English is a funny language! We know that already. After all, ‘a fat chance’ and ‘a slim chance’ in English have the same meaning. We also have ‘noses that run’ and ‘feet that smell’, which is just bizarre to anyone who has just started to learn English. Today, however, we will take a look at English words that are strange, but make absolute sense in the real world!
Donkeyman
A man with certain responsibilities in a ship’s engine room is known as a ‘Donkeyman’.
The term ‘Donkeyman’ originates from a time when sailing ships were equipped with a small steam-powered winch called ‘Steam Donkeys’ or ‘Donkey Engines’, which were used to load and unload cargo and raise the larger sails. The person operating the winch was called ‘Donkeyman’.
Quire
A quire is a measure of paper quantity. It is precisely 25 sheets of the same size and quality of machine-made paper or 24 sheets of handmade or specialized paper.
Example: ‘The package contained two quires of tracing paper.’
Hullabaloo
A commotion or loud noises made by humans mostly during arguments.
Example: ‘Remember all that hullabaloo over which word made better sense?’
Ragazine
A magazine of an inferior quality. The term originated in the 1980s as a blend of the words ‘Rag’ and ‘Magazine’.
Example: ‘Surprisingly, this ragazine contained better information than that magazine.’
Balthazar
A significantly large wine bottle; capable of holding as much as 16 times the amount of an average wine bottle. The term originated in the 1930s, named after the name of the king of Babylon, who held a great feast and drank wine before a thousand!
Example: ‘I wonder who would be able to handle the balthazar for our guests this evening?’
Collywobbles
An uneasy feeling or ache in the stomach as a result of being nervous. The term originated in early 19th century as a fanciful formation of the words ‘colic’ and ‘wobble’.
Example: ‘Going to the doctor gives him the collywobbles.’
Flibbertigibbet
(Flib/er/tigi/bet) A flighty, irresponsible or talkative person.
Example: ‘Hannah is a sweetheart, but she can be a chatty flibbertigibbet at times.’
Doodle
To scribble or draw something absent-mindedly. The term ‘Doodle’ originated in early 17th century as a noun describing a fool or later as a verb in the sense ‘to make a fool of’. The current sense of the word dates back to 1930s.
Example: ‘So I sat at my desk and doodled a couple of pictures.’
Phablet
A smartphone that has a screen which is smaller than that of a tablet but is significantly larger than an average-sized phone. Phones with a screen size exceeding 5.7” would be considered a phablet.
Example: ‘It looked a little weird when he was talking on his new phablet.’
BYOD
The practice of allowing employees within organizations to use their own laptops/computers or smartphones for work purposes.
BYOD is an abbreviation of Bring Your Own Device
Example: ‘Embracing BYOD doesn’t have to mean allowing a free-for-all.’
Do you know of any other words that are outlandish or plain simple weird to be in the English dictionary? If so, share them in the comments below and we’ll add them to this list!
Nathan D'Souza
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