Vote for the best verboticism.
DEFINITION: v. To engage in conversation while using a technical device, like a TV or computer, to keep you sharp, in case the discussion gets dull. n. A two-way conversation which is technically one-sided.
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.
Gadchat
Created by: Carla
Pronunciation: gaj-chat
Sentence: Tim was inseparable from his gadgets. He could not put them down, even to talk to his nearest and dearest. As a result of bitter experience, his family would try to impart important information only during gaps in the gadchat (channel changes, game loading). Yet Tim invariably forgot - or never knew - much of what he had been told.
Etymology: gad (to move restlessly or aimlessly from one place to another) + chat. Wordplay on 'gadget'.
Ituneout
Created by: purpleartichokes
Pronunciation: i/tune/out
Sentence: My grandfather lamented that he hated talking to "kids these days" as they always seemed to ituneout him as he was describing how he had to walk to school in three feet of snow, up hill, both ways.
Etymology: i-tune, tune out
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COMMENTS:
It's a technology problem isn't it... - wordmeister, 2007-01-11: 09:46:00
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Tronversate
Created by: lebeast
Pronunciation: tron-ver-sayte
Sentence: Kim didn't realize that the entire time she spoke of the mole on her left thigh that seemed to be changing color, Marty was tronversating to avoid missing the rose ceremony on The Bachelor.
Etymology: Electronics+Conversation
Cyversation
Created by: artr
Pronunciation: sahy-ver-sey-shuhn
Sentence: Alex thinks he is expert at multi-tasking. He thinks he can talk to his girlfriend while he is texting friends or updating his Facebook status. Their cyversation works for them. She talks. He acts like he is listening and reacts with grunts and nods. She can do whatever she wants because he "agreed".
Etymology: cyber (computer-related) conversation (dialogue, discourse)
Preconverse
Created by: Koekbroer
Pronunciation: pre-con-vers
Sentence: "Rachel, do you want me to preconverse this to you? I remember every word. I'll even add some beat."
Etymology:
Tonezoning
Created by: toadstool57
Pronunciation: Tone-zone-ing
Sentence: As Jill barked out orders, David sits tonezoning, using his remote to tune her out.
Etymology: Tone, a noise or sound. zoning, to drift off, tune out the surrounding noise.
Technobabble
Created by: Mustang
Pronunciation: TEK-no-babl
Sentence: Lance is a techie dweeb and a social nerd so it just comes natural to him to sprinkle all kinds of technobabble in all of his conversations, a practice that really irritates his fiancé, Paula, as she is totally techno illiterate.
Etymology: Blend of 'technology' (the branch of knowledge that deals with the creation and use of technical means and their interrelation with life) and 'babble' (To utter a meaningless confusion of words or sounds)
Faultitask
Created by: ErWenn
Pronunciation: /'fol-tE-"task/
Sentence: Natasha liked to pretend that she could check her messages on her cell phone while listening to the lecture, but her teacher knew that she was merely faultitasking.
Etymology: From faulty + multitasking
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COMMENTS:
My teachers hate when I'm faultitasking. Thank goodness I have a laptop so they can't tell. I'm sure my marks would suffer if the knew... - wordmeister, 2007-01-11: 09:50:00
Trust me, they know. As a teacher, I can say that with confidence. What gets on teachers' nerves is not so much when you aren't paying attention but when you're being obvious about it. It's the same difference between trying not to get into a conversation with someone you don't like at a party and actively ignoring everything they say. - ErWenn, 2007-01-11: 20:17:00
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Multitalk
Created by: jedijawa
Pronunciation: multi-talk
Sentence: Bill tended to multitalk meaning that he would try to watch tv while talking at the same time.
Etymology: multitask + talk
Semihearing
Created by: bghicks
Pronunciation: semi hearing
Sentence: I was watching TV and semihearing my wife rant
Etymology: semi - half hearing
Comments:
ErWenn - 2007-01-11: 20:23:00
I like this definition. If there were a good word (or phrase, more likely) for this, I'd actually consider using it. Same with yesterday's.
Hey Erwin, Thanks for the complement on the definition. I appreciate your feedback! So which word are you going to use? Maybe Faultitasking or Digitalk? How about Flipversation? Or if you want something short -- Gabget? ~ James