22
$\begingroup$

In the spirit of the What is a Word™/Phrase™ series started by JLee, a special brand of Phrase™ and Word™ puzzles.

If a word conforms to a special rule, I call it a Swiss Knife Word™.
Use the following examples below to find the rule.

Swiss Knife Words ™ Not Swiss Knife Words ™
ORANGE PEAR
MEET MEAT
GO CHESS
ANSWER RESPONSE
PUZZLE SOLUTION
ACCOUNT USER
PLANT BACTERIA
TRUMP PRESIDENT
FIRE FORGET
PHONE COMPUTER

And, if you want to analyze, here is a CSV version:

Swiss Knife Words™,Not Swiss Knife Words™
ORANGE,PEAR
MEET,MEAT
GO,CHESS
ANSWER,RESPONSE
PUZZLE,SOLUTION
ACCOUNT,USER
PLANT,BACTERIA
TRUMP,PRESIDENT
FIRE,FORGET
PHONE,COMPUTER

The puzzle satisfies the series' inbuilt assumption, that each word can be tested for whether it is a Swiss Knife Word™ without relying on the other words.
These are not the only examples of Swiss Knife Words™; many more exist.

What is the special rule these words conform to?

$ $  

Improve this question
$\endgroup$
1
  • 2
    $\begingroup$ That was the most important edit I have ever approved. Avoided catastrophe there! $\endgroup$
    – Adam
    Commented Jan 10, 2020 at 13:52

2 Answers 2

Reset to default
24
$\begingroup$

My humble guess:

A Swiss Knife Word fits into more than one "class", while a Not Swiss Knife Word is of only one "class". A "class" is one of noun, verb, adjective, adverb etc. (part of speech).

Clarification:

orange is N/A; pear is N-only
meet is N/V; meat is N-only
go is N/V; chess is N-only
answer is N/V; response is N-only
puzzle is N/V; solution is N-only
account is N/V; user is N-only
plant is N/V; bacteria is N-only
trump is N/V; president is N-only
fire is N/V; forget is V-only
phone is N/V; computer is N-only

It's called a Swiss Knife Word™ because

just like a Swiss Army Knife, it is capable of different functions.

More examples:

Swiss Knife Word - Not Swiss Knife Word

correct - incorrect
safe - danger
milk - coffee
stop - cease
stable - delicate

Improve this answer
$\endgroup$
11
  • $\begingroup$ As for the correct term: bit.ly/36FkeGp (the link itself would spoil the solution) $\endgroup$
    – Glorfindel
    Commented Jan 9, 2020 at 15:59
  • $\begingroup$ @Glorfindel Isn't there a single word for this? $\endgroup$
    – iBug
    Commented Jan 9, 2020 at 15:59
  • 11
    $\begingroup$ I would like to incorrect you in the matter of the first additional Not Swiss Knife Word. $\endgroup$
    – Bass
    Commented Jan 9, 2020 at 18:36
  • 2
    $\begingroup$ Well, of course your answer is correct, that's why I wanted to incorrect it :-) $\endgroup$
    – Bass
    Commented Jan 9, 2020 at 19:29
  • 8
    $\begingroup$ OK, so the Swissest Knife word is undoubtedly, "buffalo". $\endgroup$
    – Mr Lister
    Commented Jan 10, 2020 at 13:25
2
$\begingroup$

Words which have more than one meaning? Each word on the left contains more than common meaning, where as words on the right generally have two or more. Although, does Trump? Do names count in this context

Improve this answer
$\endgroup$

Your Answer

By clicking “Post Your Answer”, you agree to our terms of service and acknowledge you have read our privacy policy.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.