Did you ever try to create your own language when you were little so you could secretly communicate with siblings or friends? Even when we get older, we use words that not everyone would understand. It’s fun to figure out the origin (at least to me!).
A friend recently told me about going to the store and not being able to find nail clippers. When a saleslady asked if she could help, my friend said she was looking for a kachunka. Needless to say, the saleslady had no idea what my friend was asking her to find! Apparently, in my friend’s family, anything that makes the “kachunka” sound – a hole punch, stapler, nail clippers – is a kachunka.
I started thinking of a few “created” words and phrases used in my house. I hope you’ll share some of yours so I don’t feel quite as silly!
Lightmare in the noset. In our first apartment, my husband and I had closet doors that sometimes didn’t completely close, and I didn’t like the shadows of opened doors. Our parenting adventures had just begun, and we read a lot of children’s books, including There’s a Nightmare in the Closet. Tim teased me about my demand to have all closet doors closed before going to sleep as if I was scared of the nightmares in the closet. One night the words got all jumbled, and we’ve had lightmares in the noset ever since.
Humpapotamus. Another early marriage word. When I was pregnant and lying under the covers, my husband affectionately called me a humpapotamus. And it was actually funny! I wouldn’t recommend husbands randomly calling their pregnant wives by the same name. The humor might not spread to all people in all situations – to say the least.
Goobergiver. Sounds like…screwdriver. At least that’s what my husband thought when he was little. The word stuck, and we still use it from time to time.
Vesnickle. A car, truck or any other vehicle. I have no idea how it started!
Bean beans. Otherwise known as green beans, but my daughter renamed them.
Spadaddy. Another renamed food: spaghetti.
Aminal. I warned Tim our girls wouldn’t be able to say animals correctly if he didn’t stop mispronouncing it!
Lizard. An ice cream treat from Dairy Queen, otherwise known as a Blizzard. (Great. Now I’m hungry.)
Pardees. Instead of Hardees, one daughter used to say, “Let’s go to Pardees!”
Ridonkulous. Of course, this isn’t our own invention. But for some bizarre reason, Tim has decided this is one of his new favorite words, uses it as often as he can, and wanted me to include it in my list.
Oh, and yes, there is actually a reason behind this post for those who think it’s random compared to most my posts. The Bible I use for everyday study is the Hebrew-Greek Key Word Study Bible. (I highly recommend it.) I love exploring how one English word in the Bible can reflect different Hebrew or Greek words. I can nearly get lost while studying how words are connected throughout Scripture. Because I know very little about Hebrew or Greek, sometimes I pronounce a word and think “sounds like…” I started thinking of all the silly “sounds like” words my family and others use, and ta-da…blog post idea!
Your turn!