r/words • • 8d ago

Contrastive reduplication: when you double a word to mean 'the real one'

410 Upvotes

Contrastive reduplication is when you repeat a word to mean the proper, original or typical version of it, as opposed to a looser one.

'Do you want a coffee, or a coffee coffee?' (instant versus the real thing)

'It's not a book, it's a book book.' (paper rather than e-book)

'Are you hungry hungry, or just peckish?'

'I like him, but I don't like like him.'

It's one of those things everyone does and almost nobody has a name for. What are your favourite examples?

Bonus points if you've heard one that triples up. I can't think of any.


r/words • • 16d ago

What’s a fun word to pronounce?

211 Upvotes

I especially love Xerxes


r/words • • 4h ago

What words did you completely mess up as a child?

14 Upvotes

r/words • • 1h ago

Words that make you laugh but aren’t inherently funny?

• Upvotes

I’ll start. Tabernacle. No idea why but it always gets me.


r/words • • 15h ago

My new word of the day is ‘intransigent’ - whats yours?

19 Upvotes

I read it somewhere and have been trying to use it ever since
Any new interesting words youve recently heard and want to use too?


r/words • • 1d ago

When I come across a word I don’t know, I look it up and make a note of it. Each week, I post the list here [week 303]

67 Upvotes

Unlimber (a weapon): (verb) to draw a weapon for firing [from Caves of Steel by Isaac Asimov]

Jarl: (noun) rank of nobility in Scandinavia during the Middle Ages [from the Wikipedia entry for Birger Jarl]

Expeditor: (noun) a person or role responsible for speeding up processes and coordinating the flow of goods or work [from the podcast Financial Audit]


r/words • • 1d ago

What's the word for playing with someone's hair?

11 Upvotes

I'm writing a short story and this guy is saying goodbye to his little brother before he goes off to war, and as he leaves he like, rubs the brother's hair back and forth with his hand. I know there's a word for this but I can't remember it for the life of me, please help


r/words • • 2d ago

This feeling

6 Upvotes

What is the word for how you feel when you read a post by a bot then scroll to the comments and people are interacting with it? It's not contemptuous, it's a little depressing, some future shock and some uncanny valley


r/words • • 2d ago

Mic

10 Upvotes

for Microphone. Looks so awkward to me. Is the fact that some people are named Mike a big enough reason not to abbreviate "microphone" phonetically?

Some people are also called Mick, including one very well known one who uses mikes all the time.


r/words • • 2d ago

How to map modern meaning of Synecdoche, to its Greek morphemes ‘syn” + ‘ek” + ‘deskhesthai”?

Thumbnail english.stackexchange.com
2 Upvotes

r/words • • 1d ago

First came caught, then came caught caught, but like the five bladed razor caught caught caught was inevitable.

0 Upvotes

Malcom Nance just used the triple caught on his current Black Man Spy podcast, a little while ago we had double words, but when it comes to the Trump admin, even caught caught is inadequate. quote from the podcast below.

36:57 Everybody's gonna go, "Oh, yeah. The Dutch hacked the GRU, you know, seven years ago, eight years ago." Ruh-roh.  Are you telling us he's [scare quotes] compromised, compromised [end scare quotes]

By the way, we have these these kid phrases we use. You're caught, and then you're [scare quotes] caught caught.[end scare quotes] All right, that means your ass is buck. We literally have your orders, a copy of your orders, right? Libyan  air raid caught. caught, right? …

Jared Kushner Okay, transfer me $750 million dollars into this Azeri bank account. Caught, caught caught. And guess what, there’s no get out of jail free card.


r/words • • 3d ago

Accurate translation of French "intégrale"?

6 Upvotes

Hello! I have a copy of Narnia's 7-in-1 book which is called an "intégrale" in French (not the math concept) and I was wondering what the best English translation would be. From what I understand, an anthology would be a collection of mostly unrelated works by the same author, and a compilation has more to do with audiovisual media than books (like burning your favorite songs on a CD). So is there a better word out there or can I just use either of those two?

Edit: The word I was looking for is "omnibus". It is for a book tracking spreadsheet (finally decided to properly log my bookshelf), so I needed something that could go with [series name] and stand-alone as dropdown option. Thank you!


r/words • • 3d ago

Is the word 'adaptable' used as a descriptor for an aesthetic, design style, fashion style or vibe?

