Vote for the best verboticism.
DEFINITION: n., A feeling of discomfort, common while sitting on a plane or train, created by the sense that you are about to be decapitated by your fellow passengers who are tilting aggressively towards you. v. To sit in a very small space, which seems to be getting smaller.
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.
Tramcram
Created by: artr
Pronunciation: tram-cram
Sentence: Jerry had to put his car in the shop. He has already used all of his personal, sick and vacation time so he has to go to work on the transit. Now he is sitting on the bench quivering at the thought of the impending tramcram.
Etymology: tram (a streetcar) + cram (to fill (something) by force with more than it can easily hold)
Economisery
Created by: Tigger
Pronunciation: /i-kon-uh-miz'-uh-ree/
Sentence: Before the technology stock bubble burst, Richard had always flown first-class, but now, crammed into the back with the rest of the average Joe's, he was nearly overcome with economisery, and recumbentrauma caused by the seat in front of him reclining back so suddenly that he dropped his meager ration of peanuts, and couldn't bend down to retrieve them.
Etymology: economy - Economy class; the cheapest class of travel accomodations (from Greek, oikonomíā "household") + misery - wretchedness of condition or circumstances (from Latin, miseria, equiv. to miser "wretched")
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COMMENTS:
clever blend! - bananabender, 2008-01-29: 22:23:00
Really brings out the miserly feelings in this definitions! - silveryaspen, 2008-01-29: 23:59:00
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Decrampitation
Created by: Ghyarlae
Pronunciation: de-cram-pee-tay-shun
Sentence: The pressure of people in the metro almost choked and decrampitated me.
Etymology: crammed + decapitation
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COMMENTS:
Good word! - OZZIEBOB, 2008-01-30: 16:15:00
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Lunettetic
Created by: Banky
Pronunciation: loon-net-tick
Sentence: As soon as the second obese man had settled to his right on the aisle, Roger noticed the seat in front of him. Down it crawled, inexorably lower with every passing second, wicking the sweat out of Roger, turning his hands clammy as the corpse he would inevitably become. His heart raced furiously as he calculated his escape, but it was too late; the plush polyester blade sat before him, adorned with a tacky 80s multi-color motif. So this is how it ended, huh, wedged between two Brandoesque men, a crazed lunettetic whose last meal was 5 stale pretzels.
Etymology: lunette - the portion of the guillotine that fixed the head in place, composed of two blocks each with semi-circular indentations + lunatic - an insane person
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COMMENTS:
Lunette describes Marie Antoinette ... so perfectly, your word we aren't likely to forget! Very interesting! - silveryaspen, 2008-01-29: 09:35:00
fantastic paragraph - Jabberwocky, 2008-01-29: 10:43:00
great sentence! Your word and sentence captures the essence of the definition so well. - bananabender, 2008-01-29: 18:46:00
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Crambivalence
Created by: OZZIEBOB
Pronunciation: kram-BIV-uh-luh ns
Sentence: As the 500lb Sumo wrestler quaked tectonically to and fro in the seat immediately in front of his, Bob's crambivalence faltered between the fear of being squeezy-chaired, and the hope of having a fabulous fortnight in The Philippines.
Etymology: Blend of CRAM: to press something into something else; jam or cram beyond the normal comfortable capacity, as on a plane or train & AMBIVALENCE: similar conflicting feelings; mixed feelings of uncertainty or emotion, as between safety & unsafety.
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COMMENTS:
Another good combo! - silveryaspen, 2008-01-29: 09:11:00
once again, I'm wowed by your extra words - love squeezy-chaired - Jabberwocky, 2008-01-29: 13:26:00
great word! - bananabender, 2008-01-29: 22:27:00
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Encroachclass
Created by: libertybelle
Pronunciation: en-kroach-klass
Sentence: The plane hadn't even left the terminal when I realized that my bargain ticket placed me smack in the middle of encroach-class - where the person in front of me had already put his jacket over the back of my seat, thus rendering my tray table useless, and reclined all the way back. The fact that I was sitting in an exit row and could not recline made my encroach-class predicament all the more uncomfortable.
Etymology: encroach + coach class
Economyclasstrophobia
Created by: Nosila
Pronunciation: ee kono mee klas tro fo beea
Sentence: John thought, "No wonder there's air rage these days. The planes are getting smaller, the line up at security takes longer than the actual flight. A 2 hour flight ends up in an 8 hour outing just to get where you need to go. You either have to buy food in the after security spaces at grossly inflated prices or purchase something to eat on the airplane at even more grossly inflated prices. The headphones for the movie rarely work. The crew are always on skeletal staff levels and forget trying to turn around in the toilet". After these happy thoughts John was fighting to overcome his economyclasstrophobia, as the seat in front of his slowly edged towards his head. "Seriously, he thought, does that girl really need eyemask and reclined seating for this 20 minute flight??? Next time, I'm driving", he vowed.
Etymology: Economy Class (the cheapest class of air or rail travel) & Claustrophobia (a morbid fear of being closed in a confined space)
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COMMENTS:
Classy word for what "cheap" air travel has become! - splendiction, 2010-04-19: 21:40:00
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Spaceshuffle
Created by: TJayzz
Pronunciation: Spay-ss-shuff-el
Sentence: Mike was dreading the business trip to Paris, he knew he would have to spend the whole trip doing the spaceshuffle, due to his mean bosses booking his flight with Cheapo Airlines. He had been on a strict diet for the past week, so that he would hopefully not be quite as squashed as he was on previous occasions.
Etymology: Space(the dimensions,width and height of an area) + Shuffle(restlessly shift one's position in order to be more comfortable)
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COMMENTS:
Out of this world creation! Quite astro-naughty-call! - silveryaspen, 2008-11-20: 07:53:00
very funny - Jabberwocky, 2008-11-20: 11:44:00
Mike was the fastonaut on the spaceshuffle - OZZIEBOB, 2008-11-20: 16:16:00
Cheapo Airlines...all their staff took up in school was Space! Great word. - Nosila, 2008-11-20: 19:33:00
A Neoclassic. Check in more often! - metrohumanx, 2008-11-21: 08:23:00
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Narrowbinded
Created by: thegoatisbad
Pronunciation: nhar-oh-byn-ded
Sentence: Zinnia liked to think of herself as open-minded but her commute to work, via public transport, had slowed changed her mind. Indeed, she was now so anxious of being narrowbinded that she would go to great lengths to assure a seat by herself. The fake dog stool she found at a gag shop was a good deterrent, but she left it on too many buses and was arousing suspicion among the drivers. She finally discovered that the best way to protect her person space from breech was to softly sing while eating canned tuna.
Etymology: narrow (small space) + binded (sic. secure by tying) play on "narrow minded"
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COMMENTS:
Hilarious! - splendiction, 2010-04-19: 21:47:00
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Comments:
Today's definition was suggested by gemmgemms. Thank you gemmgemms. ~ James
silveryaspen - 2008-01-29: 09:30:00
Evocative cartoon ... crushed-people like sardines in a tinned-canny airplane with that overpowering fishy smell closing in on everything! Very clever!
Hey Silveryaspen, Thanks for the kind words. Smells like croosht shoup ~ James
Excellent word. Makes me wonder who that was and what they were chanting.
Today's definition was suggested by gemmgemms. Thank you gemmgemms. ~ James