Don't you just love Portmanteau words? Portmanteau words are those made up words you get when you SmashWordsTogetherLikeS''''''o so damn hard that some letters fall off the start of one and off the end of the other. Note - these are also called Frankenwords. What an excellent frankenword the word 'frankenword' is. Here are more examples: * chocoholic (chocolate + alcoholic) * infotainment (information + entertainment) * edutainment (education + entertainment) * dancercize (dance + exercise) * infomercial * advertainment * advertorial * advermercial - (my favourite, LeonBambrick) * evailable - electronically available, as in, "I'm taking a vacation, but I'll be evailable." * NetiZen - an internet citizen * WikiZen (can be Wiki + Citizen or Wiki + Zen, where the latter is not a frankenword) * GiNormous (this is one we used to use as kids) * Netiquette - Internet + etiquette * Imagineering (see DisneyImagineering) * Fungineering * sacrilicious - thanks homer * KnowledgeBase - Knowledge + Database - * WisdomBase - (coined in BuzzwordMasochist) * smudgemate (smudge and estimate - a way of inventing figures for a waterfall method project schedule) ** And the related guesstimate * frankenword - coined on http://dailybeacon.utk.edu/issues/v73/n8/gratz.8v.html * MicroSoft - another frankenword! - and, tellingly, it is managed by a morphing borg drone. * docudrama * docusoap * faction - merging of fact and fiction - for example, speeches by american presidents * factoid - merging of facts and haemorrhoids * viewser (view + browser) see http://www.afc.gov.au/resources/online/afc_loi/presentations/nic_b.html * WorkAholic/workoholic - in NewSpeak the suffix 'holic' means 'addict'. quite nonsensical. * FreeWare, SpyWare, NagWare, ShareWare, and literally dozens more ''-ware'' words: http://www.rdrop.com/~half/Creations/Writings/Miscellaneous/everyware.html * AdWare - basically 'ware' as a NewSpeak suffix now means specifically 'software' * soundscape * exaggeraddict * fascinaddict * fantabulous! * OrgasMatron * AutoMagic * cineplex * discountinued (found on the LivePicture page) * brunch - it is not quite breakfast, not quite lunch; and there is a slice of cantaloupe at the end * motel * modem - modulate + demodulate * chortle - chuckle + snort * smog - smoke + fog * mornoon * aftorning * bit - binary + digit * qubit - quantum bit * pixel * oxbridge * labradoodle from labradoor and poodle * pizzaburger * beefalo * spork (spoon + fork ) * splade (spoon/blade combo utensil) * stragedy - strategy + tragedy * flirtini - (cocktail combining flirt and martini) from SexAndTheCity (hopefully there is no page for that on WardsWiki - it's more likely the kind of thing they'd discuss over on MeatBall :+) ) * praystation - a new christians-only game console (invented on CNNNN - an australian comedy news show) * fungry - restaurant, supposedly from fun + hungry, but more likely "f***ing hungry" (also invented on CNNNN) * weathertainment - modern style of weather information on a news broadcast ((also invented on CNNNN) * fugly - f***ing ugly - used in places to describe heinously ugly things * screamapillar - A screaming caterpillar, from ''The Simpsons'' * tragicomedy - tragedy & comedy combined * Cocacolonization - Coca-Cola + "colonization" * Californicate * electrocute - from electrify and execute * Crisatunity - from ''The Simposons'' ('''Lisa:''' Look on the bright side, Dad. Did you know that the Chinese use the same word for "crisis" as they do for "opportunity"? '''Homer:''' Yes! Cris-atunity.) * babelicious - from babe and delicious. * marketecture, marchitecture - marketing architecture * stragedy - strategy + tragedy * hedgeslammer (perhaps more of a Spoonerism, but I still like it) * pomato - object lesson here, you don't need genetic engineering to create an agronomic f--kup * kolkhoz * komsomol * geocaching * japanimation some from http://ladybug.xs4all.nl/arlet/ * squiggle - squirm, wiggle * flare - flame, glare * flounder - flounce, founder * glimmer - gleam, shimmer * glitz - glamour, ritz * liger - lion, tiger * tigon - tiger, lion * tangelo - tangerine, pomelo * smash - smack, mash The JargonFile has these portmanteau: * deliminator * crapplet * installfest * linearithmic * rasterbation * netiquette * clue-by-four * gritch * gubbish * deflicted * spungle * sporgery * BackroNym LewisCarroll's poem "Jabberwocky" (see below) has these 'Portmanteau' words: * brillig * slithy * wabe * mimsy * mome * frumious * vorpal * maxomome * uffish * whiffling * tulgey * burbled * vorpal * galumphing * beamish * frabjous * callooh * callay * chortled ---- Three portmanteau words used to describe TV and film: * dramedy - from "drama" and "comedy" * mockumentary - from "mock" and "documentary" * rockumentary - from ThisIsSpinalTap * docudrama - from "documentary" and "drama" One portmanteau word made from three portmanteau words (a new Olympic record?): * mockudramedy - from "mockumentary", "docudrama" and "dramedy" ---- Challenged: * sheriff - from SHire and Reeve These words were put together a long time ago, in the usual way. The whole and parts were modernized separately, which is why it's ''sheriff'' instead of ''shirereeve'', but I doubt that makes it a portmanteau word. These, like acronyms, seem to be a very recent way to make new words, absent from most historical development of languages. It would be interesting to know what contributed to their creation and adoption. ---- This site helps you create your own: http://www.megabrands.com/carroll/faq5.html A postmodern poem incorporating lots of portmanteaus: http://www.cltr.uq.edu.au/languagetalkback/Current/Nunberg-poem.html ---- For discussion relating to use of the words "morphaword' and "frankenword" as synonyms/replacements for "portmanteau", see MorphaWord. ---- According to 'THE DICTIONARY OF PHRASE AND FABLE BY E. COBHAM BREWER FROM THE NEW AND ENLARGED EDITION OF 1894', this definition of Portmanteau word is given: '''Portmanteau Word (A). A word, like post, which contains several meanings packed together; as, post (a stake), post for letters, post paper, slow as a post, fast as a post, post-horses, and so on.''' (see http://www.bootlegbooks.com/Reference/PhraseAndFable/data/999.html) This doesn't seem to be the current meaning of PortmanteauWord at all! I wonder if what Mr Brewer wrote was true at the time - maybe it was used in that sense at the time. ''In 1872 LewisCarroll used the term in its current sense in ''ThroughTheLookingGlass'' to describe his poem "Jabberwocky" (see: http://www.jabberwocky.com/carroll/jabber/jabberwocky.html).'' ---- My friends in college were always amused by my ability to accidentally create Portmanteau words when speaking passionately about a (usually trivial) subject. I'm most proud of: * Hovitate (hover + levitate) * Valify (validate + verify) * Condoom (condemn and doom) -- JoeWeaver ---- Slithey, outgrabe, similk and sorth. Postprandialate a full belly and nice buttlegundy . Um, bottle of burgundy. What, no bogundy?!? --WikiArtCritic. ---- See MemorableRandomStrings