2 definitions by spadlunk
n. a word used in the entertainment industry to mean a respectful reference or tribute to someone or something else in the industry; for example, a remake film might make an hommage to the original.
The word is pronounced "oe-MAZH". Originally the word was one and the same as homage (pronounced "OM-ij" or "HOM-ij"), but filmmakers started thinking this word ("homage") was borrowed from French (which it is not), and wanted to sound sophisticated or more accurate, so they started pronouncing it as though it were French. When the people tasked with writing things down realized you couldn't spell the sound "oe-MAZH" as "homage", they wisely decided to use the French version of the word ("hommage"), and thus filmmakers avoided scathing ridicule for not knowing how to pronounce an honest English word.
The word is pronounced "oe-MAZH". Originally the word was one and the same as homage (pronounced "OM-ij" or "HOM-ij"), but filmmakers started thinking this word ("homage") was borrowed from French (which it is not), and wanted to sound sophisticated or more accurate, so they started pronouncing it as though it were French. When the people tasked with writing things down realized you couldn't spell the sound "oe-MAZH" as "homage", they wisely decided to use the French version of the word ("hommage"), and thus filmmakers avoided scathing ridicule for not knowing how to pronounce an honest English word.
Lady Gaga makes an hommage to Alfred Hitchcock in her song "Bad Romance" by saying, "I want your psycho, your vertigo schtick—want you in my rear window, baby you're sick."
by spadlunk May 1, 2010
n. an honor, tribute, or respectful reference to someone or something.
The word is pronounced "OM-ij" or "HOM-ij", not "oe-MAZH", as is popular in the entertainment industry. This erroneous pronunciation came about when people starting thinking the word was French and wanted to sound sophisticated. The word is not French. It comes from Middle English, then from Old French, which was not pronounced the same as modern French. The French word for homage is "hommage" (with two m's).
The word is pronounced "OM-ij" or "HOM-ij", not "oe-MAZH", as is popular in the entertainment industry. This erroneous pronunciation came about when people starting thinking the word was French and wanted to sound sophisticated. The word is not French. It comes from Middle English, then from Old French, which was not pronounced the same as modern French. The French word for homage is "hommage" (with two m's).
The remake made an homage to the original by casting the heroine from the old film as the heroine's mother in the new film.
by spadlunk May 1, 2010