Wednesday, November 03, 2010

Promiscutie

Meaning: A female philanderer.
Pronunciation: Promise-Q-T.
Usage: There are cuties and promiscuties. The charm of the promiscutie lies in the promise.
Root: Promiscuity + Cutie.

Monday, October 25, 2010

Cause Theta

Meaning: The hidden angle or motive behind celebrities taking up causes.
Pronunciation: Coz-thee-ta.
Usage: Arundhati's cause theta for embracing the Kashmiri stuggle is, perhaps, the Nobel Peace Prize.
Root: From the mathematical term with the same sound.

Thursday, October 21, 2010

Nobile

Meaning: One who hates to carry a mobile.
Pronunciation: No-bile.
Usage: Nobile young men are not neanderthals or luddites. They are the future of mankind.
Root: No + Mobile.

Friday, October 08, 2010

Doubtlook

Meaning: Wishy-washy point of view.
Pronunciation: Dout-look.
Usage: The Congress party's doubtlook on the Ayodhya Verdict is understandable as it doesn't want to rub anyone the wrong way.
Root: Doubt + Outlook.

Powerty

Meaning: The state of being utterly powerless.
Pronunciation: Pa-ver-tea.
Usage: To the average Kashmiri, Omar Abdullah seems powerty stricken.
Root: Power + Poverty.

Saturday, September 11, 2010

Menchewrian

Meaning: Cannibal.
Pronunciation: Men-choo-ri-yan.
Usage: Gopi went to interview a menchewrian and ended up as Gopi Manchurian.
Root: Obvious.

Pyrobiblic

Meaning: Book burner.
Pronunciation: Py-row-bib-lick.
Usage: It doesn't take much to be world famous. Terry Jones learned this by threatening to become a pyrobiblic.
Root: Pyro (Greek for fire) + Biblio (book) + -ic (suffix for pertaining to).

Wednesday, August 11, 2010

Semmaiyal

Meaning: The art of fine cooking.
Pronunciation: Sem-my-yal.
Usage: Pattis and Ammas are the finest exponents of semmaiyal.
Root: Semmai (very good in Tamil) + Samaiyal (cooking in tamil).

Sunday, August 08, 2010

Metapharaoh

Meaning: The God's representative in the world of Metaphors. He who rules with the just simile. Capable of high degree of abstraction, and simple language.

Usage: 'that journalist can come up with the mother of all metaphors, man! He is the Metapharoah!'

Pronunciation: Met-ah-far-oh.

Root: Metaphor (a figure of speech) + Pharaoh (the supreme ruler of all Egypt).

Tuesday, August 03, 2010

Curdistan

Meaning: That part of India that thrives on curd rice and other vegetarian food.
Pronunciation: Curd-dis-thaan.
Usage: South India can be carved up into two nations: Curdistan & Meatistan.
Root: Curd Rice + Hindustan.

Friday, July 09, 2010

Paulitechnic

Meaning: Using animals/plants to arrive at a prediction.
Pronunciation: Paul-lee-tech-neek.
Usage: The biggest contribution of FIFA World Cup 2010 is the fillip it's given to paulitechnic.
Root: Paul (the octopus) + Technic (Special skill)

Thursday, July 08, 2010

Chorigamy

Meaning: Marriage on the sly.
Pronunciation: Chor-ri-gam-me.
Usage: When you have khap panchayats issuing diktats, I won't blame some people if they resort to chorigamy.
Root: Chori Chori (Hindi for surreptitiously) + -gamy (Greek for marriage).

Tuesday, July 06, 2010

Oopsy Desi

Meaning: An NRI who's made a wrong move by shifting base from India.
Pronunciation: oops-see-they-see.
Usage: Software companies in India are chock-a-block with panic resumes from the oopsy desis.
Root: Oopsy Daisy (an expression admitting goof) + Desi (Persons of Indian Origin).

Sexomorphing

Meaning: Change of sex through an operation.
Pronunciation: Sexo-morf-fing.
Usage: Imagine a movie script that's about a man who marries his female self after sexomorphing. Wouldn't that make an interesting plot?
Root: Pretty obvious.

