Portmanteau
A portmanteau is a word coined by Lewis Carroll to describe a word that is a blend of two other words. Examples include:
Of course, my favorite is gerrymander, a combination of "Gerry" and "salamander".
These type of words come to mind after reading the Letters section of New Scientist, where it was pointed out that "velcro" is such a word. I had always assumed it was an abbreviation or an acronym, but strangely enough, it's a portmanteau word, derived from the French no less:
Who said French wasn't a vital, modern language?
- breathalyser: breath + analyser
- Chunnel: Channel + tunnel
- emoticon: emotion + icon
- televangelist: television + evangelist
Of course, my favorite is gerrymander, a combination of "Gerry" and "salamander".
These type of words come to mind after reading the Letters section of New Scientist, where it was pointed out that "velcro" is such a word. I had always assumed it was an abbreviation or an acronym, but strangely enough, it's a portmanteau word, derived from the French no less:
[f. F. vel(ours cro(ché hooked velvet.]
Who said French wasn't a vital, modern language?
posted by Zevatron at 4/01/2006 10:24:00 AM
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