Sniglet

A sniglet is a neologism defined as "any word that doesn't appear in the dictionary, but should". The term was coined by writer/actor/comedian Rich Hall, who first created a series of Sniglets while he was a performer on the 1980s HBO comedy series "Not Necessarily the News". Each episode of the monthly series featured a regular segment on Sniglets by Hall. Hall's own sniglets along with submissions by fans were compiled into several books, starting with "Sniglets" and "More Sniglets".

Examples

* Foodgitives: The food on one side of a TV dinner tray that escapes to the other side. (Hall 1985a: 31)
* Furnidents: The indentations left in carpet after moving heavy furniture (Hall 1983)
* Glackett: The ball inside a can of spray paint (or other aerosol can) for stirring the contents inside the can. (Hall 1984: 38) (This object is known as a "pea" in the paint industry.)
* Pediddel: A car with only one working headlight (Hall 1984: 59) (Note: regional variant: Perdiddle)Fact|date=June 2008
* Premblememblemation: Whenever you drop a letter in the mailbox, you always re-check to make sure it's gone down. (Hall 1984: 66)
* Pyramonster: That thing with one big eye on the back of a dollar bill. (Hall 1986: 67) (The pyramid on the Great Seal)
* Sniffleridge: The groove running between the nose and the mouth (Hall 1984: 92). (The real name for this structure is the philtrum.)
* Timefoolery: Setting the alarm clock ahead of the real time in order to fool yourself into thinking you are not getting up so early.

Life after HBO

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, [Metcalf, Alan (2002). "Predicting New Words: The Secrets of Their Success", page 23. ISBN 0-618-13006-3] 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.

niglets and society

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

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"Lederer, Richard (1999). "The Miracle of Language", page 58] and "Word Court: Wherein Verbal Virtue Is Rewarded, Crimes Against the Language Are Punished, and Poetic Justice Is Done"Wallraff, Barbara (2001). "Word Court: Wherein Verbal Virtue Is Rewarded, Crimes Against the Language Are Punished, and Poetic Justice Is Done", page 306] 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.

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".Groening, Matt (1997). "The Simpsons: A Complete Guide to Our Favorite Family", page 122.] 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).

Origins

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

Humour writer Paul Jennings had published made-up words derived from place-names in a 1963 essay appearing in "The Jenguin Pennings".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...?"] 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. [http://eeeeeegp.com/NotGiants/Projects/Adams.html Pearlman, Gregg "Exclusive Interview With Douglas Adams"] ]

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

Notes

ee also

* Daffynition
* The Meaning of Liff
* Neologism
*
* Jabberwocky

External links

* [http://bertc.com/sniglets.htm Additional Sniglet Examples]
* [http://www.arnieten.com/ Arnie Ten official website]
* [http://www.pseudodictionary.com/ The Pseudodictionary] , "The dictionary for words that wouldn't make it into dictionaries." A collection of user-submitted neologisms.
* [http://www.unwords.com/ Unwords.com] A collection of made-up words and definitions created by everyday people, out of necessity or for humor.