Plonk

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This article may require cleanup to meet Wikipedia's quality standards.
Please improve this article if you can. (December 2006)

Look up Plonk in
Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

Plonk can mean poor quality wine in U.K. and Australian English, evidently a loan from French "blanc", white wine.

Plonk is a Usenet jargon term for adding a particular poster to one's kill file such that the poster's future postings are completely ignored. It was first used in 1989 and by 1994^{[citation needed]} was a commonly used term on Usenet regarding kill file additions.

The word is an example of onomatopoeia, intended to humorously represent the supposed sound^[1] of the user hitting the kill file. It is also sometimes given as an acronym standing for Please Log Off, Net Kook, though this is likely a backronym. Other used expressions are "put lamer on killfile" ^[2] and Please Leave Our Newsgroup: Killfile!

It is also used as a verb: "I plonked that idiot Tom". As a public repudiation of the plonked poster, it is appended to the end of one's reply (or may constitute the entire reply).

The term's usage later expanded to include the use of e-mail filters that delete incoming messages that meet certain filter criteria set by the receiving user, so block messages from annoying senders. It has also often been figuratively used on BBSes, webboards, blogs, and wikis (which usually do not actually have filters).

1 First known use
2 Recent example use
3 Other uses
4 See also
5 References
6 External links

[edit] First known use

The first known use was in 1989 by a Richard Sexton in the alt.flame newsgroup.

>>Please refrain from posting to talk.bizarre until such time as you
>>cease to be an asshole and become at least one of: bizarre, creative,
>>or entertaining. You are welcome to dump your rotting ordure in rec.humor
>>or some similar group where your fellow mental defectives congregate.

>Make me.

*plonk*

[edit] Recent example use

[John Q. Public] wrote:
> No ramps were used to build the GP [Great Pyramid], and well as the 2 main
> others... another technique far more developed that the one even used now.

*plonk* and yet another killfile entry!

In this case the respondent has plonked John Q. Public and emphasized the point.

[edit] Other uses

"Plonk" is also used in British English as slang for cheap, low-quality wine (from the French word "blanc" for white wine). This usage dates back to World War I and was originally Australian.[1] There is a radio show / podcast about wine named "Plonk" on Australian community radio station 3RRR. [2]
Plonker is a mild insult.
Old British slang for a female police officer.
As a verb or adjective in Australian & New Zealander English, "plonk" is used to describe the action of a physical object making contact with or striking another, for example: "Plonk yourself down on the couch" or "Just let me plonk my wallet on the counter"[3]. The word is not typically used in formal conversation, and is used generally in more friendly, casual situations.