Vote for the best verboticism.
DEFINITION: v., To avoid unwanted interruptions (visits, calls, or emails) by pretending to be unavailable, unreachable or unconscious. n., A person who pretends they are not home in order to avoid talking to someone.
Verboticisms
Click on each verboticism to read the sentences created by the Verbotomy writers, and to see your voting options...
You have two votes. Click on the words to read the details, then vote your favorite.
Deafhere
Created by: scrabbelicious
Pronunciation: /Deh-ef-he-ear/
Sentence: Mrs. Soul patched the call through to her secretary. "I thought I told you I wasn't here?", she said, you just have to turn a deafhere.
Etymology: Deafhere n., hybrid of the nouns deaf and here, and inspired by the phrase "to turn a deaf ear", which is a common adult tactic and defense mechanism. Is the spell checker new to this site? I just noticed it now. Don't expect a reply of course, in the circumstances I mean.
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COMMENTS:
I have not encountered a spell checker...but definitely a double-point word, S ! - metrohumanx, 2008-09-17: 11:31:00
It must be my new browser....who thought that was a good idea? - scrabbelicious, 2008-09-18: 16:49:00
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Flakavoid
Created by: thebaron
Pronunciation:
Sentence: God! He's such a flakevoid when it comes to introductions!
Etymology:
Incryptshun
Created by: Stevenson0
Pronunciation: in/krept/shun
Sentence: To his neighbours, Boris was a strange character and difficult to decipher, especially when he went into his incryptshun mode, shutting out all around him and hiding for days in his basement.
Etymology: in + crypt + shun
Incallnito
Created by: mplsbohemian
Pronunciation: ihn-kahl-NEE-toh
Sentence: Alex couldn't understand why his last date didn't return his 37 calls; little did he understand the power of going incallnito.
Etymology: incognito + call
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COMMENTS:
Good word! - OZZIEBOB, 2007-10-20: 18:17:00
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Liesolate
Created by: rikboyee
Pronunciation: lie-suh-layt
Sentence: when he started to have blurry recollections of some of the things he had drunkenly said and done on the weekend he decided to go into liesolation
Etymology: lie, isolate
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COMMENTS:
is the opposite of this retruthsiveness? - MrDave2176, 2007-10-19: 09:58:00
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Circumvenshun
Created by: Nosila
Pronunciation: sir kum ven shun
Sentence: Wally hated people bugging him at home. It did not matter whether it was on the phone, e-mail or at the door, he had the act of circumvenshun down to a fine art. People thought he was eccentric or occupied with some big hush-hush project. The reality was that Wally hated missing a moment of his daytime dramas. Yes, he watched every soap opera on the tube, every day. One could say that Wally was Young & Restless, he was living the Days of Our Lives to the fullest, his tv friends were like All My Children. He was not Bold & Beautiful, but if he had One Life to Live, As the World Turns, he was going to end up in General Hospital if he did not get some exercise!
Etymology: Circumvention (the act of evading) & Shun (avoid and stay away from deliberately; stay clear of)
Comavoid
Created by: artr
Pronunciation: koh-ma-void
Sentence: Randy is quite skilled at dodging interactions with his co-workers. He can comavoid just about any effort to elicit a response. The only known method to break this trance-like concentration is to drop a box of Krispy Kreme donuts on his desk.
Etymology: coma (a state of prolonged unconsciousness, including a lack of response to stimuli) + avoid (to keep away from; keep clear of; shun)
Catatoniact
Created by: vmalcolm
Pronunciation: /katətɒnɪəkt/
Sentence: Bob was catatoniacting the whole thing really hard. He was really trying to make his cataroniact believable...
Etymology: CATATONIACT. vb. n. From Catatonic stupor (severe psychiatric and medical condition characterized by a general absence of motor activity) + Act (A manifestation of intentional or unintentional insincerity; a pose)
Hiburbate
Created by: youmustvotenato
Pronunciation: high-burr-bate
Sentence: With his phone left in the car, Steve was able to enjoy the day strewn about on the grass in the park hiburbating in peace.
