why they wear crackerjacks as their dress uniforms. They still wear blue shirts and bell bottom jeans for pants. Interesting thing about bell bottom jeans is they do sever a propose. They make it easy to take your pants off in an emergency with your boots still on. Crackerjacks have 13 buttons (i think) to remove the pants.
We said “I Give!” rather than uncle, and it was probably at the hands of my brother many, many years ago.
Last time I said uncle….Never :p Im not english
it would be genade in dutch or armo in Finnish (both my natives)
Luckily it has never come so far for me to say that, i’ll just figt back untill they say it
Hey marina, do you get a lot of emails or something? cuz i send u a lot of emails, personal ones, but u never reply to any of them. I think u replied once but thats it. Id appreciate it if u could reply to some of my emails =) thank you. BTW nice video.
Hey Marina,
Where did the term heeb-geeb’s come from 
I think my mind wonders too much. I have yet another request for you
SORRY if I am pestering you. I love words(yet I am not the best speller) and I have passed on alot of what I have learned from you to my friends and family
Keep up the GREAT work.
Hello! Recently on television there was a spat between Omarosa and Wendy Williams. Wendy commented “you at like the Angry Black Woman that White people are afraid of.” Then Omarosa Stated” I would much rather be the AWB than be called a buffoon.”
My question is what is origin of the word buffoon?
What is the origin of the phrase “naked as a jaybird” Why is it jaybird?
I can’t remember ever having to cry Uncle but your video gave me the urge to buy a cute dog and put up a Christmas tree to invite Santa over…yes, it is summer and I’m dreaming of snow.
Did you know up here in the Pacific North West the city of Seattle gets very little snow? You would think with all the rain the snow would be 10 feet deep. Snow in Seattle is always about 1 to 4 inches if that. It melts in a week or less.
It’s the same here in Aberdeen, Jack. It’s due to the proximity of the sea which acts as a giant heat-sink and thus has a moderating effect on the weather. Go two or three miles inland, over the hill past the airport, and there’s often a straight line across the road with deeper and longer-lasting snow on the landward side.
I was a bit familiar with the area but didn’t know it got so little snow. Very interesting! I know I’m probably in the minority but I actually like snow. A blissful day in winter is when we’re all snowed in, with a fire blazing in the fireplace and enough food, even if we have to cook it in the fireplace. If we have to, we can stay in that one room. Last time, we ended up completing the Eiffel Tower, made out of Legos. A zillion pieces, most of them the same size and shape and color and there were THREE (yes, three) separate instruction booklets. And yet, oddly, I still like Legos.
I used to live in a town called Aberdeen. Lived there for about 9 years. Its about 60 miles south of Seattle. The get 50 plus inches (1.27m) of rain. And when it snows its about 6 inch (15.24cm) to a foot (30cm). Get this Aberdeen is closer t the ocean than Seattle. I hear its this phenomenon called the convergence zone. This Zone makes it imposable to predict the weather.
jcr, I like all 4 seasons. One reason I loved living in Eastern Washington. You get all seasons. 5 feet of snow in the winter and 104º summers and everything else in between. Many Californians are moving to Eastern Washington now. Its becoming the next Palm Springs they say.
Legos are great fun. It was my favorite toy. It required the use of my brain. Also if I got tired of what I built I would build something else. I just visited a Lego store about a month ago to see what was new. They are doing the Indiana Jones theme now.
What have you got when your parrot escapes?
Nil parity
or
A polygon
Two parrots were sitting on a perch.
One said to the other : “Do you smell Fish?”
Once upon a time…
My mother’s sister would hold me down and tickle my stomach until I yelled- “Auntie!”
Some cousins would hold me down and give me a “pink belly” until I yelled “Uncle!”
Parrot
marina,what about the phrase….soups on!!!
Or… soup-to-nuts?
Or… in the soup?
Speaking of S.O.U.P. We need a new president to take over. I should step down and let someone else make something of it.
I don’t say uncle…unless if anybody thinks I’m lying.. I may be lying. If I am lying I might as well spit it out when the last time I cry uncle.
Hola Marina!
I just watched your Vampire video. I like your vampire voice but (forgive me for being pedantic) I have a grammar correction for you. I think you said: “…who borrowed from whom”. I think it should be “…who borrowed from who” as the second who is the subject of the sentence. For instance, we say “who’s who in Hollywood” and the reference book for accomplished people is Who’s Who (not Who’s Whom).
Oh, I am glad your little dog is in the videos more now.
He is cute.
Bizooooo!
PS Is the cheering you have at the start of your videos these days from a vinyl sound-effects record? You can hear scratching at the beginning!
I’m sure a computer guy can remove this…
Hi presumined,
re: “…who borrowed from whom”.
I believe Marina’s grammar is correct in the video.
