Vote for the best verboticism.

DEFINITION: v. To ignore anything positive and focus your energy on problems, disasters, and whatever bad news you find. n. A person who searches for, and feeds on, other people's weaknesses, failures and mistakes.
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.
Lugubriate
Created by: Mustang
Pronunciation: loo-GOO-bree-ayt
Sentence: Even on the sunniest days and rosiest occasions Bertha could be counted upon to lugubriate, searching through all the days events and news for the downbeat and negative offerings.
Etymology: 'Lugubrious' (mournful, dismal, or gloomy, esp. in an affected, exaggerated, or unrelieved manner) with suffix '-ate' (As the ending of a verb, it means to make, to cause, to act, etc.; as, to propitiate (to make propitious); to animate (to give life to)
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COMMENTS:
Saying lugubriate has harsh sounds just like these hard people! Easy to remember, spot on the definition ... another Exceptional Great Create! - silveryaspen, 2009-04-21: 09:47:00
like the GOO-d word play in your pronunciation, too! - silveryaspen, 2009-04-22: 22:16:00
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Flawyer
Created by: artr
Pronunciation: flôyər
Sentence: Tony entered the field of law with high hopes of making the world a better place. What he soon discovered was that he was really in a world of flaw enforcement. When somebody messes up he makes money. Once he got all of that Don Quixote nonsense out of system he became a real flawyer.
Etymology: flaw (imperfection) + lawyer (a person who practices or studies law)
Bleakbeaker
Created by: abrakadeborah
Pronunciation: bleak-beak-er
Sentence: Cardinella was such a sad old fella he would bleak around to bring everybody down. To him there was never a sunny or happy day...he managed to find always a spot of gray...as he would "bleakbeaker" to make everyone weaker! Draining out any happiness... trying to make others feel like a mell of a hess.
Etymology: Bleak:Providing no encouragement; depressing,gloomy and somber. Beak:Slang a person's nose or the projecting structure forming the mandibles of a bird, especially one that is strong, sharp, and useful in striking and tearing. Bleaker:Slang for a negative person that noses into peoples lives with a striking negativity to tear down their happy moods.
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COMMENTS:
luv your spoonerism! - silveryaspen, 2009-04-22: 22:26:00
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Indoomnify
Created by: mweinmann
Pronunciation: in - doom - nef - i
Sentence: Gloomy Grant sought to indoomnify the world against happiness by spreading gloom, doom and negativity. It was almost guaranteed that a few hours in his presence would depress even the most cheerful among us.
Etymology: indemnify (to secure or compensate for), doom (pronounce a sentence on; make certain of the failure or destruction of)
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COMMENTS:
nice - galwaywegian, 2009-04-21: 09:25:00
Meaning so readily apparent, easy to remember, and right on the definition. Another of today's Super Duper Creates! - silveryaspen, 2009-04-21: 09:43:00
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Lugubriate
Created by: Mustang
Pronunciation: loo-GOO-bree-ayt
Sentence: Even on the sunniest days and rosiest occasions Esmerelda could be counted upon to lugubriate, searching through all the days events and news for the downbeat and negative offerings.
Etymology: Blend of 'Lugubrious' (mournful, dismal, or gloomy, esp. in an affected, exaggerated, or unrelieved manner) with suffix '-ate' (As the ending of a verb, it means to make, to cause, to act, etc.; as, to propitiate (to make propitious); to animate (to give life to)
Optimissed
Created by: galwaywegian
Pronunciation: ohp tim issst
Sentence: the moodpecker is one of the lesser spotted species of optimissed
Etymology: optimist, missed
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COMMENTS:
clever - mweinmann, 2009-04-21: 09:33:00
Short, right to the point ... both the sentence and your word ... Outstanding! - silveryaspen, 2009-04-21: 09:49:00
Cute and clever. - Mustang, 2009-04-21: 17:22:00
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Follyfication
Created by: splendiction
Pronunciation: faw ly fi ca tion
Sentence: Shrugh really looked forward to follyfication of all the silly human errors around him.
Etymology: From FOLLY (human stupidity) and JOLLIFICATION (find joy in or revel).
Negathlete
Created by: Direwuff
Pronunciation:
Sentence: " Trying to increase their negaptitude and kenophobia, the negathletes of all persuasion seem intent on proving their ignorance this final week of the election." excerpt from a conversation I overheard while eavesdropping on myself...
Etymology: Combination of negative and athlete to create a noun for an an active negative participant.
Negaferret
Created by: fabdiva
Pronunciation: neg-ah-fair-et
Sentence: It did not go unnoticed that Cindy spent an inordinate amount of time at the emergency desk. Only a negaferret would volunteer on their rostered day off.
Etymology: negative - not optimistic. Harmful. ferret - to look around in search of something
Depressimist
Created by: Nosila
Pronunciation: de pres sim ist
Sentence: Woody was a pileated woodpecker and a depressimist. Nothing could please him. He even hated his species' name...it made him sound like he always had piles. He wood birch about his troubles all day, but the other birds soon learned to twitter him for his negative talk. One brave, elder Robin finally had enough and told him, "Woody, spruce yourself up and quit pining, yew son of a beech. We know that your bark is worse than your bite. All this depressimism will alder you permanently fir sure, unless you learn to spruce up your outlook. Be happy yew are free and can fly. If yew don't like it here, yew can pack your trunk and fly away. Yew wood be less bore-ing and a lot more poplar, if yew quit making such an ash of yourself...oakay?!"
Etymology: Depress (lower someone's spirits; make downhearted;lessen the activity or force of) & Pessimist (a person who expects the worst)
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COMMENTS:
Perfect word - it should have an entry in Webster's! - karenanne, 2010-11-03: 22:34:00
I voted for yours, but it turned out I hadn't been logged in. Well, you have the points, at least! - karenanne, 2010-11-04: 18:00:00
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Comments:
Today's definition was inspired by one of my favorite university professors who would respond to complainers with what he said was an old Japanese proverb -- "In among the cherry blossoms, the woodpecker hunts for a dead tree." ~ James
silveryaspen - 2009-04-21: 01:43:00
Like today's definition and cartoon, that Japanese proverb, provides plenty of food for thought .... naughty knotty thoughts ... until I want to thought naught about it any more!
silveryaspen - 2009-04-21: 09:56:00
This thought provoking definition and cartoon certainly inspired every one today! Kudos to the professor and James and all the verbotomists who played today. All are terrific sentences and verbotomies, today.
readerwriter - 2009-04-21: 10:33:00
Do I live in the wrong hemisphere or does my day begin too late???? Either that, or you all are up past midnight EST! Fun word today to play with. How you do it, James, I will never know...you are an artiste!
Thank you silvery and readerwriter. Fortunately, there not a lot of woodpeckers among us, but apparently there are a lot of night owls. ~ James
abrakadeborah - 2009-04-22: 06:03:00
This word and cartoon today was very descriptive! I LOVE the old Japanese proverb you added "In among the cherry blossoms, the woodpecker hunts for a dead tree." :) I have known a FEW toxic people like this in my life~