Blogging is an amazing thing. The other day I got a message via my blog from an author whose book I had bought as a Christmas present for my father a few years back. His name is Adam Jacot de Boinod and the book in question was The Meaning of Tingo. His new book, The Wonder of Whiffling (pictured above) comes out this week. We exchanged a few emails and, never one to miss a trick, I asked him if he would like to propose six amazing words that you wouldn’t recognize. He duly obliged, and I include them below.
1 pingle (Suffolk) to move food about on the plate for want of an appetite
2 mumpish (1721) sullenly angry; depressed in spirits
3 crambazzled (Yorkshire), prematurely aged through drink and a dissolute life
4 cagg (UK military slang b1811) a solemn vow or resolution used by private soldiers not to get drunk for a certain time
5 twizzling (Sussex dialect) spinning a pointer on a pub ceiling to decide who should buy the next round
6 shangle (Cumberland + Westmoreland dialects) to fasten a tin or kettle to a dog¹s tail
The English teacher and materials writer in me thought of adding example sentences but why not leave that for the comments?
For those of you who are word lovers, please check out Adam’s book and website. Thanks Adam!
Six Things 