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It is easy to mangle the English language. I hear native speakers do it all the time. But when I learn that a word, which I assume is either mispronounced or made up, is a real word then I\u2019m gobsmacked<\/strong>.<\/p>\n Let\u2019s start there. Gobsmacked<\/em> is common British slang for being surprised and, to my utter astonishment, it\u2019s in most dictionaries. It\u2019s a slang verb which has become so common that it has become accepted English vocabulary. It is derived from the British slang word for mouth, gob<\/strong>, which comes from the Scottish Gaelic word for mouth (also gob<\/em>), and the verb smack<\/strong>, meaning to quickly put your hand over something. This not to be confused with the hard, round candy called a gobstopper<\/strong>, known in the USA and Canada as a jawbreaker<\/strong>. You can\u2019t talk when a gobstopper is in your mouth. If you could talk, you\u2019d probably say something like, \u201cReally? Gobsmacked<\/em> is a real word?\u201d<\/p>\n The very existence of this word astounds me, simply because all my life I\u2019ve heard people use it when they mean supposedly<\/strong>. An adverb meaning \u201creported to be true\u201d, supposedly<\/em> implies a degree of skepticism. \u201cShe supposedly came home late because she got lost.\u201d<\/p>\n I always assumed that anyone who said \u201csupposably\u201d was either incapable of pronouncing supposedly<\/em>, or they simply didn\u2019t know any better. It never occurred to me that supposably<\/em> could be a real word. In fact, it is an adverb derived from the same source as supposedly<\/em>: sup<\/em>, a variant of sub <\/em>and meaning \u201cslightly or nearly imperfect\u201d and pose<\/em>, meaning \u201cto make a statement\u201d. However, supposably <\/em>is synonymous with conceivably<\/strong>, and is more philosophical in meaning and implication. \u201cLife on one of Jupiter\u2019s moons is supposably<\/em> more likely than on Mars.\u201d The meaning, therefore, is quite different.<\/p>\n A very common English phrase is, \u201cI\u2019m completely overwhelmed by\u2026\u201d fill in the blank. It is a verb meaning “to be overcome or inundated by something”. I bet I use the word overwhelmed<\/strong> several times a week. It is even proper to say that you are underwhelmed <\/strong>by something, which means to be unimpressed. However, you never hear anyone say that they are whelmed<\/strong> by something. Well, guess what? Whelmed<\/em> is not only in the dictionary, it means exactly the same<\/u> as overwhelmed<\/em>.<\/p>\n \u2018I am completely overwhelmed<\/em> by all this paperwork.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI am completely whelmed<\/em> by all this paperwork.\u201d<\/p>\n Whelmed <\/em>entered the English language sometime around the 14th<\/sup> century, from the Middle English<\/strong> verb whelmen<\/em>, meaning \u201cto overturn.\u201d Somehow, the word \u201cover\u201d was added, which would mean \u201cto over overturn\u201d. The redundancy of overwhelmed<\/em> is somehow preferred to the simpler word whelmed<\/em>, perhaps because it emphasizes (or overemphasizes) the point.<\/p>\n Most dictionaries accept the noun participator<\/em> as a valid word, even though there is a perfectly good, and more widely accepted substitute \u2013 participant<\/strong>. Both words can be defined as \u201cone who takes part in an event.\u201d Once again, I long assumed that anyone who added the extra syllable simply didn\u2019t know any better. Silly me. It\u2019s a real word. However, I would not want to be a participator<\/em> in your embarrassment. Save yourself from the perplexed looks of others and stick with participant<\/em>.<\/p>\n At this point, you probably think I\u2019m really making stuff up. I\u2019m not. This, God help us, is a real word in many English dictionaries. It is an adverbial form of the word friendly<\/strong>, and it is as annoying to me as it is unpronounceable. As you can probably tell by the addition of the letters \u201c-ly\u201d at the end, this is an adverb meaning \u201cto behave in a friendly manner.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cShe put her arm around my shoulders friendlily.\u201d<\/p>\n In English, we add the \u201c-ly\u201d ending to adjectives to create adverbs. In Old English<\/strong>, adverbs were often formed by adding\u00a0\u201c-e\u201d\u00a0or\u00a0\u201c-lice\u201d\u00a0to the end of adjectives. Over the years, to avoid multiple confusion,\u00a0adverbs evolved into the now commonly accepted\u00a0\u201c-ly\u201d form. So, 200 to 300 years after friendly<\/em> entered the English language, someone saw the need to create an adverb form of the word.<\/p>\n However, the word friendly<\/em> is simultaneously an adverb and an adjective and has been for centuries. Although it is primarily used as an adjective, with its \u201c-ly\u201d ending, we can use it as both.<\/p>\n \u201cA-ha!\u201d you may say. \u201cBut in the example you gave, exchanging friendly <\/em>for friendlily<\/em> looks and sounds awkward. That can\u2019t be right!\u201d It isn\u2019t, but a simple re-phrasing of the example, using friendly<\/em>, is far more elegant and proper.<\/p>\n \u201cShe put her arm around my shoulders friendlily.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cShe friendly put her arm around my shoulders.\u201d<\/p>\n Every English speaker needs a good editor.<\/p>\n Are there any English words which you can\u2019t believe exist? Please let me know!<\/p>\nGobsmacked<\/strong><\/h2>\n
Supposably<\/strong><\/h2>\n
Whelmed<\/strong><\/h2>\n
Participator<\/strong><\/h2>\n
Friendlily<\/strong><\/h2>\n
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