Etymology: Hibernate + ***********
Stonify
Created by: Windyo
Pronunciation: stone-i-fy
Sentence: Everytime i see this guy, i stonify. I just don't want him to speak to me.
Etymology: to act like stone
Miraginist
Created by: porsche
Pronunciation: meer/ah/jin/ist
Sentence: He was such a skilled miraginist that no one ever knew if he was there or not
Etymology: mirage
Incommuninogo
Created by: astorey
Pronunciation: im-ca-mewn-i-no-go
Sentence: Caller ID was the best thing to ever happen to Jason, who was able to to incommuninogo with a mere glance at the phone to confirm to whom he did not feel like talking. In person, friends could tell by a quick look at Jason's face if he was ready to engage or incommuninogo
Etymology: Incommunicado--In a state or condition in which one is unable or unwilling to communicate; In a manner in which communication with outsiders is not possible, for either voluntary or involuntary reasons, especially due to confinement or reclusiveness--replaced with no go at the end to imply a willful removal from interaction.
Homelistless
Created by: looseball
Pronunciation:
Sentence: He had that homelistless look so I just walked away.
Etymology:
Comapose
Created by: TJayzz
Pronunciation: Co-ma-po-z
Sentence: Whenever Colin entered a meeting he would suddenly go into a comapose to avoid any awkward questions that may come his way. The meeting would carry on regardless as everyone knew that Colin would not make a full recovery until the meeting was over.
Etymology: Coma(a state of deep unconsciousness) ORIGIN Greek Koma 'deep sleep' + Pose(assume a particular position, pretend to be) = Comapose
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COMMENTS:
nice! - galwaywegian, 2008-09-17: 07:29:00
Stunning def! - metrohumanx, 2008-09-17: 11:29:00
funny - Jabberwocky, 2008-09-17: 14:03:00
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Snoozvoidance
Created by: libertybelle
Pronunciation: snews-voy-dance
Sentence: Jerry usually begins his snoozvoidance ritual of getting drowsy right after dinner so he can get out of doing the dishes.
Etymology: snooze + avoidance
Homeevashun
Created by: Stevenson0
Pronunciation: hohmi-vey-shun
Sentence: Whenever a topic comes up at a staff meeting that he knows little about and can't talk about for four hours, Bob goes into his homeevadshun mode shutting out everything and everyone.
Etymology: HOMEEVADSHUN - play on HOME INVASION
Zombiehaviour
Created by: remistram
Pronunciation: zom-bee-heyv-yer
Sentence: Everyone knew when Matt didn't finish his portion of the project because at team meetings he'd switch into zombiehaviour mode.
Etymology: zombie (as in stunned) + behaviour
Avacant
Created by: Stackd
Pronunciation: Ah-vay-can-t
Sentence: His avacant expression succeeded in avoiding all questions.
Etymology: Avoid and vacant
Faklusion
Created by: crmow
Pronunciation: fey-kloo-zhun
Sentence: George saw the Jehovah's Witnesses coming up to the door, so he went into a state of faklusion.
Etymology: fake + seclusion
Shutninja
Created by: artr
Pronunciation: shətninjə
Sentence: Once Harry gets home from work he becomes a shutninja. Knocks on the door nor ringing of the phone will secure a response. If not for lights going on and off and seeing him leave and return from his job, his neighbors wouldn’t know that anybody lived in his house.
Etymology: shut-in (a person confined indoors, esp. as a result of physical or mental disability) + ninja (mercenaries of feudal Japan known for their ability to be invisible/hidden)
Shamgaged
Created by: chippy
Pronunciation:
Sentence: I'm sorry Mr. Peterson can't come to the phone right now. He is shamgaged in an important project.
Etymology: sham engaged
Zombievade
Created by: artr
Pronunciation: zämbēvād
Sentence: George could zombievade almost any situation. His blank stare and lack of reaction made approach nearly impossible. The few who tried to elicit human interaction were rebuffed by active indifference. Deep inside they knew that George really wanted to eat their brains.
