What’s the Word: Some words can discombobulate
As some of you know, my last column dealt with the war in Iraq, a decidedly serious subject, so I thought I might guide my thoughts this week to some lighter fare, but please forgive me if I stray ever so slightly in that direction. Hard not to since the war seems to be everywhere.
One of my favorite Web sites, Michael Quinion’s excellent “World Wide Words” has a wonderful section called “Weird Words,” and I thought I might share some of my favorites with my readers.
The origins of some of these words are quite interesting, so I will list the word, its definition, the origin according to Mr. Quinion and a sentence using the word in its proper context.
One of my favorite strange words has to be “discombobulate” which means “to confuse, upset or disconcert.”
Apparently this word originated from the spiels of the snake-oil salesmen of the wild frontier. It is perhaps derived from discompose or discomfit, but it found its way into the language as an invention of that era’s slick pitch-men who probably wanted something that sounded impressive and vaguely medical.
Since I want to keep my illustrations topical, a good phrase to illustrate this word might be:
“The war in Iraq discombobulates me.”
Another of my favorite weird words is “gobbledygook.” Don’t you just love that one? It is used to describe “unintelligible language, especially jargon or bureaucratese.”
This one has a particularly colorful background, having been invented by one Maury Maverick, a Texan lawyer who became a Democratic Congressman and mayor of San Antonio. He coined the word to describe some of the obscure language used by his colleagues, inspired by the turkey which was, according to him, “always gobbledy gobbling and strutting with ludicrous pomposity.” The word seemed to fit a need and soon became part of the language.
An interesting adjunct to this is Maverick’s grandfather Samuel Maverick, a Texas rancher, was the inspiration for the term “maverick,” which is used to indicate an unbranded animal, since Sam Maverick didn’t brand his own stock, and later came to indicate an unconventional person or, ironically, a politician who doesn’t toe the party line.
Again, in a topical vein, a good phrase for this one might be:
“The reasons some politicians give for attacking Iraq sound like a bunch of gobbledygook to me.”
Oh, and here’s a really obscure one, “Brobdingnagian,” which means “of or relating to a gigantic person or thing.” I love the origin of this one, since it comes from one of my favorite books, Jonathan Swift’s Gulliver’s Travels. Not many people get credited for adding a word to the language, much less eight of them, which Swift did in his most enduring work. This one refers to the huge inhabitants of Brobdingnag from the second part of the book.
A good phrase for this one might be:
“Our military might must appear absolutely Brobdingnagian to the Iraqis.”
Now, despite my examples here, I wouldn’t want anyone to think I’m against the war. After all, now that we’re in it, I back our soldiers all the way and applaud their bravery and sacrifice.
So if you happen to be discombobulated by some of my gobbledygook, please don’t come bash me with a hammer of Brobdingnagian proportions, even if you think I might deserve it.
(Charlie Johnson is a reporter for the Standard. He can be reached at 473-2191 or by e-mail at [email protected].)