Vote for the best verboticism.
DEFINITION: n., An ugly decorative item or article of clothing received from friends or relatives, which is kept stored away but ready to be pulled out at a moment's notice in anticipation of a return visit. v., To temporarily place an old, and perhaps unattractive gift in a place of honor.
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.
Whitelephantasmagoria
Created by: karenanne
Pronunciation: whyt EL eh fan TAZ ma GOR ee ah
Sentence: Over the holidays, my house becomes a whitelephantasmagoria of sorts, as I rotate in and out the succession of useless and hideous items given to me over the years by various relatives. I have to keep a calendar of who is coming when, so that the correct one is on display on the correct day. God forbid I put out the horrid quilt made for my grandchildren by their grandmother, my EX-mother-in-law, when my CURRENT mother-in-law visits. She has an uncanny sense for such things.
Etymology: white elephant + phantasmagoria (a constantly shifting complex succession of things seen or imagined; a series or group of strange or bizarre images seen as if in a dream)
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COMMENTS:
Whitelephantasmagoria are kept in a special trunk...good word - Nosila, 2009-12-16: 22:15:00
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Eyestore
Created by: TJayzz
Pronunciation: i-store
Sentence: When Dave's Auntie Joan had given him the hideous orange and green vase for Christmas last year he smiled broadly and thanked her very much telling her it was beautiful. However as soon as she had left he wrapped up the eyestore and put it straight into the loft. Auntie Joan is due to visit again this year on christmas day, so the plan is to get in the loft on Christmas eve and put the offending object in pride of place on the mantlepiece in the hope that it fools her into thinking that it has been there all year.
Etymology: Play on Eyesore
Interimantlepiece
Created by: hendrixius
Pronunciation: /in-tur-ruh-man-tull-pees/
Sentence: John reluctantly displayed the interimantlepiece over the couch in the family room, despite the fact that a singing bass did not exactly match the room's decor.
Etymology: "interim" and "mantle-piece"
Giftquester
Created by: Stevenson0
Pronunciation: gift/kwes/ter
Sentence: We have a box in our closet in the family room where we giftquester all the awful presents our relatives have given us and can be retrived at a moments notice and be placed accordingly some where in sight.
Etymology: gift + sequester
Horribowl
Created by: artr
Pronunciation: hawr-uh-bohl
Sentence: Tom's mom is coming to visit for Christmas so out of the closet comes the horribowl she gave him last year.
Etymology: Horrible (extremely unpleasant; deplorable; disgusting) + bowl (hollow, concave container)
Gifthorrors
Created by: Nosila
Pronunciation: gift hor rors
Sentence: Every Christmas, Chris and Holly looked forward to her Mother's annual Royal Visit with fear. Not because they were afraid of her, she was actually a kind and generaous person. No, they were afraid to drag out the gifthorrors she had bestowed on them for all the past holidays, to prove they liked and used them. The red rhinestone encrusted toilet brush (which looked so lovely in their purple bathroom). There was also the cross-eyed, smiling deer head to be mounted over the mantle. And the bearskin rug for the foyer...the koala bear skin rug. Add to the list, genuine ivory tusks used as coat racks;life-size gold sarcophagus of King Tut which doubled as a closeable shoe rack and their personal favourites,a five foot tall pair of the Dancing Hippos from Fantasia. Yep, next year Hawaii, not a fun old-fashioned Christmas!
Etymology: Gift (present;something acquired without compensation) & Horrors (something that inspires horror; something horrible) & Wordplay on Gift Horse (a gift (usually of inferior quality) that should be accepted uncritically)
Regravermess
Created by: silveryaspen
Pronunciation: regravermess: re - grave - her - mess
Sentence: Everytime my mother-in-law visited, I couldn't wait for her to leave so I could again hide away the last regravermess she gave me!
Etymology: regravermess: re for resurrect ... grav for resurrect from the grave ... er is short for her ... mess for mess
Artdecohno
Created by: galwaywegian
Pronunciation: art dek o no
Sentence: his mother had a huge collection of artdecohno on display, screaming aesthetic abuse from the mantlepiece,
Etymology: art deco, oh no
Unbelievabauble
Created by: libertybelle
Pronunciation: un-bee-leave-uh-baw-bull
Sentence: Martin could see Cheryl's car coming down his street. He immediately lept into action. Ordinarily, he would have been prepared and had the hand sequined tapestry of Liberace taken out and hung well in advance of her visit, but as this was an unannounced drop-in, he had to scurry to unpack the unbelievabauble from the depths of the cellar storage room.
Etymology: unbelievable + bauble ok... this was my submission last time too... but i couldn't think of another.
Adornmoment
Created by: xirtam
Pronunciation: ə-dôrn'moh-muhnt
Sentence: Prior to her mother-in-laws visit Lisa placed a bowl of glass grapes in the center of her coffee table. They were ugly, but they were a gift. So they were only going to be there an adornmoment.
Etymology: Adornment: Something that beautifies or adorns; an ornament. + Moment: an indefinitely short period of time.
Comments:
Today's definition was suggested by kabloozie Thank you kabloozie ~ James
Today's definition was suggested by kabloozie. Thank you kabloozie. ~ James