Etymology: Zombie (a soulless corpse said to be revived by witchcraft) + evade (escape or avoid, esp. by cleverness or trickery)
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COMMENTS:
Gotta love those zombies! Good word. - metrohumanx, 2008-09-17: 11:36:00
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Interworldism
Created by: deaninc
Pronunciation: int-r-werld-ism
Sentence: It looks like someone has interworldism
Etymology: A person who is physically present yet allows ones mind to unfocus the optical characteristic of the eye as facial definitions relax.
Catatalkic
Created by: Lolagrrl
Pronunciation: cat-a-talk-ick
Sentence: Nancy's constant catatalkic state had the entire office avoiding her. This ploy worked well for Nancy because it meant that she could actually get some work done for a change.
Etymology: catatonic + talk
Holograham
Created by: Jabberwocky
Pronunciation: hollow/gray/am
Sentence: Graham was a very shy person turning into a holograham when confronted with his insecurities.
Etymology: hologram (sometimes you see it- sometimes you don't) + graham + hollow
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COMMENTS:
Like the thought behind this one. Does Graham have a female counterpart! - OZZIEBOB, 2007-10-20: 18:16:00
that might be Holograndma (an elderly hermit), or Hollygram. - petaj, 2007-10-22: 03:37:00
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Truantics
Created by: Nosila
Pronunciation: tru ant iks
Sentence: When the meetings started, Bob commenced his truantics. He'd zone out and get that inner zen look upon his face, so that people would avoid asking him to participate and he would feel no responsibility in contributing or remembering anything. His boss wanted to shake him and ask him "Who are you and what have you done with the real Bob"?
Etymology: Truant (someone who shirks duty;absent without permission) & Antics (a ludicrous or grotesque act done for fun and amusement;act as or like a clown;ludicrously odd)
Glistant
Created by: mayblossom
Pronunciation: glist-ant
Sentence: "oh look, Marks gone all Glistant again!
Etymology: glare+distant.
Socialnoism
Created by: edhine
Pronunciation: social-no-ism
Sentence: Bob's socialnoism was well known to the Schwann man.
Etymology:
Fauxvert
Created by: MadTripper
Pronunciation: foh-vurt
Sentence: My father would always become a fauxvert on Halloween night by shutting the lights off in the house and refusing to answer the door.
Etymology: Faux Avert
Hollowgraham
Created by: Jabberwocky
Pronunciation: hawl/oh/gram
Sentence: Graham was a very shy person who could turn into a hollowgraham when confronted with his insecurities.
Etymology: hologram (three dimensional photographic image - sometimes visible, sometimes not) + graham + hollow
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COMMENTS:
heh! - galwaywegian, 2008-09-17: 07:31:00
Good one! - TJayzz, 2008-09-18: 10:15:00
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Motherducker
Created by: karenanne
Pronunciation: mu ther DUK er
Sentence: Conn manages to be "sick" every year during inventory week. This is the fourth year that he's stayed home while the rest of us have to climb ladders with pen and paper and count every stinking widget on those dusty shelves. He doesn't even try to be creative any more - he's like, "Still have the flu... yeah, that's the ticket...." I can't believe the boss STILL hasn't caught on to that lazy motherducker.
Etymology: duck (to dodge, evade) + mother*ucker
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COMMENTS:
love it! - galwaywegian, 2010-02-16: 03:32:00
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Fakehooky
Created by: ErWenn
Pronunciation: /ˈfeɪk ˈhʊki/
Sentence: Peering around the apparently empty classroom, the teacher first thought that it was Ditch Day, but soon he realized that the students were just faking hooky.
Etymology: from "play hooky" + "fake"
Sociallusion
Created by: purpleartichokes
Pronunciation: so-shul-loo-zhun
Sentence: He was supposed to be filling in for his boss while he was away, but his fear of handling urgent phone calls turned him into a sociallusion, so he locked himself in the mens room for the day.
Etymology: social, illusion
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COMMENTS:
it sounds like a deivative of socialism - perhaps there are many Swedish sociallusions - Jabberwocky, 2007-10-19: 13:48:00
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Ostrichize
Created by: gobidesert
Pronunciation: awstritchize
Sentence: Uh oh, the boss is on the prowl. Perhaps I will just ostrichize in my cubicle for the next little bit.
