Vote for the best verboticism.
DEFINITION: n An invented language similar to baby talk, used by pet owners to communicate with their pets. v. To speak to an animal using an invented language.
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.
Critterfranca
Created by: serendipity9000
Pronunciation: cri-ter-frank-a
Sentence: He used to love sitting on his favorite bench in the park - until SHE started showing up each morning muttering in critterfranca to her poodle.
Etymology: critter (animal/pet) + franca (from lingua franca - any lanugage used as a way of speaking to others who speak different languages)
Sanscritter
Created by: galwaywegian
Pronunciation: san skritt err
Sentence: all of the critters who lived out back would come a runnin' when she commenced a hollerin' in sanscritter
Etymology: sanskrit critter
----------------------------
COMMENTS:
A fine portmanteau. - Clayton, 2007-06-08: 04:39:00
LOL! Or could it be a language spoken when one is without their critter? Sans critter. - petaj, 2007-06-08: 06:04:00
Rintintinspired! - purpleartichokes, 2007-06-08: 06:56:00
do you guys like seriously get up to milk the cows and verbotomize? or are British? I didn't even know there was a 6:56 AM! but really, great word. inspired. i may vote early! - jadenguy, 2007-06-08: 09:30:00
Up at 4:30 AM EST to get my butt to work on time. No cows, but a few chickens is not out of the question. - purpleartichokes, 2007-06-08: 09:41:00
love this word - Jabberwocky, 2007-06-08: 12:39:00
Being in Australia really helps with the timing for me. I usually check the cartoon and new definition just before leaving work. Come up with a few ideas on the drive home and then hit the thesaurus and login during the early evening. My problem is, I often don't get to voting before the next definition is up. - petaj, 2007-06-08: 22:10:00
----------------------------
Anigmalia
Created by: surdut
Pronunciation:
Sentence: It's an enigma to me why people speak to their animals in anigmalia.
Etymology:
Petalect
Created by: debgibson
Pronunciation:
Sentence: He cringed at the petalect in evidence around the veterinarian's waiting room.
Etymology: pet plus dialect
Linguapeta
Created by: Borogove
Pronunciation: ling-wa-pe-ta
Sentence: Her linguapeta differed when she approached the ugly pug.
Etymology: From 'lingua', latin for language and pet
Babblassie
Created by: artr
Pronunciation: Should be pretty self-evident.
Sentence: She might have been an English Major, but every time she came across a cute little dog she spewed babblassie.
Etymology: Babble+Lassie one of history's favorite male dogs.
Petois
Created by: petaj
Pronunciation: pet-twa
Sentence: Madeleine took her tiny dog off to Paris in her handbag and spoke to it lovingly in petois to stop it barking on the Metro. It was a curious mix of French and doggy noises.
Etymology: pet + patois (non-standard speech/creole)
----------------------------
COMMENTS:
good one. - texmom, 2007-06-08: 07:19:00
Excellent word petaj - hmm... I wonder why you have pet in your pseudonym - perhaps petios is your second language - Jabberwocky, 2007-06-08: 09:05:00
today is a day when good words truely run a plenty. i wish i'd've come up with something this good. stupid television filling my brain with laughter and not verbotomies. - jadenguy, 2007-06-08: 09:37:00
You're just lucky I work all day--that word was my first instinct! - mplsbohemian, 2007-06-08: 20:15:00
petois occurred to me straight away when i checked the cartoon before leaving work. Then I had to go to tennis and didn't get home for a couple of hours, so I was hoping that no one else would think of it. - petaj, 2007-06-08: 22:18:00
I'm embarrassed to admit that my only second language is verbotomese. Typically in Australia, most of us have not become fluent in anything but English. - petaj, 2007-06-08: 22:29:00
----------------------------
Petsperanto
Created by: Clayton
Pronunciation: pets-puh-RAHN-toh
Sentence: Petsperanto became fashionable once again in the 23rd century, but by then it resembled Klingon. Later it would lean more toward bafflegab, just as it always had, but Star Trek was taken a bit more seriously in those halcyon days. Of all the people to reanimate, why'd they pick Shatner?
