New words, come and get ’em while they’re hot

Johanne Pelletier, my Montreal-based communicator friend (and boxer), recently sent me out of the greatness of her heart, a copy of The Meaning of Liff, the ultimate bathroom book for writers.

You may know about this 1983 collection of words-that-never-were-but-should-be. Like:

Aith (n.)

The single bristle that sticks sideways on a cheap paintbrush.

Broats (pl. n.)

A pair of trousers with a career behind them. Broats are most commonly seen on elderly retired army officers. Originally the broats were part of their best suit back in the thirties; then in the fifties they were demoted and used for gardening. Recently, pensions not being what they were, the broats have been called out of retirement and reinstated as part of the best suit again.

Chicago (n.)

The foul-smelling wind which precedes an underground railway train.

Drebley (n.)

Name for a shop which is supposed to be witty but is in fact wearisome, e.g. 'The Frock Exchange,' 'Hair Apparent,' etc.

And so on, through Z, and including Johanne's favorite:

Sturry (n., vb.)

A token run. Pedestrians who have chosen to cross a road immediately in front of an approaching vehicle generally give a little wave and break into a sturry. This gives the impression of hurrying without having any practical effect on their speed whatsoever.

Those words are all British place names. I won't be constrained in that way.

I've been building a small self-dictionary of my own over a number of years, in the tradition of my own father, who when he was angry called me a "kleekonk" and when he was very angry called me a "kleekonk-rideedik."

My words:

Snile (n.)

Co-invented by my sister and I during our summer allergy-plagued youths, this term describes the long, shiny line of watery snot that begins at the first knuckle of the index finger and runs down one's arm, often to the elbow.

Ignowill (v.)

Purposely not checking Google to see whether the clever thing you've written has been written by someone else before. 

Probstalgia (n.)

The feeling you get when after a long struggle, you pick something stubborn out of your teeth, and then find that you miss it.

I expect to add to this list. I invite you to contribute as well.