Etymology: ostrich (head in sand) verbalized
Inexcessible
Created by: Nosila
Pronunciation: in ex ses a bill
Sentence: Charlie thought The Stones were great and wore his earphones playing their hits all the time. It meant he did not hear the cries of his staff to get away from the bucket falling from the open door. When he fainted in the doorway, it was rendered inexcessible to the average man.
Etymology: Inacessible (capable of being reached only with great difficulty or not at all not capable of being obtained
Availabhor
Created by: verbony
Pronunciation: avail-ab-whore
Sentence: "you've got mail" or the latest ringtones really brings out the availabhor in me
Etymology: available+abhor
Absillusive
Created by: deepbluenpurple
Pronunciation: Ab + zee +lusive
Sentence: His absillusive demeanour in the face of his wife's tirades seemed to enrage her further.
Etymology: absence + illusion
Fauxtard
Created by: Spacey
Pronunciation: pho-tard
Sentence: Why does Steve look like he's about to drool on himself? He's being a fauxtard so his wife won't ask him to go shopping with her.
Etymology:
Eschewencounter
Created by: Mustang
Pronunciation: ess-SHOO-en-count-er
Sentence: Morton had developed a broad array of eschewencounter techniques and had even been known to go to the extreme of feigning deafness to avoid having to engage an unexpected visitor.
Etymology: Blend of 'eschew' (to abstain or keep away from; shun; avoid) and 'encounter' (a meeting with a person or thing)
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COMMENTS:
Great combo, Mussy! - metrohumanx, 2008-09-17: 11:28:00
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Avoidiepeer
Created by: emilylind
Pronunciation: the pronunciation of this word is the words ' avoid ' the letter e and 'peer'
Sentence: Tom is such an avoidepeer !
Etymology:
Avoidunce
Created by: Mustang
Pronunciation: A-void-unce
Sentence: The avoidunce only answered the doorbell when the pizza delivery boy arrived.
Etymology: Avoid + dunce
Fauconscious
Created by: steviesteveo
Pronunciation: Faux-conscious
Sentence: As the meeting got underway Bob settled into a comfortably fauconscious state of mind.
Etymology: From French "faux" - false and Latin "conscius" - aware
Disignor
Created by: austix
Pronunciation: dis-ig-nor
Sentence: Bob tends to disignor any calls from numbers he does not recognize
Etymology: Use of dis as in slang--disresect. Ignor a variation on ignore
Ignoraphobic
Created by: lumina
Pronunciation: ig/nor/a/fobic
Sentence: Due to all the papparazzi and bad press, Perez Hilton now and then becomes ignoraphobic, dodging all forms of communication no matter how juicy the tip, tidbit, rumor or photo. Believe it or not, sometimes even HE tires of the "spotlight."
Etymology: Ignore + Agoraphobic Ignoring, while staying in, due to becoming phobic.
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COMMENTS:
clever blend - Jabberwocky, 2008-09-17: 14:02:00
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Vacunt
Created by: pungineer
Pronunciation: Vay/kunt
Sentence: 'Dave is a such a vacunt, whenever I want to talk about where our relationship is going, he just glazes over' moaned Minnie
Etymology: Vacant + Vagina, nope sorry I mean (it's ok i'm a feminist)
Megon
Created by: milorush
Pronunciation: (n.) mē' - gŏn; (intr. v): mě'- gŏn - āte
Sentence: Al in the IT department, a noted megon, greets his coworkers with a vacuous stare whenever they approach him for help with the server.
Etymology: MEGO = acronym for "my eyes glaze over" + suffix -[a]n = relating to
Circumatose
Created by: TheFlawlessWord
Pronunciation: sir CUM a tose
Sentence: The persistent bill collector finally deemed Bob a circumatose.
Etymology: circumvent + comatose
Hermitate
Created by: bebaibo
Pronunciation:
Sentence: Why does Bob always have that blank stare at our meetings? I think he's hermitating, so the boss won't ask him any questions.