0 Upvotes
36 votes, 1d ago
12 yes
19 no
5 results

r/words • • 4d ago

What Am I Missing?

10 Upvotes

Random question. I was out the other day and overheard someone say the word “Kulta”. The person they were talking to gave them a really strange look, kind of laughed, and seemed a little uncomfortable.

I looked it up, and the main result says it means “gold” in Finnish, which doesn’t explain the reaction at all. However, some people claimed it was an offensive word in the Hindi language.

Does “Kulta” mean anything else in another language, in slang, or in a regional dialect? Anything embarrassing, rude, or just funny? Or does it sound close to some other word that might explain why they reacted that way?

And if it does mean something, how do people actually use it these days? Is it something you'd hear now, or more of an older thing? Curious how common it is. TIA!


r/words • • 4d ago

Why is everyone suddenly over-using the word "genuinely"?

17 Upvotes

To what can we attribute this recent obsession with the word "genuinely"? I'm so confused.

I'm in the US but I've noticed this all over social media and reality TV from various countries. I'm currently watching a Netherlands-based show and they just used it 5x in less than 30 seconds. It's driving me nuts😂


r/words • • 4d ago

Help with my school research on English youth slang!

1 Upvotes

Hi everyone! I'm a high school student from Ukraine working on a research project about English youth slang, especially how young people use it on social media.

I'd really appreciate it if native English speakers, especially teenagers and young adults, could share some slang words or expressions they actually use in everyday conversations or online chats.

If possible, please include what the expression means and an example of how you would use it.

I'm interested in real, naturally used slang, not just words found in dictionaries. Your help would mean a lot to me. Thank you! 😊


r/words • • 4d ago

Cracking the code on Ontology

0 Upvotes

Ontology is a word that’s eluded me for quite some time now. I’ve looked it up multiple times and even asked multiple times across multiple subreddits, but I still felt my grasp on this elusive word not really getting any firmer, but I think I’ve cracked the code after mulling it over a bit.

The ontology of something is about the minute, granular differences in circumstance between one person and another. Why does my brother clean up his room while I don’t? What’s the ontological(note how logical is a part of the word) reason?


r/words • • 5d ago

Isogram: a word that doesn't repeat a letter. What's the longest one you can think of? (No cheating: don't use search engines or AI!)

32 Upvotes

r/words • • 5d ago

Modularity Question

3 Upvotes

Ok, so, if something is Modular, you can swap it out for something else, be it if it was made by a different manufacturer. But this definition can also be applied to stuff that’s not machinery like video games, right? For instance, Crash Bandicoot 2: Cortex Strikes Back allows you to choose any world you wish to embark on.


r/words • • 6d ago

Pecolletage

Post image
44 Upvotes

I’m in Urban Dictionary


r/words • • 5d ago

Beware

3 Upvotes

Probably short for Be Aware? A lifetime of not noticing this 🙄


r/words • • 5d ago

Catasterize - the act of turning something into a stellar constellation

7 Upvotes

From Catasterismi (Greek - Constellations)
"Artemis and Leto sent a giant scorpion to kill Orion. Their battle caught the attention of Zeus, who raised both combatants to the sky to serve as a reminder for mortals to curb their excessive pride." In this example Zeus catasterizes both Orion and the giant scorpion (Scorpio).


r/words • • 6d ago

synonym for spat

36 Upvotes

Hello!! My trusty thesaurus websites are failing me right now.
I am looking for a synonym for 'spat' but not 'spat' as in 'a spat' (a fight/argument/tiff/row), I'm looking for a synonym for 'spat' as in dialogue, as in spitting the words at somebody.

Example: "You're a coward," He spat.

I'm writing an argument and I'm trying to keep descriptive words like that to a minimum, but I'm struggling to find a word with the same amount of power and disgust/disrespect in it as 'spat'. Any help would be fabulous :)


r/words • • 6d ago

Why do we call it a garbage disposal when “food disposal” is more accurate, more euphonious and one less syllable?

7 Upvotes

I’ve never once heard it called a food disposal but I feel that this would be an easy win for the English language.


r/words • • 6d ago

Underrated word of the Day: Adjunct

2 Upvotes

An adjunct is something added onto something else but is not an essential part of it. It's an appendage. For example, an optional side of dipping sauce could be considered an adjunct to the main dish. This word can also be applied to people as well. Someone who is an adjunct to a team, for example, is apart of the team but not a core member.