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.
Yeahuhholdonasec
Created by: thegoatisbad
Pronunciation: yeah-uh-hold-on-a-sec
Sentence: Kimberly was in for a frustrating day when Zinnia traded all of her well-hydrated pens with their desiccated cousins from long forgotten junk drawers. Zinnia could hardly contain her amusement as Kimberly constantly yeahuhholdonasec'ed with customers placing large scale orders of sweaters.
Etymology: it's what you say on the phone when you can't find a pen
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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Inkubaiter
Created by: lumina
Pronunciation: eenk/u/bate/r
Sentence: Ralph could not sleep again. As usual he found himself up at 3:30 a.m. in front of the TV. Nothing but infomercials and shopping channels. Suddenly to his delight, there was a "Call in the next 15 minutes and get the entire set for just $199.99" announcement. He didn't really need anymore Star Trek paraphernalia, but who needs any in the first place, right? He got up off the couch and ran to the kitchen junk drawer for a pen, only to find when he got on the couch that he had grabbed nothing but an inkubaiter. As he ran back to the junk drawer for another writing instrument, he heard, "And that about does it. Our time is up. Live long and prosper!"
Etymology: *ink* bait:To entice, especially by trickery or strategy. (spinning of incubator)
Quilliterate
Created by: porsche
Pronunciation: kwill/it/ur/at
Sentence: Without his ink source Dave was quilliterate.
Etymology: quill + illiterate
Forsakepen
Created by: MrDave2176
Pronunciation: for-SAYK-pen / KWILL-kwest
Sentence: Joel was feeling foresakepen. His quillquest netted him a handful of nibarren plastic rods useful for little more than stirring coffee. Nibarren = empty nib (the thing that dispenses the ink)
Etymology: foresa(ken) + pen / quill (a quill is always useless without ink) + quest
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COMMENTS:
very good - lots of great words in your sentence - Jabberwocky, 2007-11-06: 11:40:00
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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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Paperblankwriter
Created by: TJayzz
Pronunciation: Pay-per-blan-k-ry-ter
Sentence: When Steve's boss called to tell him the date and details of a very important meeting, he thought he had better make a note of it as his memory was not his best asset. He picked up the nearest pen but it had run out of ink so he tried again , only to realise that all the pens in the house were paperblankwriters that refused to work. He made a vow to himself that next time he would always buy his pens in bulk and discard them as soon as they were running out.
Etymology: Paper(material made from wood pulp used for writing on) + Blank(empty, plain, not marked) + Writer(a device that writes information) = Paperblankwriter
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COMMENTS:
playing the Beatles card eh? clever - Jabberwocky, 2008-10-03: 09:46:00
Being British what else could I do? - TJayzz, 2008-10-03: 13:06:00
A Hard Day's Write?? - Nosila, 2008-10-03: 20:16:00
hard to beatle. - OZZIEBOB, 2008-10-05: 17:36:00
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Ballpointless
Created by: galwaywegian
Pronunciation: bawl poynt lehsssss
Sentence: "This pen is ballpointless!" he bawled, pointlessly..
Etymology: pointless, ballpoint
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COMMENTS:
ballistic word! - Nosila, 2010-03-03: 10:17:00
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Bicketline
Created by: libertybelle
Pronunciation: bick-et-line
Sentence: Darryl went through all of his pens to write down Miranda's phone number to no avail; he formed a bicketline with all of the pens that refused to work.
Etymology: bic - popular brand of pen + picket line. A bicstrike.
Pendemonium
Created by: ahniwa
Pronunciation:
Sentence: "I can't ... what!? Hold on ... no, I need to write this ... yeah, one sec ... crap, no ... the pen's broken! Yeah, no ... it's pendemonium over here, no doubt."
Etymology: Inky pandemonium.
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COMMENTS:
I like it! - lumina, 2008-10-05: 11:36:00
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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