Posted by Jeremy Kriewaldt on April 04, 2006 at 01:34:11 from 202.138.212.58 user JeremyKriewaldt.
In Reply to: Re: SW: Sentry(-)go posted by Ed Kiser on April 04, 2006 at 01:21:27:
Thanks for that, Ed.
I think that the hyphen is for the noun form. This is like the verb and adverb "buy back" correctly forming the nominal form "buy-back". An equivalent is the verb and adverb "take over" should lead to the noun "take-over" (not takeover - although this form has taken over in current usage).
"Sentry go" the verb form seems to be based on a military command - "Take your position as sentry, go!"
So Roger may have been correct to say "Bridget on sentry go" - typical brother ordering the younger sister to take up her allotted role in the "game" and Titty was right to use the hyphen, she was using the word as a noun signifying the activity in which Bridget was engaged.
But has anyone ever come across this (in either form ) anywhere else? And where did AR get it from?