Thwart, Pickle, Fluffy: words that sound just right fascinate Joseph Bottum, contributing editor for The Weekly Standard and editor at First Things. He shares his favorites of such words, which he christens these agenbites, (pronounced again bites), and listeners weigh in with their own.
Comments [7]
I am not sure "skeevy" is a New York word, but I'm fairly certain it's a young person's word. I've been saying it for years (I'm almost 25) and everyone knows exactly what you mean when you say it, even if you haven't heard it before and even if you're my mother.
** P-L-E-A-S-I-N-G ** just forces you to smile when you say it. . .
How about pompous and pontificating?
btw lisp would only be an example of onomatopoeia if it were pronounced lithp.
"skeevy" does come from the italian "schifoso" which means "sick." but the caller mentioned the word "skeezy" which i've heard is a combination of "skeevy" and "sleazy." and the fact that those words fit together so well just lends credence to his notion that the word just sounds right.
I think the caller is right about the italian schifoso being the origin of "skeevy."
If you're interested in a physiological and historical background on the mouth feel of words (and how it affects the evolution of language), read Steven Pinker's _The Language Instinct_.
First of all none of the words you post in your lead-in here (athwart, scab, etc.) feel right to me nor do they roll off MY tongue. Do you really think the -thw- cluster is a "roll-off-the-tongue" cluster!? Sounds more like a speech impediment taking place. The only word that comes to me as "roll-off-the-tongue" type this early in the morning as I just wake up is my favorite italian word to pronounce and that would be *prezzemolo* = parsley (pron.; preht-tsEH-mo-lo). Best I can do right now. Maybe I'll be back with some more later... that's a threat, hehehehe.
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