Idiologisms

From time to time, a new word will pop into my head (e.g., a portmanteau, sniglet, nomalgam, preprotologism, and so on). While some of them turn out to be reinventions, others are unique (i.e., a true idiologism). If such an item shares the form of an existing word (however unconventional), then I will only list it here if the meaning varies (from ones found in the likes of the Urban Dictionary, for example).

Why bother to record them? I don’t know, really. It’s just fun. And I suppose that it might be my version of hoarding.

And then of course there are the creations needed in my various explorations.

Occasionally, I find it useful to discuss the ways in which the definition of an existing word has changed in my individual use.

• • •

anifest (a., v.)

1. to boldly flow whence no sun has glown before.

[PIE *h₁eh₂no- (“ring”) > Latin ānus (“ring”, “anus”)] + [PIE *dʰer- (“to hold”) > PEI *dʰers- (“to be bold”) > Latin -fest] (“boldly of the anus”)

anifestation (n., pl. anifestations)

1. an anifest emanation.

See anifest.

atmosphairy (n. and a.)

1. a kind of sylphy air elemental fairy.

portmanteau “atmosphere + fairy”… turns out that there was a band with a very similar name

detoxymoron (n., pl. detoxymorons)

1. a type of quack who treats an indiscriminate toxin as a remedy (e.g., injecting bleach to cure COVID, or watching FOX “news” to combat ignorance).

portmanteau “detox + oxymoron + moron”

Hydra oil (n.)

1. a set of quack products that proliferates from the residue of a fraudulent product (snake oil) that has been debunked.

idiologism (n., pl. idiologisms)

1. a word peculiar to one individual (and possibly peculiar) person.

Ancient Greek ἴδιος > ἴδιο- ( “of one person”) + λόγος (“word”) + -ισμός (nominalizer)

rectoplasm (n., pl. rectoplasms)

1. an anifestation of a spirit from a mystic medium.

portmanteau “recto-“ + “-ectoplasm”

sake (n.)

1. a reason of/for (both in the sense of benefit and simple purpose)

IE *sag- (“to investigate”> “seek”) > OE sacu ( “legal case/cause, crime, guilt”) > ME sake (“case” in law/equity)

The notion of a “sake” is unusual. Although it is something that one possesses (e.g., “our sake”), we no longer use the word to talk about it in a direct manner (n.e.g., “we have a sake”); instead, there is a preferred expression of intent: “for our sake,” “for goodness’ sake,” and so on.^⇲ It’s as if the word changed over time precisely to mean:

“an imprecise state of ‘behalfness’ about which to be purposeful in consideration.”

Conventionally, your well-being is something more concrete (than a “sake”) about which I can be concerned; that is to say, I would not (typically) be worried about your sake (as a thing in itself)… but rather for your sake (i.e., that its condition be of benefit to you). Or we might engage in a discussion for the sake of argument (i.e., that would be our purpose), but probably not about the sake of argument.^⇲

Having said that, this entry exists precisely because this process of treating a sake as an object of observation (in its own right) has led to the loosening of those very constraints; for example, where up until now I have only been concerned for the other person’s sake, I am now at a point where I am concerned about the other person’s sake.

semeiognomy (n.)

1. the study of communication in terms of symbol systems and cognition, appealing to the symbolic nature of communication.

Ancient Greek σημειο- ( “signal”) + -γνώμιa [(“knowledge”) < γιγνωσκειν (“to know”)]

ymage (n., and derivations ymagine, ymaginary, ymagination, and so on)

1. a sensory image that is not just visual in nature.

orthographic differentiation of English “image”