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Sniglet

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Sniglet is a neologism, popularized by comedian/actor Rich Hall during his tenure on the 1980s HBO comedy series Not Necessarily the News. Each episode of the monthly series featured a regular segment on sniglets, which Hall described as "any word that doesn't appear in the dictionary, but should". Hall's own sniglets, along with submissions by fans, were compiled into several books, starting with Sniglets and More Sniglets.

Origins

In 1984, a collection of sniglets was published, titled Sniglets (snig' lit: any word that doesn't appear in the dictionary, but should). It was followed by a "daily comic panel" in newspapers,[1] four more books, a game, and a calendar. The books have their entries arranged in alphabetical order like a dictionary, with information on how to pronounce the word, followed by a definition, and sometimes accompanied by an illustration. The original book had two appendices, "Anatomical Sniglets" and "Extra Added Bonus Section for Poets" (a sniglet that rhymed with orange). More Sniglets has an "Audio-Visual Sniglets" section; the rest had no such appendices. All five books had an "Official Sniglets Entry Blank," beginning, "Dear Rich: Here's my sniglet, which is every bit as clever as any in this dictionary." The first four books listed all the contributors after the dedication page.

The Game of Sniglets involved creating new sniglets, in addition to trying to guess the "true sniglet". In the "Playing Instructions," there are ideas on "How to Create a Sniglet" which include (1) combination (blend), (2) spelling change (altering a word related to the definition), (3) pure nonsense word, or (4) a "take-off on a well known product" (a spelling change to a trademark). However, any method was acceptable.

Sniglets and society

In a 1990 interview, Hall was asked if the "Sniglets books [were] completely for comic value?" He answered,

Yeah. Well, no. I wouldn't say they're completely for comic value. I mean, I get letters from schools all the time saying how they've incorporated a sniglet book into their reading program. You can look at a lot of the words and sort of break them down into their etymological origins. And you can learn a lot about how and where words derive from. When you assign this frailty of human nature a word, then the word has to work. It has to either be a hybrid of several other words, or have a Latin origin, or something.[2]

Books such as A Handbook for Substitute Teachers (1989) by Anne Wescott Dodd and Reading and Language Arts Worksheets Don't Grow Dendrites : 20 Literacy Strategies That Engage the Brain (2005) by Marcia L. Tate bear out his claim; they suggest creating sniglets as a classroom activity.

Popular English language experts such as Richard Lederer and Barbara Wallraff have noted sniglets in their books, The Miracle of Language[3] and Word Court: Wherein Verbal Virtue Is Rewarded, Crimes Against the Language Are Punished, and Poetic Justice Is Done[4] respectively. More recently, the idea has been "borrowed" by Barbara Wallraff for her new book Word Fugitives: In Pursuit of Wanted Words, where "word fugitives" is her term for invented words. Wallraff's Atlantic Monthly column "Word Fugitives" features words invented by readers, although they must be puns, which many sniglets are not.

Sniglets also are a popular subject of satire. Homer Simpson, a character on the animated series The Simpsons, suggests Son of Sniglet as a good book to name as a favorite and a life influence on a college application in the episode "Homer Goes to College".[5] Additionally, Dale Gribble on King of the Hill explains away his inappropriate laughter at his successfully sabotaging Bill Dauterive's new relationship by saying "just remembered a funny sniglet!" in the episode "Untitled Blake McCormack Project" (2008). The Onion published an article in 2001 mocking Sniglets as an obscure fad. [6]

Origins

Many sniglets are portmanteau words, a comedic style often traced to Lewis Carroll.

