40 years ago I had a psychology 101 class. The instructor said the symptom of making up your own words only the patient knows the definition of is neologisms. “Examples would be de-athenated, wallmationer, and sexiatry, except I think I know what that one is.”
I can’t help but think of the comic Norm Crosby with this comic strip today. He used to mess with the English language with comedy. Very funny the way his delivery was!
When he was little, my oldest grandson loved it when I used words he’d never heard before and would try to use them – often out of context. Expanding his vocabulary was great … except for his parroting of some words he shouldn’t have overheard!
This strip reminds me so much of him when he was that age. He’s turned out to be an exceptional young man. He’s 30 today, so ¡Feliz Cumpleaños, Allen! from “Gramps”.
How very ‘contubrius’ of him. My friends and I used that word all through high school, and it doesn’t mean a darned thing: “How very contubrius of you!” It could be either positive or negative, depending on context. Silly,that I still use it.
There was an episode on “The Simpsons” where the teachers were using words that weren’t words. I remember “promulent” and “embiggens”. As in the town motto: “A noble spirit embiggens the smallest man.” One teacher said she had never heard that word before moving to Springfield. The other said, “Really? It’s such a promulent word.”
C 5 months ago
Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious
ʲᔆ 5 months ago
even Roscoe knows that’s not a real word
carlsonbob 5 months ago
Lots of words coming from Earl’s cranianul.
californiamonty 5 months ago
Earl’s correct. The problem isn’t in making up new words, but rather in getting others to use them. (I majored in linguistics, BTW.)
Walter Kocker 5 months ago
“How . . . cromulent.” “’Right, Lisa?”
Martin I 5 months ago
perfectly jellicle
Argythree 5 months ago
:PPPP
MichaelAxelFleming 5 months ago
Well, now he’s just being sedacious.
WaywardWind 5 months ago
Sigh…neither of my grampas were funny.
oldthang 5 months ago
I don’t remember the last time I said primulent.
kendavis09 5 months ago
Is that an adjitative?
iggyman 5 months ago
There IS the comic censor!
Tra1nman2 Premium Member 5 months ago
Why not? The pharmaceutical companies do it every time they introduce a new drug.
bobwigg761 5 months ago
Sounds like a Sniglet to me.
win.45mag 5 months ago
It makes him feel imbiggened.
Funniguy 5 months ago
Okay, how many of us looked up Primulent?
MacII 5 months ago
I’m sure Earl is anaspeptic, frasmotic, even compunctious to have caused Nelson such pericombobulation
mckeonfuneralhomebx 5 months ago
especially in scrabble
phritzg Premium Member 5 months ago
It’s absitively, posolutely okay. (I’ve actually heard those words used, in an old radio commercial, and they were sung by a bass singer.)
some idiot from R'lyeh Premium Member 5 months ago
That’s how words work, after all.
zeexenon 5 months ago
Most of our C.E.O.s and politicians are of an age when, very early, they became enamored with antidisestablishmentarianism and schadenfreude.
Skeptical Meg 5 months ago
There’s no need for that word. Cromulent is a perfectly adequate word, and it fits perfectly.
E.Z. Smith Premium Member 5 months ago
40 years ago I had a psychology 101 class. The instructor said the symptom of making up your own words only the patient knows the definition of is neologisms. “Examples would be de-athenated, wallmationer, and sexiatry, except I think I know what that one is.”
iggyman 5 months ago
There a’int no such word!
mrsdonaldson 5 months ago
Totally fetch.
Slowly, he turned... 5 months ago
Earl is a regular Shakespeare!
wongo 5 months ago
Well that’s just unlauded!
RussHeim 5 months ago
Primulent is a perfectly cromulent word.
Angry Indeed Premium Member 5 months ago
That Earl. He’s a muse. A muse for Dr. Seuss! Oh, the words I can make!
Intergalactic Hussy 5 months ago
You mean cromulent. Better embiggen your vocabulary.
JudithStocker Premium Member 5 months ago
I can’t help but think of the comic Norm Crosby with this comic strip today. He used to mess with the English language with comedy. Very funny the way his delivery was!
Daltongang Premium Member 5 months ago
Nelson it’s the Covfefe thing to do these days.
ANIMAL 5 months ago
ok……. ya LOST me on THAT one
assrdood 5 months ago
I hate it when people use big words just to make themselves sound perspicacious.
Dr_Fogg 5 months ago
Shakespeare made up words all the time
ladykat 5 months ago
Go for it, Nelson.
khjalmarj 5 months ago
I think the last time I used “primulent” was in the middle of a sneeze.
Ishka Bibel 5 months ago
Shades of “cromulent”
w16521 5 months ago
Roscoe is like: “WTF”?
elgrecousa Premium Member 5 months ago
it looks like Earl’s left side of the brain is working overtime.
Linguist 5 months ago
When he was little, my oldest grandson loved it when I used words he’d never heard before and would try to use them – often out of context. Expanding his vocabulary was great … except for his parroting of some words he shouldn’t have overheard!
This strip reminds me so much of him when he was that age. He’s turned out to be an exceptional young man. He’s 30 today, so ¡Feliz Cumpleaños, Allen! from “Gramps”.
cactusbob333 5 months ago
Certainly a lot of fartilization going on here.
James -Baird 5 months ago
The Presidential cantidate for on party has done it for the last nine years.
ThomasTracewell1 5 months ago
Primulent is a menopause pill.
Strawberry King 5 months ago
Against the law? Oh, pish posh!
Thehag 5 months ago
Had to look p up, just in case. Not a word but two companies with that name one in VA and one in the UK
FunnyPageLover 5 months ago
Just in time for middle school to start with their weird, made up words - scibidi, gyat, rizz ….
PraiseofFolly 5 months ago
How very ‘contubrius’ of him. My friends and I used that word all through high school, and it doesn’t mean a darned thing: “How very contubrius of you!” It could be either positive or negative, depending on context. Silly,that I still use it.
rob.home 5 months ago
Cromulent, please!I made up the word ‘anfagastatillion’ to mean a very large number when I was a kid.
ValancyCarmody Premium Member 5 months ago
Frindle
humorist54 Premium Member 5 months ago
There was an episode on “The Simpsons” where the teachers were using words that weren’t words. I remember “promulent” and “embiggens”. As in the town motto: “A noble spirit embiggens the smallest man.” One teacher said she had never heard that word before moving to Springfield. The other said, “Really? It’s such a promulent word.”
Otis Rufus Driftwood 5 months ago
Now that is cromulent.
Jack Bell Premium Member 5 months ago
I don’t mind people making up new words. But I hate it when they want to change the meaning of words we already have.
Purple People Eater 5 months ago
Of course you can make up your own words. How else are you going to embiggen your vocabulary?
[Unnamed Reader - 96ae98] 3 months ago
I’m pretty sure he meant to say cromulent.