Monday, July 05, 2010

Planckomaps

Meaning: Cosmic images sewn together by the Planck Satellite.
Pronunciation: Plank-co-maps.
Usage: Planckomaps are plotted after six months of sky sweeps using nine different frequencies.
Root: Plancko (of Planck) + Maps (a representation of space showing relative position of parts).

Saturday, July 03, 2010

Buycarbonate

Meaning: A habitual diamond shopper.
Pronunciation: Buy-carb-bun-ate.
Usage: Women turn buycarbonates as a karmic response for hooking up with jerks.
Root: Buy (shop) + Carbon (diamond is carbon stone) + -ate (one who does).

Wednesday, June 30, 2010

Spythiakaran

Meaning: Crazy stalker.
Pronunciation: Spy-thee-ya-car-run.
Usage: If you don't have your share of spythiakarans, you've not made it as an item queen in Kollywood.
Root: Spy (covert watch) + Paithiakaran (tamil for crazy man).

Saturday, June 26, 2010

Whovuzela

Meaning: One who keeps blowing his/her own trumpet.
Pronunciation: Who-woo-zay-la.
Usage: You can't be in show business if you're not a whovuzela.
Root: Who + Vuvuzela (the african horn that produces a loud monotone note).

Tuesday, June 22, 2010

Gaaji Mastan

Meaning: One who'll do anything for an extended batting session.
Pronunciation: Ga-jee-mus-thaan.
Usage: Chetan Chauhan and Anshuman Gaekwad are Gaaji Mastans of yore.
Root: Gaaji (a street cricket term in Chennai) + Haji Mastan (name of a bootlegger don)

Sunday, June 13, 2010

Spillter Coffee

Meaning: What remains in the cup after spilling the coffee.
Pronunciation: Self explanatory.
Usage: Life is like spillter coffee. You have to get by with what is left over.
Root: Spill + Filter Coffee.

Wednesday, June 09, 2010

Chain Therapy

Meaning: Forming human networks and helping patients by using the power of many.
Pronunciation: Self explanatory.
Usage: Chain Therapy is the way forward for millions of poor people who cannot afford to pay their hospital bills.
Root: Chain (network) + Therapy (treatment of illness).
Note: The concept is already up and running here.

Tuesday, April 13, 2010

Reverse Spin Doctor

Meaning: Devil's advocate.
Pronunciation: Obvious.
Usage: After the Booker Prize, Arundhati Roy made a name for herself as an eloquent reverse spin doctor.
Root: Reverse Spin (a cricketing term for the other one) + Spin Doctor.

Paadhi Shudha

Meaning: Almost living like a married couple.
Pronunciation: Pa-dhi-shoe-dha.
Usage: Being paadhi shudha is an easy way out for commitment phobes.
Root: Paadhi (Half in tamil) + Shaadi Shudha (wedlock) = Half married.

Balleboss

Meaning: Batting captain.
Pronunciation: Bal-lay-boz.
Usage: In our World Cup T20 team, if I were to pick a balleboss, it will be Gautam Gambhir.
Root: Ballebaaz (batsman in hindi) + Boss (Captain).

Saturday, April 03, 2010

Wordaphone

Meaning: An internet enabled mobile device that can be used only for texting.
Pronunciation: Word-da-fone.
Usage: The wordafone can be a handy device for the deaf.
Root: Word + Vodafone (synonymous with mobile communication).

Scanteen

Meaning: A sugar daddy who's actively on the look out for a young chick.
Pronunciation: Obvious.
Usage: Orkut is teeming with scanteens of all nationalities.
Root: Scan (to search) + Teen (a teenager).

Elisium

Meaning: A rat-free haven.
Pronunciation: Eli-see-um.
Usage: Make your home an elisium with Ratatat.
Root: Eli (Tamil for rat) + Elysium (the after death paradise).

Friday, February 26, 2010

Fusonyms

Meaning: Names formed by splicing two existing names.
Pronunciation: Fuse-so-nym.
Usage: Albert Dali is a fusonym crafted from the names Albert Einstein and Salvador Dali.
Root: Fuse + Nyms (greek for names).