Humor writer Paul Jennings had published made-up meanings of real place-names in a 1963 essay appearing in The Jenguin Pennings.[7] Author Douglas Adams, while travelling with British comedy producer John Lloyd, suggested they play a game he had learned at school in which players were challenged to make up plausible word definitions for place names taken from road maps. The definitions they came up with were later incorporated into a 1983 book, The Meaning of Liff. When the format of Lloyd's satirical TV show Not the Nine O'Clock News was sold to America to become Not Necessarily the News, the producers also took the made-up word definition concept, which became Sniglets.[8]

Books and more

Rich Hall released several volumes of collected sniglets, illustrated by Arnie Ten:

  • Sniglets (snig' lit: any word that doesn't appear in the dictionary, but should) (1984) ISBN 0-02-012530-5
  • More Sniglets (1985a) ISBN 0-02-012560-7
  • Unexplained Sniglets of the Universe (1986) ISBN 0-02-040400-X
  • Angry Young Sniglets (1987) ISBN 0-02-012600-X
  • When Sniglets Ruled the Earth (1989) ISBN 0-02-040441-7
  • Sniglets for Kids (Sniglets Collector Sticker Books) (1985b) ISBN 0-89954-397-9
  • Game of Sniglets (1990) OCLC 25494206
  • Sniglet a Day - 1994 Calendar (1993) ISBN 0-8362-7379-6

Sniglets examples

  • Toastaphobia: The fear of sticking a fork in a toaster even when it's unplugged.
  • Adam 69: Two police cars, parked next to each other, facing opposite directions, in such a way that the drivers' side doors are only inches from each other, allowing the officers to chat with each other while waiting for a traffic violation to happen.
  • Anniversorry: The act of buying presents, especially diamonds, to make up for a forgotten anniversary.
  • Sark: The marks left on one's ankle after wearing tube socks all day.
  • Pre-autoistic McConsumption: The tendency to start eating your french fries in the car on your way home.
  • Idiot Box: The part of the envelope that tells a person where to place the stamp when they can't quite figure it out for themselves.
  • Ancinemation: The curious act of waiting in line to see a movie and watching exiting movie goers' reactions to see if they liked the movie or not.
  • Downpause: The split second interruption of rain as you drive your car under a bridge.[9]
  • Lactomangulation: Manhandling the "open here" spout on a milk carton so badly that one has to resort to using the "illegal" side.
  • Televator: The rolling line on a TV when the Horizontal hold isn't adjusted.
  • Alcolean: The point just before a drunk person starts to stumble.
  • Cinemuck: The sticky substance on the floor of a movie theater.
  • Nerkle: Someone who leaves their Christmas lights/decorations up all year.
  • Doork: A person who tries to enter through a door clearly marked 'Exit'.[10]
  • Magnacarta: The lonely car in lot that always attracts shopping carts
  • Idiolocation: The spot on the map marked "You are here."[11]
  • Expresshole: The ***hole in the express lane at the store who has way more items in his cart than the limit for the lane.
  • Icealanche: The avalanche of ice that occurs when a glass or cup is tipped up to drink the last of the liquid.
  • Adadictomy: The medical term for when a woman has a sex change operation.
  • Vagitarian: An alternate word for "lesbian".

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Metcalf, Alan (2002). Predicting New Words: The Secrets of Their Success, page 23. ISBN 0-618-13006-3
  2. ^ Lerner, Reuven M. "An interview with Rich Hall" The Tech Volume 110, No. 37, September 25, 1990, page 10.
  3. ^ Lederer, Richard (1999). The Miracle of Language, page 58
  4. ^ Wallraff, Barbara (2001). Word Court: Wherein Verbal Virtue Is Rewarded, Crimes Against the Language Are Punished, and Poetic Justice Is Done, page 306
  5. ^ Groening, Matt (1997). The Simpsons: A Complete Guide to Our Favorite Family", page 122.
  6. ^ "Man Won't Stop Coming Up With New Sniglets" The Onion Issue 37•11, March 28, 2001
  7. ^ http://msgboard.snopes.com/message/ultimatebb.php?/ubb/get_topic/f/95/t/000699/p/1.html Snopes.com "Don't you have a word for...?"
  8. ^ Pearlman, Gregg "Exclusive Interview With Douglas Adams"
  9. ^ Hall, Rich & Friends. More Sniglets (1985a) ISBN 0-02-012560-7
  10. ^ Hall, Rich & Friends. More Sniglets (1985a) ISBN 0-02-012560-7
  11. ^ Hall, Rich & Friends. Unexplained Sniglets of the Universe (1986) ISBN 0-02-040400-X
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