Donaldson's obscure words- A task for the forum

Post by **Roynish** » Mon Oct 06, 2003 11:59 pm

Out of sheer curiosity I started making a list of all the obscure words that SD uses when I was reading TWL. The list grew to 39 words that basically I would need a dictionary to understand the meaning. In the context of the useage you of course get a feel for what it means but lets take it to the next step. Any way my idea was to generate a data base for us all with a full definition.
For example: word followed by chronicles reference and page number.

A: anoxia-TWL p.462- 1. an abscence of oxygen. 2. a pathological deficiency of oxygen. (See I love that one).

C: cerclean-TWL-473; caducity-TWL-485; chancre-TOT-22; chrisum-TWL-427.

and so forth.

I need some help in this enterprise. If their is any interest (or maybe you think I am a word geek or whatever) i will post my remaining initial list of obscure words that need a definition.
This could eventually be a downloadable definitive list of Donaldisms. I think its worth doing but hey let me know.

And the thing is my standard dictionary does not even have many of these words. For example roynish was only discovered by consulting the OED online. In 2000+ pages of a large dictionary it simply was not there.

Hey give me some feedback.

Post by **Roynish** » Tue Oct 07, 2003 12:19 am

More words that I don't really know what they mean:

G: gelid-TWL-429; gavotte-TWL-490

H: habilments-TOT-21

I: irenic-TWL-495

skip to S

S: sabulous-TOT-19; stertorously-TWL-423; susurrus-TWL-426

T: tintinnuabulating-TWL-464 ( a classic); threnodies-TWL-480.

I guess you get the idea. But hey maybe all of you Covenant fanatics know all these words and use them every day.

I mean I say this to by best friend every Monday:

"Hi, there my tintinnuabulating stertorous friend. Was your weekend full of threnodies that made you periaptly roynish".

Post by **Roynish** » Tue Oct 07, 2003 3:12 pm

Oh well i guess its back to the ultimatemetal and Iron Maiden forums for me.

Bye its been nice.

Post by **Forestal** » Tue Oct 07, 2003 4:28 pm

i honestly dont remember a single one of those words... perhaps i just skimmed over them without taking them in...

Post by **Landwaster** » Wed Oct 08, 2003 12:58 am

Go for it Roynish ... sounds like something I would do ... but my time is compromised these days.

Post by **Fist and Faith** » Wed Oct 08, 2003 3:05 am

My favorite unknown word is unambergrised, first seen in GILDEN-FIRE.

Post by **Variol Farseer** » Wed Oct 08, 2003 4:08 am

Perhaps somebody should point out that SRD, in his younger days, frequently used obscure words not so much for their meaning as because he liked the sound of them. Somewhere or other he has said that he wanted to produce the same effect with words that Wagner did with music, and his choice of vocabulary was part of that technique.

J.R.R. Tolkien used a number of obscure words as well, but he, being a stickler for exact language, used them all correctly.

But I do think a glossary of 'hard words' in the various Covenant books would be worth compiling. In fact, I might even volunteer for the job, if none of my elders and superiors on Kevin's Watch want to take it on.

Post by **Blue_Spawn** » Wed Oct 08, 2003 4:23 am

I heard there was a word Danoldson used in Foul's Bane that isn't actually found in the dictionary. Can't remember it though.

Post by **Dromond** » Wed Oct 08, 2003 4:38 am

It's certainly a job I don't want, Farseer!
I bumped an old similar thread with a lot of information.

Post by **Blue_Spawn** » Wed Oct 08, 2003 4:43 am

Roynish wrote:"Hi, there my tintinnuabulating stertorous friend. Was your weekend full of threnodies that made you periaptly roynish".

HAhahaha!

Post by **Landwaster** » Wed Oct 08, 2003 4:45 am

Reminds me of the sdictionary episode of Black Adder the 3rd!

Post by **Landwaster** » Wed Oct 08, 2003 4:48 am

Hang on ... did Roynish say he's giving up on the board because ... umm ... because why?

Post by **Variol Farseer** » Wed Oct 08, 2003 5:03 am

Landwaster wrote:Reminds me of the dictionary episode of Black Adder the 3rd!

Ah, yes . . . 'Allow me to be the first to offer Dr. Johnson my most sincere contrafibularities! I am anaspeptic, frasmotic, even compunctuous to have caused him such pericombobulation.'

The truly hilarious thing, of course, is that all those un-words very nearly mean something.

Contrafibularities: Obviously from contra, against, + fibula, the smaller of the two bones in the lower leg. Means 'pulling one's leg'.

Anaspeptic: From ana. back or up, + peptic, pertaining to the stomach. Obviously refers to some form of upchuck.

Frasmotic: Possibly a portmanteau word, frazzled + spasmodic. So frazzled that one goes into a spasm.

Compunctuous: A variation of compunctious, slightly influenced by contemptuous. Having a bad conscience because one has harmed somebody one really despises.

Pericombobulation: From peri-, around, + discombobulation. Disturbance and confusion because someone has been running circles around one.

Easy peas. Donaldson's rococo stylisms, by comparison, are downright hermeneutogenic.

Post by **Landwaster** » Wed Oct 08, 2003 5:06 am

Heh ... I always thought they might have been real words ... I give up on the last one, though ...

Anyways, I wish I could think of some Donaldson corkers right now, but unfortunately, I've been too long away from the books (around 8 months).

Post by **Variol Farseer** » Wed Oct 08, 2003 5:14 am

Now, to return to our muttons:

I have seen the older thread you marked *BUMP*. I have the page of 'Words from Donaldson's books' open on another tab in my browser, and I'm not altogether impressed. Too many ?s for one thing, and some of the definitions are perhaps a bit off. Still, a good starting point.

What would really palliate my unanodyned intellectual desuetude, and also be quite peachy, would be to do up a word list comparing the actual meanings of the words with what SRD appeared to be using them to mean. Sometimes he was spot on, sometimes the differences are quite subtle, once in a while he was right out in left field. (Or left out in right field, which is not quite the same thing.)

Post by **Landwaster** » Wed Oct 08, 2003 5:27 am

Well how about someone takes on the mantle of official weird word collector and displayer, and put them all in one post/thread, and then we get the thread stickied or at worst linked to from a stickied thread.

THEN, additional words are added by way of replies on that thread, and the original official weird word collector and displayer, when they have a moment, edits their original post to update with the additional words.

What yers reckon?

Post by **Variol Farseer** » Wed Oct 08, 2003 5:41 am

Yep, I'se reckon.

Post by **Landwaster** » Wed Oct 08, 2003 5:50 am

Well lets wait for Roynish to drop in again 'cause he's already dobbed himself in

Post by **Forestal** » Wed Oct 08, 2003 2:10 pm

lol!!

Post by **Roynish** » Wed Oct 08, 2003 10:28 pm

Hi there again i will post a list of the ones i have gathered so far. Thanks for the interest. I thought I was the only word-geek here for a short while.
look I don't mind doing a lot of the initial stuff.
Be back in a day or two.