What a pleasure it is to come across new words. Take kenning, which I encountered while reading an essay on medieval literature: “A figure of speech in the type of circumlocution, a compound that employs figurative language in place of a more concrete single-word noun.” An example is wave-floater, meaning a ship.
Other recent discoveries, thanks to the Great Big Dialect Hunt website, include flittermouse (a bat), bishy barnabee (an East Anglian dialect word for a ladybird) and docky (another East Anglian term, for lunch).
All good, though I think the prize has to go leggit. This arose from an article about a demonstration at Eton over fears that its 164-year-old hunting society could be scrapped. Apparently, the pupils are up in arms over plans to ditch the college’s beagling pack. And how do they show their displeasure? Well, the pupils gather in the main courtyard until the headmaster arrives to face them, at which point one boy shouts “leggit” and they all take to their heels. History doesn’t relate the outcome of this protest, but I’m glad to have made the word’s acquaintance. It’s no sillier, after all, than many other things that have emerged from that establishment in recent years.
Now, I hope you’re feeling dextrous, because I would like you to unravel the following (from a breathless press release): “We’re at a pivotal inflection point as virtual worlds gain mainstream acceptance, and it’s vital that we establish strong, cultural standards from the ground up, with acceptance and accessibility at their core. Digital fashion is already an enormous business, and has the potential to surpass physical fashion as users increasingly flock to metaverse worlds. Digital fashion is more sustainable, scalable, and infinitely creative versus physical fashion.” Give up? Well, that makes two of us.
• Jonathan Bouquet is an Observer columnist
