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portmanteau

 
Dictionary: port·man·teau   (pôrt-măn'tō, pōrt-, pôrt'măn-tō', pōrt'-) pronunciation
n., pl., -teaus, or -teaux (-tōz, -tōz').
A large leather suitcase that opens into two hinged compartments.

[French portemanteau : porte-, from porter, to carry (from Old French; see port5) + manteau, cloak (from Old French mantel , from Latin mantellum).]


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Wordsmith Words: portmanteau
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(port-MAN-to, -TOH, PORT-) pronunciation

noun, plural portmanteaus, portmanteaux
1. A word coined by blending two or more words.
2. A case opening in two parts, used for carrying clothes while traveling.

Etymology
From French portemanteau, from porter (to carry) + manteau (coat, mantle)

Originally a portmanteau was a court official who carried the robes of a king. Since a portmanteau had two hinged compartments, Lewis Carroll used the word to describe a blended word in his book "Through the Looking-Glass" (1871). While explaining the poem Jabberwocky, Humpty Dumpty tells Alice: "Well, 'slithy' means 'lithe and slimy'. 'Lithe' is the same as 'active'. You see it's like a portmanteau -- there are two meanings packed up into one word."
Some everyday portmanteaux are brunch (breakfast + lunch), smog (smoke + fog), and motel (motor + hotel). Some more examples are adultescent adultescent. bumbershoot bumbershoot. mingy mingy.

Alice and Humpty Dumpty:



[Artist: John Tenniel]

Usage
"Montreal's annual Fantasia Film Festival has come a long way since its beginnings in 1996. A portmanteau of 'fantasy' and 'Asia', the festival's name once reflected the programmers' focus." — Al Kratina; Fantasia's Past is Present on DVD; Montreal Gazette (Canada); Jul 4, 2008.


Obscure Words: portmanteau
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Wikipedia: Portmanteau (disambiguation)
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Portmanteau may refer to:

See also

  • Portamento, in music, a continuous change in pitch (unrelated)

Translations: Portmanteau
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Dansk (Danish)
n. - kuffert, vadsæk

Nederlands (Dutch)
kapstok, (dubbele) reistas voor kleren

Français (French)
n. - malle

Deutsch (German)
n. - Reisekoffer

Ελληνική (Greek)
n. - ταξιδιωτικό όρθιο μπαούλο

Italiano (Italian)
baule

Português (Portuguese)
n. - maleta (f)

Русский (Russian)
саквояж, слово-гибрид

Español (Spanish)
n. - maleta

Svenska (Swedish)
n. - stor kappsäck

中文(简体)(Chinese (Simplified))
旅行皮箱, 混成词

中文(繁體)(Chinese (Traditional))
n. - 旅行皮箱, 混成詞

한국어 (Korean)
n. - (양쪽으로 열리게 된) 대형여행용 가방

日本語 (Japanese)
n. - 旅行かばん

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(الاسم) العيبه : حقيبه السفر‏

עברית (Hebrew)
n. - ‮מזוודה, תיק לבגדים‬


 
 
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Copyrights:

Dictionary. The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.  Read more
Wordsmith Words. © 2009 Wordsmith.org. All rights reserved.  Read more
Obscure Words. © 2008 by Michael A. Fischer http://home.comcast.net/~wwftd Read more
Wikipedia. This article is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Portmanteau (disambiguation)" Read more
Translations. Copyright © 2007, WizCom Technologies Ltd. All rights reserved.  Read more

 

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