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'Honey, are you awake?'

DEFINITION: n. An idea that pops into your head just before you fall asleep, which is so big and brilliant, or else so dark and scary, that it keeps you awake all night long. v. To lie awake in bed with a head full of big dreams.

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Verboticisms

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Pillowned

Created by: Erikv

Pronunciation: Pill loaned

Sentence: With baggy eyes and a tired mind he knew effects from being pillowned last night would beer with him for the rest of the day.

Etymology: Pillow plus owned

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Thinksomnia

Created by: Nosila

Pronunciation: think som neeya

Sentence: Apparently he was too busy or preoccupied to think during his busy day, but Joe Einstein got his best ideas at night just before or after he went to sleep and ended up thinking of all the possibilies/obstructions/refinements to his ideas all night. To the point he could not get to sleep. He had thinksomnia real bad and it was only when he actually committed these ideas to paper while he was "on" that he remembered enough of them in the morning to put them in motion. But this meant turning on a light, writing for hours and keeping his wife Mona awake, too. It was not until he had another bright idea one night that she approved of his nocturnal brilliance. He invented a sleeprecorder and told it all his ideas as he got them, so that he could replay in the morning and capitalize on his great ideas!

Etymology: Think (ideas;imagine;visualize;an instance of deliberate thinking) & Insomnia (an inability to sleep; chronic sleeplessness)

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Idreamea

Created by: mweinmann

Pronunciation: i - dreem - ee - ah

Sentence: Susanna had a brilliant idreamea last night. She thought of new strategies and ideas which came to her in an awake but dreamlike state.....borne out of exhaustion from not sleeping. This must be what happens when you are on the edge of insanity she thought.

Etymology: idea, dream

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COMMENTS:

dreamy word - Nosila, 2009-10-27: 01:34:00

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Revigilation

Created by: ErWenn

Pronunciation: /ɹəˌvɪdʒəˈleɪʃən/̩

Sentence: Sometimes my revigilations seem truly deep, and sometimes I stay awake at nights wondering if "procrasticap" is funnier than "apathetes' heel".

Etymology: From revelation + vigil

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COMMENTS:

petaj Sounds like supervising exam candidates over and over - that would keep one awake at night too. - petaj, 2007-04-09: 04:48:00

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Ahawake

artr

Created by: artr

Pronunciation: ähäwāk

Sentence: The revelation that Julia had just as she was about to doze off kept her ahawake all night. It only took her 18 years and a chance encounter on Facebook but she now was certain she knew who her real father was and why her mother kept it secret.

Etymology: aha (used to express satisfaction, triumph, or surprise) + awake (not asleep)

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Subcognitans

Created by: darkXshadow

Pronunciation: sub/kog/neet/ans

Sentence: one of my briliant subcognitans kept me up all night last night.

Etymology: sub coming from subito, meaning sudden. cogn coming from cognito, meaning knowledge. itans coming from suscitans, meaning awakening.

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Insomniapiphany

artr

Created by: artr

Pronunciation: insämnēəpifənē

Sentence: After sitting up almost all night with what he thought was an insomniapiphany, John finally dozed off. When he woke up again he couldn’t remember the idea at all. The only thing he knows for sure is that work is going to be a beast today.

Etymology: insomnia (habitual sleeplessness; inability to sleep) + epiphany (a moment of sudden revelation or insight)

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Presomnidea

Created by: WhiteRhino

Pronunciation: Pre-somb-nid-eya

Sentence: Morphine has been administered for acute Presomnidea and borderline Schizophrenia.

Etymology: Pre - before Somn - Sleep Idea - a thought or notion

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Thoughtmare

Created by: jedijawa

Pronunciation: thawt-mare

Sentence: Jill couldn't get to sleep because a thoughtmare was keeping her mind working too fast to get any rest.

Etymology: thought + nightmare

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COMMENTS:

Another great word! - Stevenson0, 2007-04-09: 20:48:00

I like the sound of this word, though I want to use it for the sorts of nonsensically horrifying idea-dreams that run through my head when I'm asleep enough to dream, but awake enough to know that the ideas don't make sense. - ErWenn, 2007-04-09: 22:47:00

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Insomniaha

Created by: galwaywegian

Pronunciation: in som nee a ha

Sentence: It's like Wayne's brain was frozen all day, but when he did get brilliant ideas, it was just before he was getting ready to sleep. Then he would get his insomniaha moment. He finally learned to write these brain revolutions down, as inevitably he would be so tired the next day that he would forget his inspirations. That's when he would get amnesiaohnooooo!

Etymology: Insomnia (an inability to sleep) & Aha (expression used to describe triumph, surprise or "I get it!")

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Comments:

Verbotomy Verbotomy - 2007-04-09: 00:03:00
Thank you to Dan Pink for sponsoring this week's Right-Brain Verbotomy Contest and creativity prize. ~ James

Verbotomy Verbotomy - 2007-04-09: 11:29:00
What happened last week? Read Verbotoweek! A look back at last week's wickedest words and funniest comments... Edited by "Weeklink", one of our top players who from some reason, perhaps self-preservation, prefers to remain anonymous! See: Verbotoweek in the Verbotomy Blog.

Bulletchewer - 2007-04-09: 15:52:00
Wonder if this happened to Thomas Edison. Oh, and in a related piece of propaganda, vote for Wordmeister's "Nightbulb"! PS Great (if slightly embarrassing) blog!

wordmeister - 2007-04-09: 18:04:00
Hey Bulletchewer, Thanks for the vote of support! I guess I managed to skip through my own premonstermare without getting trampled...

Bulletchewer - 2007-04-09: 18:37:00
Just wondering if anyone else is ineligible for this week's contest. Who's up for a Sir Geoffrey?

toadstool57 - 2007-04-09: 21:34:00
James - cool that you spotlighted CFLs.

Verbotomy Verbotomy - 2007-04-10: 00:07:00
Thanks toadstool57. We're just trying to create some environmentally friendly ideas. ~ James

OZZIEBOB - 2008-06-21: 19:35:00
Excellent.

Verbotomy Verbotomy - 2009-10-26: 02:14:00
Today's definition was suggested by wordmeister. Thank you wordmeister. ~ James