Portmanteau Words
Veronica from Traverse
City, Michigan, asked for the name of words that are formed by mashing them
together. Traditionally, they are called blends. Thanks to Lewis Carroll (Through the Looking Glass), they are
also called portmanteau words because two meanings are packed together, as if
in a valise.
Some of them are so
common that we no longer see them as two words blended together. This is true
of goodbye (God be with ye), smog (smoke + fog), and motel (motor + hotel).
The internet (international + network) has produced
many blends. Among them are webcast, podcast, webinar, netiquette, bit,
netizen, digerati, emoticon, shareware, malware, and sexting. Crossbreeding has
given us labradoodle, cockapoo, jackalope, liger, and beefalo. Showbiz (show + business) has contributed
docudrama, biopic, edutainment, infotainment, mockumentary, simulcast, and
sitcom.
Other blends frequently
encountered include affluenza, avionics, brainiac, bromance, chillax, cremains,
guesstimate, metrosexual, sexploitation, stagflation, and workaholic.
Listen to Mike’s program in real
time every Tuesday morning, 9:10 - 10:00 a.m. EST, by going to wtcmradio.com
and clicking on Listen Now. You’ll
also find about two year’s worth of podcasts here: http://wtcmradio.com/words-to-the-wise/
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