Nonce words in the OED
Just a small selection of some of the thousand-odd nonce words in the OED.I likeclam'jamphried ppl. a. (nonce-wd.) ? treated as clamjamphrie. [=Trumpery or worthless people, or those who are so...
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That is great, but I've always found the presence of nonce words in the OED rather odd. Why should a one-time creation be considered part of the vocabulary of the language? But since they exist, by...
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You raise an interesting point. What does make a nonce word worthy of admission? I recall seeing entries where the cite is marked as the solitary known usage. Clearly, if I created such a word and...
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A year ago Dave posted here re "whapperknocker:" Mathew's Dictionary of Americanisms lists the term. It glosses it as a "large weasel." Origin unknown. The one citation is from Peter's 1781 A General...
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The rule for the OED editors for nonce words seems to be whatever tickles your fancy. But, on the other hand, what consistent and sensible rule could one possibly have?
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My vote, if I had one at OED, would be to not include neologisms until at least three sightings in published works by three different authors were spotted.
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But there are nonce words that appear in significant pieces of literature which should be included if for no other reason that people may ask what the heck does that word mean.A good example is Robert...
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A good example is Robert Browning's nonce usage of "twat."OK, you've got my attention. Elucidate.
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You don't know that one? Classic. Quote:twat . low slang. Also 8 twait, 20 twot(t. [Of obscure origin.] 1. (See quot. 1727.) Erroneously used (after quot. 1660) by Browning Pippa Passes iv. ii. 96...
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