20 obsolete English words that should make a comebackBy Heather Carreiro On November 8, 2010 · Found at: http://matadornetwork.com/abroad/20-obsolete-english-words-that-should-make-a-comeback/
Photo: Liz West
If we all start using them, these words can be resurrected.
DURING MY UNDERGRADUATE studies as a Linguistics major, one of the
things that struck me most is the amazing fluidity of language. New
words are created; older words go out of style. Words can change meaning
over time, vowel sounds shift, consonants are lost or added and one
word becomes another. Living languages refuse to be static.
The following words have sadly disappeared from modern English, but
it’s easy to see how they could be incorporated into everyday
conversation.
Words are from Erin McKean’s two-volume series:
Weird and Wonderful Words and
Totally Weird and Wonderful Words. Definitions have been quoted from the Oxford English Dictionary.
1. JargogleVerb trans. – “To confuse, jumble” – First of all this word
is just fun to say in its various forms. John Locke used the word in a
1692 publication, writing “I fear, that the jumbling of those good and
plausible Words in your Head..might a little jargogle your Thoughts…”
I’m planning to use it next time my husband attempts to explain
complicated Physics concepts to me for fun: “Seriously, I don’t need you
to further jargogle my brain.”
2. DeliciateVerb intr. – “To take one’s pleasure, enjoy oneself, revel,
luxuriate” – Often I feel the word “enjoy” just isn’t enough to describe
an experience, and “revel” tends to conjure up images of people dancing
and spinning around in circles – at least in my head. “Deliciate” would
be a welcome addition to the modern English vocabulary, as in “After
dinner, we deliciated in chocolate cream pie.”
3. CorradeVerb trans. – “To scrape together; to gather together from
various sources” – I’m sure this wasn’t the original meaning of the
word, but when I read the definition I immediately thought of
copy-pasting. Any English teacher can picture what a corraded assignment looks like.
4. KenchVerb intr. – “To laugh loudly” – This Middle English word
sounds like it would do well in describing one of those times when you
inadvertently laugh out loud while reading a text message in class and
manage to thoroughly embarrass yourself.
Photo: Liz West
5. LudibriousAdj. – “Apt to be a subject of jest or mockery” – This word
describes a person, thing or situation that is likely to be the butt of
jokes. Use it when you want to sound justified in poking fun at someone.
“How could I resist? He’s just so ludibrious.”
6. SanguinolencyNoun – “Addiction to bloodshed” – Could be a useful word for
history majors and gamers, as in “Genghis Khan was quite the
sanguinolent fellow” or “Do you think spending six hours a day playing
Postal 2 actually fosters sanguinolency?”
7. JolluxNoun - Slang phrase used in the late 18th century to
describe a “fat person” – Although I’m not sure whether this word was
used crudely or in more of a lighthearted manner, to me it sounds like a
nicer way to refer to someone who is overweight. “Fat” has such a
negative connotation in English, but if you say “He’s a bit of a jollux”
it doesn’t sound so bad!
8. MalagrugrousAdj. – “Dismal” – This adjective is from Scots and may be
derived from an old Irish word that refers to the wrinkling of one’s
brow. An 1826 example of its use is “He looketh malagrugorous and
world-wearied.” I’m tempted to also make the word into a noun: “Stop
being such a malagrug!”
9. BrabbleVerb – “To quarrel about trifles;
esp. to quarrel
noisily, brawl, squabble” – Brabble basically means to argue loudly
about something that doesn’t really matter, as in “Why are we still
brabbling about who left the dirty spoon on the kitchen table?” You can
also use it as a noun: “Stop that ridiculous brabble and do something
useful!”
10. FreckVerb intr. – “To move swiftly or nimbly” – I can think of a
lot of ways to use this one, like “I hate it when I’m frecking through
the airport and other people are going so slow.”
Photo: Julie
11. BranniganNoun – “A drinking bout; a spree or ‘binge’” – Brannigan was
originally a North American slang word, but it is now rarely used.
“Shall we go for a brannigan on Friday?” can be a more sophisticated way
to discuss such activities.
12. Perissology Noun – “Use of more words than are necessary; redundancy or
superfluity of expression” – A useful word for editors: “Thanks for your
4,000-word submission. Unfortunately there is too much perissology in
this piece for us to publish it.”
13. QuagswaggingNoun – “The action of shaking to and fro” – This can also be
used in verb form, to quagswag, and is pronounced like “kwag swag.” It
could definitely work as the name for a new type of dance, or possibly
serve as an alternate way to describe a seizure.
14. HoddypeakNoun – “A fool, simpleton, noodle, blockhead” – This one
doesn’t need any explanation as to how you could use it; you may already
have someone in mind who fits the description.
15. BibesyNoun – “A too earnest desire after drink.” – “Bibesy” may
have been completely made up in the 18th century and it’s unclear
whether it ever made it into common use, but it could easily be used
today: “Wedding guests waited anxiously for the bar to open; bibesy
should be expected after such a long, dull service.”
16. ScriptitationNoun – A 17th-century word meaning “continual writing” – Matadorians taking part in this year’s National Novel Writing Month are getting good practice at scriptitation!
17. WiddendreamNoun – “A state of mental disturbance or confusion” – I can
start using this obsolete Scottish word right away: “While working on
writing my thesis, I find I am constantly in widdendream.”
18. YemelesAdj. – An Old English and Middle English word meaning
“careless, heedless, negligent” – Pronounced as “yeem-lis,” this is
another word that could prove useful for teachers around the world:
“Handing in messy and incomplete work just shows me you are being
yemeles, and I won’t hesitate to give you a zero for the assignment.”
19. Twitter-lightNoun – “Twilight” – Used in the early 17th century,
“twitter-light” sounds like a romantic way to refer to the hours as the
sun goes down.
20. IllecebrousAdj. – “Alluring, enticing, attractive” – Alright, so at
first this word kind of sounds a way to describe something diseased, but
if you put the stress on the second syllable for emphasis, it does
sound like a compliment: “That girl was so illecebrous; I’ve got to
figure out how to see her again.”
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