Etymology: From hermit (a person living in solitude as a religous discipline...OED)
Communicocoon
Created by: OZZIEBOB
Pronunciation: k'-mu-ni-K'-koon
Sentence: From time to time Bob felt the need to flee to his "cave" to escape 21st century electronoia. He would communicocoon himself, putting invasive emailers, delhi-diallers and, even, tele-friends in quarantronica. He was a electroglodyte. Roxie accepted Bob's strange state of mind; for, she thought, she had heard someone say that men are from Mars. Maybe, Bob was!
Etymology: Verb - blend of "communi"cate & cocoon: to retreat from unfriendly environment. Noun - blend of "electro"nic & troglodyte: one who lives in solitude (cavedweller).
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COMMENTS:
Such a long word with "i" as the only ascender or descender makes my eyes glaze. Good word, though. - ErWenn, 2007-10-19: 09:46:00
does he emerge as a butterfly? - Jabberwocky, 2007-10-19: 13:45:00
Yes, he does, as a 'social butterfly!' - OZZIEBOB, 2007-10-20: 18:20:00
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Zoneduff
Created by: metrohumanx
Pronunciation: ZZZZone-duh-FFF (alt. zoneduffer)
Sentence: BigBob was likeable enough, but he had an annoying habit of ZONEDUFFING while you were talking to him, and you never knew how long he had been incommunicado. We did extract a measure of revenge when the whole department took a subway ride to the trade show. We all got on the train, and just before the doors closed, everyone jumped off - leaving BigBob on the express to Harlem instead of going downtown. BigBob the ZONEDUFFER stared from the rear window of the subway car as it slowly vanished into the rat-infested subterranean dimness of the "Big Apple"...and forever into our memories.
Etymology: ZONED out+ DUFF = ZONEDUFF.....zoned out: late 1960-ish phrase meaning " to withdraw into a semi-pleasant introspective state of sensory withdrawl, induced by lack of sleep or excessive ingestion of contraband".....DUFF: disparaging regional term meaning "to leave (one's comrades) abruptly, secretively or without prior warning"....."Dude! Why did you DUFF on us last night?"
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COMMENTS:
No BigBobs were harmed in the writing of this FICTITOUS sentence.... - metrohumanx, 2008-09-17: 02:06:00
Sounds like he was zonedeaf, too! - Nosila, 2008-09-18: 01:30:00
Amidst the woes on Wall st - missed this one. Great word - OZZIEBOB, 2008-09-30: 17:49:00
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Recladude
Created by: svnfsvn
Pronunciation:
Sentence: the recladude hid in the mens room till the meeting was over
Etymology: reclusive dude
Absentiments
Created by: abrakadeborah
Pronunciation: ab-sin-ti-ments
Sentence: Clay's absentiments in training class didn't fool anyone. He often zones out at work and turns off in life all together.
Etymology: Absent-Not existent; lacking. Sentiment-The expression of delicate and sensitive feeling. Putting parts of both words together making "Absentiments."
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COMMENTS:
Love it, but already spent my votes... - Nosila, 2011-07-02: 19:50:00
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Stuporvision
Created by: artr
Pronunciation: stoōpərvizhən
Sentence: Denise*s supervisor is a super hero. He has powers far beyond those of mortals. The sound of his voice can crack glass. The mere clearing of his throat can disburse a gathering at the water cooler. His laser-like stare can cause workers to leave their Facebook status updates and get back on task. When the **Big Boss** is on the prowl with productivity questions he employs his greatest power of all. He uses his stuporvision to look like he is deep, deep in thought. He is so good at it that **Mr. Bigpants** might even apologize for interrupting and return to the ivory tower.
