Monday, October 10, 2022

Say that again?

One of the definitions for the word reduplication in Merriam-Webster's is

an often grammatically functional repetition of a radical element or a part of it occurring usually at the beginning of a word and often accompanied by change of the radical vowel

We love reduplications in English. They're fun. Mumbo jumbo, razzmatazz, hocus pocus, higgledy piggledy, helter skelter, okey-dokey, even-Steven, riff-raff, and huggermugger are just a few examples. The Yiddish method of disdain, adding a schm- to the word and repeating it ("Sleep, schmeep! We gotta get moving!") is a delightful all-purpose reduplication tool.  

Back in 2013, the Write At Home blog did a journeyman's job of compiling reduplications, separating them by types. There are the exact reduplications (night-night, pee-pee, so-so), the rhymes (abracadabra, boogie woogie, nit-wit, nitty-gritty), and the ablauts, which change form via the vowel (seesaw, knick knack, crisscross). You'll see a ton more on that page.

Some of these go back a long ways, and some are more modern. Riff-raff is traced to the 15th century. Zigzag is dated to 1712; namby-pamby to 1745; jeepers creepers to 1928; phoney-baloney to 1936;  bling-bling to 1999. We enjoy using them, whether to give the convo a little lightness or perhaps a little ironic humor. 



Rich Hall's Sniglets from the eighties had one I've always used: The Esso Asso is a guy who cuts through the gas station (or other corner establishment) to avoid a red light. (Esso stations are no longer found in America, but the brand name is seen in Canada and elsewhere.) 

But we need more modern-day versions, reduplications that reflect the way we live now. So, to get the ball rolling, I have ten new ones below for your use. Add any others you have come up with in comments. 

Cancel-dancel: The jig one makes when one realizes that a simple tweet has offended the Twitterati who are so very easily offended -- a jig that ends in useless abject apology.

Cellybelly: The effect of looking at one's phone all day instead of getting any exercise. 

Mailloraillo: An email that was meant to be anodyne but, due to lack of vocal cues and careful writing, comes across as sarcastic, furious, or insulting. 

Cuddle-coddle: A couple that can't stop with the PDAs even in inappropriate places.

Flyer-lyers: Private jet environmentalists.

Boredy wardy: A kid who complains of boredom when he has every means of entertainment at his fingertips. Extreme cases may be preceded by Lordy lordy.

Pity kitty: A feral cat that's exceptionally cute.

Cally-Wally: A guy who insists on calling you instead of texting like a normal person.

Paggro aggro: Passive-aggressive (esp. a boss who is this way). 

Hippocratic oafs: "Doctors" whose only medical service is milking the public treasury. (Okay, this is not a reduplication but it is a Sniglet-type phrase.)

So there's a few to get you going. Thanks for stopping by, and I hope you have a tip-top day with no hurly-burly or fender-benders.

3 comments:

  1. Making up new ones, should be easy peasy.

    OK, I give up.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Baker faker: someone who brings storebought cookies to a potluck.
    These are very hard to come up with! I like "celly belly" and I'm surprised "pity kitty" isn't already a category on some cute cat website. Ha ha

    ReplyDelete
  3. Local radio news guy says hotter than an otter.

    ReplyDelete