Words you think should exist in English

[TheAnachronism]

My friend and I find much humor in the word "Jewess," given that it sounds so outdated and odd in any conversation, which is why we always find reason to use it anyway. We were both troubled that no word specifically referring to a female Christian existed in English, thus gave rise to the word Christienne.

I know most Western society is evolving in such a way that many gender-specific nouns are no longer popular in English, but I still think it's both a useful and hilarious word to have around.

I would love to hear words that you think should exist in English--whether or not you came up with them yourself, or are merely an advocate for someone else's idea.

 

[NobbyNobbs]

As a very young child, my brother understood that a princess was a female prince. It was some time, though, before he understood why a fortress was not a female fort.

 

[six7s]

a fortress was not a female fort.

What about a buttress?

 

[six7s]

merely an advocate for someone else's idea.

The Meaning of Liff
By Douglas Adams and John Lloyd



Can be heaps of fun if/when a bunch of friends become 'fluent'

In Life*, there are many hundreds of common experiences, feelings, situations and even objects which we all know and recognize, but for which no words exist.
On the other hand, the world is littererd with thousands of spare words which spend their time doing nothing but loafing about on signposts pointing at places.
Our job, as wee see it, is to get these words dow off the signposts and into the mouths of babes and sucklings and so on, where they can start earning their keep in everyday conversation and make a more positive contribution to society.


*And, indeed, in Liff.

a few examples

HAGNABY (n.)
Someone who looked a lot more attractive in the disco than they do in your bed the next morning.

KINGSTON BAGPUISE (n.)
A forty-year-old sixteen-stone man trying to commit suicide by jogging.

SHALUNT (n.)
One who wears Trinidad and Tobago T-shirts on the beach in Bali to prove they didn't just win the holiday in a competition or anything.

 

[Lensman]

This one made me chuckle:

GRIMSBY (n.)
A lump of something gristly and foul tasting concealed in a mouthful of stew or pie. Grimsbies are sometimes merely the result of careless cookery, but more often they are placed there deliberately by Freemasons. Grimsbies can be purchased in bulk from any respectable Masonic butcher on giving him the secret Masonic handbag. One is then placed in a guests food to see if he knows the correct masonic method of dealing with it. If the guest is not a Mason, the host may find it entertaining to watch how he handles the obnoxious object. It may be
(a) manfully swallowed, invariably bringing tears to the eyes,
(b) chewed with resolution for up to twenty minutes before eventually resorting to method (a),
(c) choked on fatally.
The Masonic handshake is easily recognised by another Mason incidentally, for by it a used grimsby is passed from hand to hand. The secret Masonic method for dealing with a grimsby is as follows : remove it carefully with the silver tongs provided, using the left hand. Cross the room to your host, hopping on one leg, and ram the grimsby firmly up his nose, shouting, 'Take that, you smug Masonic gastard.'

 

[Professor Yaffle]

This is my favourite:

LINDISFARNE (adj.)
Descriptive of the pleasant smell of an empty biscuit tin.

 

[Jeff Corey]

My friend and I find much humor in the word "Jewess," given that it sounds so outdated and odd in any conversation, which is why we always find reason to use it anyway. We were both troubled that no word specifically referring to a female Christian existed in English, thus gave rise to the word Christienne...

There is one already - shiksa. Look it up.

 

[brodski]

There is one already - shiksa. Look it up.

Not being Jewish makes you a Christain? When did that happen?

 

[Safe-Keeper]

Couple interesting ones in Norwegian - we have two different words for 'yes' (ja and jo), and a word (døgn) used interchangeably for a day and a night (read: a calendar day), or a 24 hour period.

In the case of ja/jo, ja is a plain yes, while jo is a disagreeing/correcting yes.

If asked if you have a dog, the answer would be ja.

If, however, someone said to you, "you weren't at school yesterday" and you want to tell him you were in fact present on campus that day, just unnoticed due to unforeseen circumstances, you'd say that jo, I was in fact at school yesterday.


You don't know what you're missing, people.

Not being Jewish makes you a Christain? When did that happen?

What do you have to spill to make a Christain?

 

[Elizabeth I]

One that I did not make up but that I like is a word to describe that infinitesimal period of time when you realize that you're doing something wrong, but too late to stop it (like when you realize you're closing your locked car door with your keys inside, but too late to stop the momentum of hand and door.)

Its ohnosecond.

 

[hgc]

You know when you get that little hickup or belch that leaves a taste of stomach acid in your mouth?

regurgiburp

 

[quarky]

Schmaltzy feel-good movies?

"cornography"

 

[I Ratant]

The universal term "bitch" pretty much describes the female.
One can add "ditsy", "arrogant", "bat-◊◊◊◊ crazy", etc for emphasis.
.
I recall one biblical feature about Ruth?, where the guys had to wrap their mouths around Moabitess".

 

[dasmiller]

One of my favorites - I forget the source - is
Millihelen: The amount of beauty needed to launch one ship.

An hour or so after the Northridge earthquake, when we were having fairly strong aftershocks every minute or so, I created
Seismopotophobia: The fear that there will be an earthquake while you're using the bathroom.

I scribbled the definition on a piece of paper and stuck it on the wall at work as a joke. Several people stopped by and said, rather embarrassed, "you know, I think I have that."

 

[TX50]

I wish "mu" as a question denying word was more widely known:

http://catb.org/jargon/html/M/mu.html

 

[PrincessIneffabelle]

The universal term "bitch" pretty much describes the female.
One can add "ditsy", "arrogant", "bat-◊◊◊◊ crazy", etc for emphasis.
.
I recall one biblical feature about Ruth?, where the guys had to wrap their mouths around Moabitess".

Oh, good one! LOL!!

 

[TX50]

Seismopotophobia: The fear that there will be an earthquake while you're using the bathroom.

That Greek would actually mean "fear of shaking while drinking."

 

[Monketi Ghost]

**snip**

What do you have to spill to make a Christain?

Now that made me laff.

 

[dasmiller]

That Greek would actually mean "fear of shaking while drinking."

I'll be the first to admit that when I'm sitting on a toilet during a 5.1 aftershock, my Greek isn't all that good.

 

[NobbyNobbs]

I don't think it's a real word, but my aunt will use the word "vomititious". The nice thing is, no definition is required. It's self-explanatory.