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Anonymous Posted 10 years ago
Vocabulary

Demob

"As for uncle Barack, far from being downcast about the prospect of handing over the White House keys to a man he warned would flush his legacy down the toilet, the mood was jovial, liberated, even a little demob happy." (The Guardian.)

Does "demob happy" mean "demobilizingly happy" in the above?
  

Top answer

'Demob' is a word that is used as a short version of 'demobilize' or 'demobilization', depending on what part of speech it is in the original context. The expression 'demob happy' means 'demobilization happy' and is used with reference to people (particularly in the armed forces) who are preparing to leave their role and no longer have responsibilities that they once had. It has increasingly become used in civilian life, hence the reference here.

— David Hatton

  • 'Demob' is a word that is used as a short version of 'demobilize' or 'demobilization', depending on what part of speech it is in the original context.
  • The expression 'demob happy' means 'demobilization happy' and is used with reference to people (particularly in the armed forces) who are preparing to leave their role and no longer have responsibilities that they once had.
  • It has increasingly become used in civilian life, hence the reference here.
  • It is rarely (as far as I'm aware) used in full; 'demob happy' is the expression that people recognise, regardless of it being an abbreviation.
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8 Answers
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'Demob' is a word that is used as a short version of 'demobilize' or 'demobilization', depending on what part of speech it is in the original context.

The expression 'demob happy' means 'demobilization happy' and is used with reference to people (particularly in the armed forces) who are preparing to leave their role and no longer have responsibilities that they once had. It has increasi
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Demob is British English. I've never heard it used in the US.
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David HattonThe expression 'demob happy' means 'demobilization happy'
Thank you for the reply.

I understand that "happy" is a complement of the noun "demobilization" in the noun phrase "demob happy," not an adjective being modified.
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I'm afraid in the UK hardly anyone will be able to explain the idea of a noun complement and even as an English teacher I certainly haven't encountered them! It's one of those levels of grammar that we never get taught nor teach in British schools.
Apologies for not holding the answer to that one - someone better qualified in linguistic analysis may be able to explain it in those terms!
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Postpositive adjectives (adjective positioned after the noun they modify) are used in special cases in English.

He lives in the city proper.
He is nobody important.
We had food and drink galore.
The detective will discover the person responsible.

Set phrases:
heir apparent
time immemorial
court martial
surgeon general
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David HattonApologies for not holding the answer to that one - someone better qualified in linguistic analysis may be able to explain it in those terms!
Not at all. Thank you for your replies. It's been thought-provoking and I think that I've found the answer.

I think that author of that phrase should write it as a compound adjective, i.e. "demob-happ
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AnonymousDoes "demob happy" mean "demobilizingly happy" in the above?
No. "happy that he will be demobilizing (i.e., leaving)"

The reason for being "happy" (actually meaning "eager") is given in the noun modifier that precedes it. It's a rarely used construction. Another is 'punch-drunk'.

CJ
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Anonymousa compound adjective, i.e. "demob-happy", the way we say "trigger-happy".
Yup.

CJ
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