Sometimes when I listen to people talk I notice some of the odd ways people use language. For example, I find it fun to sometimes imagine people literally doing the things they say they will do. When I hear “I’m going to run to the bathroom” I amuse myself imaging a full sprint.
One thing I’ve noticed more of are what I call “wordsimples.” A wordsimple is a mash up of two more common words to convey a more complex thing or meaning. Wordsimple is itself meant to be a wordsimple.
I find that wordsimples are often created as meaningful jargon used in jobs. This may strike some as an interesting example. I would say that pushback as an aviation term is a wordsimple, as it means to convey that one vehicle is pushing back an aircraft in preparation of departure.
I remember being tickled by the word wormsign in Dune (2021). I noticed it and thought that there was a certain authenticity to creating a wordsimple like this in a world with giant marauding sand worms.
In my life I’ll sometimes keep my hears perked up for more examples of wordsimples.
Example Wordsimples
- Wormsign
- Grasshopper
- Footman
- Pushback
- Speakeasy