Addictionary: Brave New Words

by Jim Banister, Robert Hanson (Illustrator)

We all invent words and coin phrases; it’s how language evolves. Taken from the popular website by the same name, Addictionary: Brave New Words collects the best of these neologisms into this handy volume, organized into categories (including technology, politics, dating, sports, religion, and medicine) and cleverly illustrated throughout.

Everyone knows a “dumpegator,” a person who delegates huge tasks ten minutes before they are due; many have encountered people who suffer from “algoreaphobia,” an irrational fear of the former presidential candidate. A select few have reached “beervana,” the blissful state of oblivion brought on through copious consumption of malted hops; while others might be unrealistically proportioned, or “dolluptuous.”

A great gift for any wordsmith, Addictionary is on the cutting edge of the English language, staking claims on new linguistic territory with an arch blend of the sharply intellectual and the sublimely silly.

Genres: Nonfiction

160 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 2008

Reviews

[Jeanette (Ms. Feisty) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not nearly as clever as the Sniglet books of long ago, but some of these are pretty funny or at least useful.

[SLT · Rating 2 out of 5]

Fair. A product of the internet/social network culture. To me, not as funny as it thinks it is.