Vote for the best verboticism.
DEFINITION: v., To search for and find a pen to write down an important note, only to discover that the pen does not work. n., A moment in time when the only pens you can find, are pens that do not work.
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.
Inkconspicuous
Created by: Jabberwocky
Pronunciation: in/kon/spic/yu/us
Sentence: Maybe if he pressed hard enough on the paper he would be able to see an outline of his words but the pen was virtually inkonspicuous.
Etymology: ink + inconspicuous
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COMMENTS:
Like it! - TJayzz, 2008-10-03: 14:28:00
good one! - Nosila, 2008-10-03: 20:15:00
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Dudstriment
Created by: abrakadeborah
Pronunciation: dud-stri-mint
Sentence: All of the pens in the office were dudstriments when Sam really needed to take notes.
Etymology: Dud- a person or thing that proves ineffectual or a failure. Instriments taken in part of the correct spelling "instruments" - An implement used to facilitate work.
Pendicament
Created by: Eyeshah
Pronunciation: /pen-DIK-uh-mint/
Sentence: Pennelope found herself in quite the pendicament (quilemma) when her professor decided to give a pop quiz, and her backpack rummagings for a functional pen proved fruitless.
Etymology: pen+predicament=pendicament
Thenotwritestuff
Created by: Nosila
Pronunciation: The not rite stuff
Sentence: When the first astronauts went up in space, they had thenotwritestuff for report writing, because the lack of gravity prevented the ink from flowing down the shaft and appearing on official NASA notepaper. This where the famous line, "Houston, we have a problem" was born. After the Astronaut Pen was invented, where you could write upside down or at any angle, proper records could be documented. This was long before any computers were available (except HAL) to enter data. Imagine then how many alien encounters were missed or not reported because the crews had thenotwritestuff! Have you any ink-ling? The biro-ny...they can get a man on the moon, but they cannot invent a pen that does not dry up!
Etymology: The Not (negative) Write Stuff (play on Right Stuff(Essential abilities or qualities;dependability,etc.necessary for success...also name for a Hollywood Movie about astronauts chosen for the space program)
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COMMENTS:
Good sentence. Funny, cud have just splurged a buck for a dozen of pencils instead. - zxvasdf, 2008-10-03: 13:39:00
Then they would have had to get the lead out! Cheers! - Nosila, 2008-10-04: 23:08:00
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Pendaver
Created by: Stevenson0
Pronunciation: pen/daver
Sentence: It's another of Murphy's Laws that writing utensils turn into pendavers when an important message needs to be scribbled.
Etymology: PENDAVER noun - from PEN (instrument for writing) + CADAVER (a dead body)
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COMMENTS:
I bet Dexter has several pendavers - Jabberwocky, 2008-10-03: 09:47:00
Good word - OZZIEBOB, 2008-10-05: 17:35:00
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Bickenscratch
Created by: xirtam
Pronunciation: bic-en-skrach
Sentence: With the only pen I could find out of ink, I had to bickenscratch the phone number into the note pad so I could read the indentations later.
Etymology: bic: a brand of pen + Chicken Scratch: slang; poor or illegible writing. Scratch: To write or draw by scraping or cutting the lines into a surface.
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COMMENTS:
To be precise, this is the inevitable result of the event described, but I like it! 'He bickenscratched his way through the morning until he finally found a pen that worked.' - Tigger, 2007-11-06: 13:23:00
I like it too. Resembles my grocery list. - purpleartichokes, 2007-11-06: 20:01:00
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Absinkia
Created by: Koekbroer
Pronunciation: ab-sink-ee-ya
Sentence:
Etymology: contraction of "absentia" and "ink"
Ballpointless
Created by: artr
Pronunciation: bôlˌpoint lis
Sentence: Rusty had a wonderful idea. This happened so infrequently that it seemed imperative to write it down. He reached for a ballpointless pen and proceeded to do little more than tear a hole in a piece of paper. This whole exercise was ballpointless. He then had to try his entire collection of paper scratchers. As he looked at the advertising message on a pen and wondered where he had pilfered each one, the original thought he wanted to save for humanity slowly faded away, never to return.
Etymology: ballpoint (a pen with a tiny ball as its writing point) + pointless (having little or no sense, use, or purpose)
Sypened
Created by: annbananne
Pronunciation: sigh pend
Sentence: When you really need to write something down you usually can only find sypens.
Etymology: syphen: ink was syphened out pen: pen (duh)
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COMMENTS:
good one! - Jabberwocky, 2007-11-06: 13:52:00
I like it too! - OZZIEBOB, 2007-11-06: 16:57:00
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Comments:
Today's definition was suggested by vixphilia. Thank you vixphilia! ~ James'
OZZIEBOB - 2007-11-06: 16:53:00
Good word!
Today's definition was suggested by vixphilia. Thank you vixphilia. ~ James
Petrikreink - 2020-03-03: 05:14:00