Etymology: stupor (a state of near-unconsciousness or insensibility) + supervision (to observe and direct the work of others)
Attendshungetter
Created by: Nosila
Pronunciation: at tend shun get ter
Sentence: Alan was always an attendshungetter, whether at work in the office or at home. He could zone out and retreat into his own little fantasy world to avoid other people such as meetings,classes, door-to-door sales people, his mother-in-law, his wife and anything or anyone else he chose to. In his mind, he travelled far away, usually on a spaceship or he replayed his favourite movie scenes. Some people thought he could astral-project himself, because he could recall no details when he "came back". On Halloween night he hid in the house in the dark, with the porchlight on, watching from behind the drapes to avoid the trick or treaters. His mind was like his home. Like his Mother had always said... the lights were on but there was no one home.
Etymology: Attend (give heed (to);be present at (meetings, church services, university), etc.) & Shun (avoid and stay away from deliberately; stay clear of) & Getter (a person who acquires as a result of some effort or action)
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COMMENTS:
ANOTHER Nosila classic! - metrohumanx, 2008-09-17: 01:29:00
AHA! Zone out ! I KNEW it wasn't just us. - metrohumanx, 2008-09-17: 11:32:00
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Homeevashun
Created by: Stevenson0
Pronunciation: hohmi-vey-shun
Sentence: Whenever a topic comes up at a staff meeting that he knows little about and can't talk about for four hours, Bob goes into his homeevadshun mode shutting out everything and everyone.
Etymology: HOMEEVADSHUN - play on HOME INVASION
Confrontavert
Created by: Mustang
Pronunciation: kon-FRUNT-eh-vert
Sentence: When faced with unwanted visits, remarks, invitations etc, Larimer has several confrontavert techniques he employs wherein he pretends not to notice though everyone else realizes he is faking
Etymology: Blend of 'confront' (to meet face-to-fac) and 'avert' (v. to ward off; prevent)
Fakecant
Created by: mrskellyscl
Pronunciation: fake-cant
Sentence: You could tell by the fakecant look on Bob's face that he was either trying to avoid contact with the rest of us or he was called back to his home planet. Either way, he wasn't missed.
Etymology: fake: having a false or deceiving appearance + vacant: not occupied, empty
Aloofitis
Created by: Kevcom
Pronunciation: ah-lew-phy-tiss
Sentence: Grade 8 student James Hooligan frequently displayed a severe facial state of aloofitis to abstain from being picked by the teacher in class to come up and solve the math problem. His aloofitis tactics however never seemed to work in preventing him from being picked upon by the alert teacher.
Etymology: aloof + itis
Zombivox
Created by: wordslikevenom
Pronunciation: Zom-bee-vox
Sentence: Jamie's claims that he suffered 'Moon fever' were never actually substantiated, mainly because no-one had ever heard of it. However, this didn't stop him from being persistent in his claims of suffering whereby suddenly and without notice he would turn zombivox if interrupted.
Etymology: Zombie - a person who appears not to notice what is happening around them Voice box (colloq.) - the organ in the neck of mammals involved in sound production
Absentshun
Created by: petaj
Pronunciation: ab-SENT-shun
Sentence: The absentshun living at number 15 had successfully kept his neighbours thinking that his house was vacant. No one had been able to attract his attention as he spent most of his time avoiding the windows and sneaking around on rubber-soled shoes.
Etymology: absent + shun + attention
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COMMENTS:
good one Petaj - Jabberwocky, 2007-10-19: 13:45:00
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Technotian
Created by: Domhain
Pronunciation: Tech-no-shun
Sentence: You must learn the way of the technotian if you are to advance in to a managerial role within this IT department.
Etymology: Reality.
Masquevade
Created by: tdhall56
Pronunciation: mask e vade
Sentence: Jim was broke, so all week he had to masquevade the bill collectors.
Etymology: masquerade (pretend) evade (avoid)
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COMMENTS:
This word has a nice ring to it! - MrDave2176, 2007-10-19: 09:55:00
I like it,too! - OZZIEBOB, 2007-10-20: 18:18:00
who was that masked elusionist? - petaj, 2007-10-22: 03:39:00
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Comments:
Today's definition was suggested by MrDave2176. Thank you MrDave2176! ~ James
Osmosis - 2007-10-21: 23:15:00
Perhaps "denysolation" would be better for this definition and sentence.
Today's definition was suggested by MrDave2176. Thank you MrDave2176. ~ James