lolest
In a comment thread for a YouTube video, someone named "DarthMauricius" wrote (on December 19, 2007): "This is the lolest video ever" The meaning is obvious; I'm just pleased and...
mulligrubs
In a comment on a journal entry a few years back, Sarah P introduced me to the term "mullygrubs," which turns out to be an alternate spelling for mulligrubs, which...
skewwhiff
When I read this word in Perdido Street Station, I assumed it was a misprint; but I looked it up, and sure enough, "skewwhiff" is an adjective or adverb from...
Punny name headline
A headline I saw in late October, apparently provided by Dow Jones Newswires, read: CORRECT: Microsoft Executive Is Harry Patz, Not Putz The corrected article is titled "Wireless Carriers Target...
janitor
Everyone knows that "January" derives from the name of Janus, the Roman god of doors and beginnings and endings. But what I didn't know until a couple weeks ago is...
bunny boiler
According to Wikipedia, a "bunny boiler" is "an obsessive and dangerous individual, most commonly referring to a jilted lover who is stalking the person who has spurned her or him....
Words easily mistyped #18b
This is part 2 of my latest list; see previous entry for part 1. These ones are simple--they're generally typing errors (where someone knows the right word and spelling but...
Words easily confused #18a
It's been over a year since last time I did one of these (for previous installments, see my Words easily confused category); I've been bogged down by uncertainty about which...
yam
Yams are confusing. Or at least the word is. The "true yam" is a starchy tuber that I associate with Africa. It can grow up to eight feet long, and...
mani-pedi
I heard someone say on the phone recently that they were going to get a mani-pedi. At first I thought they'd said "Moneypenny," but then I parsed it correctly as...