Substituting pronouns, we get:
“…he borrowed from her” or “…she borrowed from him”
Now, re-substituting who/whom we would get:
“…who borrowed from whom”
Based on Rule #1 near the bottom of the page of this reference:
http://web.ku.edu/~edit/whom.html
That’s not how we say it in England.
It’s why we have a book here called Who’s Who.
http://www.ukwhoswho.com/public/home.html
Your rule…
Who’s Who = who is who = he/she is him/her
Don’t worry, I’m sure they can reprint… once you tell them they’ve been getting it wrong since 1849.
I’d rather trust the English language than some badly typeset page on the internet.
Hi presumined, I didn’t say Who’s Who is incorrect.
Who’s Who is correct by the same rule.
Ex: Who’s Who could be rewritten as Who is she or Who is he.
Going by the same Rule #1, that becomes Who’s Who.
It Would be wrong to say, Who is him and therefore Who’s Whom would be wrong.
In the phrase “…who borrowed from whom”, isn’t the second pronoun the object being operated on and not a subject?
Sorry presumined but you’re on the loosing side of this one. According to Woe Is I, by P. O’Conner, who is a subject like he; whom is an object like him and generally preceded by a preposition. i.e. She is the author who wrote the book and in whom I have complete confidence. The Who’s Who lists are correct, —it’s like who is who, which is which, what is what etc., but, that doesn’t mean that every who is automatically trailed by another. It’s a slightly obscure piece of grammar & whom is dying these days and hardly used in speech. Great for you to question though, I wonder how many thought as you did and said nothing, keep it up! I’m wrong as much as I’m right–just not this time.
re: “whom is dying these days and hardly used in speech.”
That is correct okay4now, and I guess we are witnessing a change in grammatical rules before our eyes. In some cases, “who” and “whom” is interchangeable and the more formal case of “whom” has been lost to the more popular “who”.
English is my second language, so I am more sensitive to the nuances as I try to practice speaking proper English.
If you live in england (like I do) then why did you say hola marina
Jambo James,
I say “hola” for sh!ts and giggles…
To many people this is rather obvious but it tends to drive pedants nuts… (Didn’t u spot that I sign off with “bizoo”, which is French?)… BTW, when I wrote the the letter “u” just now, it was an incorrect spelling: it should read “you”. I’m fully prepared to concede that point… 
It strikes me that Marina’s mindset might be similar to mine. She’s making a crapload of money thanks to the power of the Pedantic Dollar. And she doesn’t point out my linguistic inconsistencies (…if you look back through previous postings you’ll see that, for some reason, she does indeed often respond to my rubbish…
)
Meanwhile, there are people being slaughtered in Darfur and certain other people who devote most of their strong emotions to arguing a point of grammar. It’s insane.
It doesn’t matter if you do nothing to end the misery of thousands of innocents as long as you prove your point on a website message board.
A la prochaine,
Presumin’ Ed
Nice observation, Ed. Good to hear from you again. These days and hereabouts there does seem to be quite a bit of nitpicking while the house burns down with the baby inside.
But all the same I still can’t resist asking James the erstwhile A student under what conditions is it considered proper to terminate an interrogative phrase sans punctuation (see above)? Okay, that was a rhetorical question, i.e., JUST KIDDING!
Have a great vacation, James! I’m looking forward to more of your videos.
marina,whats the origin of the phrase…”say cheese” when getting your picture taken.
Maybe its because it forces you to show your teeth making it look like your smiling?
When I take pictures I try to tell a funny joke. The smiles are more realist looking. 
My Name Is Huitzil
Is it NAHUATL ?
Huitzilopochtli?
What does your Name Mean?… I’ve Always been asked by my friends about my name, the occasional one can pronounce it correctly. But no one that I have met has been able to recognize the origins of the word. So I ask you if you can mention the origins on one of your lessons.
i hope you dont get mad at me for requesting this word could you do the word sex
Why is it girls hang onto the Santa Claus thing?
Because thats who brings the DOLCE&GABANNA.
they like fat guys
Oh! Goody!
in the spanish language, to be more especific, in mexico we have the same joke and with the same punishment and also tearing the the hair out but the word that you suppose to repeat is GALLETA ( cookie ) and principally among teens and children
hello hot for words. i just joined the navy and i was wondering if you could define the term/word “boot camp”. if you would that would be great
Top of the day to you Marina!
Thanks so much for your wonderful videos!
I have a word request………It is:
Fan
As in Sports “Fan”
Where does the fan part of Sports Fan come from?
I hope you can answer.
You are the best!
Cullen
i know what it means ooh ooh ooh call on me
Norwegian blue
Palin
i do have a magic uncle, but saving is not his job
he gets drunk with me
we use to play pool a lot
word request: pool (referring to the game) does it have anything to do with the swimming pool?
here in Argentina we don’t call our uncles to save us
dead parrot
oh buzz you always post great vids
i love monty python
Love monty python and love the dead parrot bit
“…and who are you who are so wise in the ways of science?”