Etymology: pet + Esperanto
----------------------------
COMMENTS:
I couldn't decide between "Petsperanto" and "Espetanto." If somebody wants to take the other one, I'm cool with that. - Clayton, 2007-06-08: 02:15:00
probably his singing prowless? - jadenguy, 2007-06-08: 09:51:00
fabulous word Clayton - Jabberwocky, 2007-06-08: 12:14:00
maybe they like Shatner because he's such a 'regular' guy - Jabberwocky, 2007-06-08: 12:15:00
I'm only giving Shatner a hard time. I've decided also that I should've gone with "Espetanto." So hasty sometimes. - Clayton, 2007-06-08: 13:07:00
I love petsperanto - it's a great word and I referred to Shatner as being a regular guy because he does all those bran commercials - Jabberwocky, 2007-06-08: 13:25:00
"Petsperanto" is better than "Espetanto". - ErWenn, 2007-06-08: 14:12:00
I'm glad to hear that he did do bran commercials, Jabberwocky, because that's the kind of regular I was thinking of when you first said it, and I thought maybe my mind was just in the gutter...toilet...whatever. - ErWenn, 2007-06-08: 14:13:00
it's a good thing Clayton chose Shatner and not JL Picard - that would have led to all kinds of silliness - we could have even encorporated Galwaywegian's baldipachitis into it - Jabberwocky, 2007-06-08: 14:39:00
"Espetanto" has a nice ring to it, though. Damn, now I can't decide again. If anybody reading this works at a coffeeshop, please invent the Espressperanto. I'll take fifty of the most confusing drink known to man, please. - Clayton, 2007-06-08: 16:24:00
Sounds like coffee with a dash of Spanish fly - petaj, 2007-06-08: 22:25:00
----------------------------
Animavocalism
Created by: texmom
Pronunciation: an e mah voc ah liz um
Sentence: She mumured sweet animavocalisms in the horse's ear as she urged him towards the starting line for the big race.
Etymology: anima - concerning animals vocalism - spoken
Animalate
Created by: hooterbug
Pronunciation: an-uh-muhl-ate
Sentence: Sophie was proud of the way she could animalate with her dog. "Who's a good boy?" Why you are my poopy doo..YES YOU ARE!" Give mommy kisses" OH such big, sloppy, puppy kisses! Yes they are...Oh YES THEY ARE!
Etymology: Blend of animal and relate
Comments:
Today's definition was suggested by remistram. Thank you remistram! ~ James
purpleartichokes - 2007-06-08: 04:52:00
Great definition remistram! Outstanding submissions already! Gonna be hard voting today.
Jabberwocky - 2007-06-08: 12:11:00
I wish I could vote for every word today
jadenguy - 2007-06-08: 12:16:00
I guess everybody's creative juices are flowing since the weekend is upon us. Contentment envelops us like a warm wind on a brisk morning stroll.
ziggy41 - 2007-06-08: 12:40:00
ahh that's got to be an exact replica of my dog in the pic!
ErWenn - 2007-06-08: 14:04:00
Holy crap, there's a lot of good words today!
Verbotomy received a very positive review today in the The Globe and Mail, a Canadian newspaper. The story quotes words created by Stevenson0, Clayton and Rikboyee. See more: The Globe and Mail: Getting together to make up words.
Jabberwocky - 2007-06-08: 15:18:00
figures ziggy41 would have a k9
jadenguy - 2007-06-08: 15:43:00
I want a pug but I'm often concerned about not noticing it where i walk.
texmom - 2007-06-08: 21:44:00
It really was hard to choose. Petois just had that touch of class.
administraitor - 2007-06-09: 17:58:00
Toronto’s venerable “Mop & Pail” as the paper is affectionately known, is what led me to Verbotomy on Friday. My first instinct was to submit “Doggerel” then realized that it was in no way sufficiently twisted to survive! I’m looking forward to a lotta laffs with this!
mplsbohemian - 2007-06-10: 19:58:00
Dang, I just came up with a much better word, and it's too late for me to enter it: gerbilish!
Today's definition was suggested by remistram. Thank you remistram. ~ James