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What are Portmanteau Words?
Mary Elizabeth
Mary Elizabeth
Portmanteau words, also called blended words or simply portmanteaux, are words that are formed by splicing or merging two other words together. The term portmanteau words comes from Chapter Six of Lewis Carroll's Through the Looking Glass, and What Alice Found There, in which the character Humpty Dumpty, in explaining the meaning of the word slithy in the poem "Jabberwocky", says: “Well, slithy means 'lithe and slimy.' Lithe is the same as 'active.' You see it's like a portmanteau — there are two meanings packed up into one word." This is a double joke: first, a portmanteau is a suitcase, in which one would “pack” things, like the multiple meanings within portmanteau words; second, portmanteau is itself a compound word, similar to portmanteau words, in that it is from the French words for "carry" – porter – and "cloak" – manteau.
Portmanteau words have been invented for many different areas of life:
Entertainment
- Bombay + Hollywood = Bollywood
- Brad (Pitt) + Angelina (Jolie) = Brangelina
- cyberspace + magazine = cyberzine
- education + entertainment = edutainment
- fan + magazine = fanzine
- glitter + literati = glitterati
Locations
- Channel + Tunnel = Chunnel
- Oxford + Cambridge = Oxbridge
- North (of) + Little Italy = NoLIta (area of New York City)
- South (of) + Houston (Street) = SoHo (area of New York City)
- Triangle + Below + Canal (Street) = TriBeCa (area of New York City)
Weather
Events
- talk + marathon = talkathon
- telephone + marathon = telethon
Government
- medical + care = Medicare
- parachute + troops = paratroops
Food
- beef + buffalo = beefalo
- breakfast + lunch = brunch
- clam + tomato = Clamato
- plum + apricot = pluot
- tangerine + pomelo = tangelo
Place
- cafeteria + auditorium = cafetorium
- motor + hotel = motel
Adjective
- gigantic + enormous = ginormous
- man + fantastic = mantastic
Technological Equipment
- camera + recorder = camcorder
- breath + analyzer = breathalyzer
Internet Use
Many words related to blogging and other modern technology usage are portmanteau words:
- web + log = blog
- iPod + broadcasting = podcasting
- blog + broadcast = blogcast
- blog + spam advertising (or) marketing = blam
- blog + beg (for contributions) = bleg
- blog + biosphere = blogosphere
- fake + blog = flog
- mobile (generated) + blog = moblog
- forage + video (on the Internet) = vorage
- school (friends) + Google = Schoogle
Mary Elizabeth
Mary Elizabeth is passionate about reading, writing, and research, and has a penchant for correcting misinformation on the Internet. In addition to contributing articles to LanguageHumanities about art, literature, and music, Mary Elizabeth is a teacher, composer, and author. She has a B.A. from the University of Chicago’s writing program and an M.A. from the University of Vermont, and she has written books, study guides, and teacher materials on language and literature, as well as music composition content for Sibelius Software.
Learn more...
Mary Elizabeth
Mary Elizabeth is passionate about reading, writing, and research, and has a penchant for correcting misinformation on the Internet. In addition to contributing articles to LanguageHumanities about art, literature, and music, Mary Elizabeth is a teacher, composer, and author. She has a B.A. from the University of Chicago’s writing program and an M.A. from the University of Vermont, and she has written books, study guides, and teacher materials on language and literature, as well as music composition content for Sibelius Software.
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![The word motel is a portmanteau of "motor" and "hotel.".]()
The word motel is a portmanteau of "motor" and "hotel.". -
![The word podcast is a portmanteau of iPod and broadcast.]()
By: pizuttipicsThe word podcast is a portmanteau of iPod and broadcast. -
![Beefalo, a portmanteau of beef and buffalo.]()
By: Giovanni BurliniBeefalo, a portmanteau of beef and buffalo. -
![Lewis Carroll invented portmanteau words.]()
By: National Media MuseumLewis Carroll invented portmanteau words. -
![A tangelo is a cross between a tangerine and a pomelo.]()
By: Louella FolsomA tangelo is a cross between a tangerine and a pomelo. -
![Bollywood, the Indian film industry, is a portmanteau of Bombay and Hollywood.]()
By: arevhambBollywood, the Indian film industry, is a portmanteau of Bombay and Hollywood.
Discussion Comments
Portmanteau words are used to describe various sections of Mobile, Alabama. Midtown Mobile is often abbreviated as MiMo (midtown + mobile). LoDa describes the area of the city that South Dauphin Street cuts through (Lower + Dauphin = LoDa). WeMo is a portmanteau used to describe West Mobile (West + Mobile = WeMo).
Target often carries a fruit that has a Portmanteau name. The grapple is a combination of the words "grape" and "apple." This type of fruit is particularly interesting as it looks like a typical red apple but has the flavor of a grape.
A very popular Portmanteau used on television and magazines is "Bromance."
This word is used to describe guy friends who are extremely close and spend large amounts of time together.
The word is essentially Brothers + Romance = Bromance. While the word seems to imply some sort of homosexual relationship, in pop culture it a term for two or more male best friends. A good example of a "bromance" can be witnessed on the show "Entourage."
another common one is the combined genre of pop and rock music: poprock or prock.
A Portmanteau not listed but used here in the South is "Prooming" -
Pet + Grooming = Prooming.
More and more widely used since more people are treating their pets
like members of the family.
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