What is a Portmanteau?
A word blending the sounds and combining the meanings of two or more others.
Putting Two Words Together: The Fun of Creating Portmanteaus
Portmanteau words are one of the most creative ways to play with language and add some flair to your writing. These words are formed by combining two or more words in a way that blends their meanings seamlessly. You've probably heard a few examples of portmanteaus in everyday language -- words like 'brunch', which combines 'breakfast' and 'lunch', or 'smog', which comes from combining 'smoke' and 'fog'.
The creation of portmanteaus allows for writers to blend concepts and add specificity to their language. It is a great way to create new words without the need for actual neologisms. For example, one could use the word 'spork' instead of clumsily alternating between the usage of 'spoon' and 'fork' in a sentence.
Not only do portmanteaus make language more lively and fun, they can also be used as clever names for fictional places, characters, and even companies. Think of 'Groupon', which combines 'group' and 'coupon', or 'Brangelina', which became a popular way to refer to celebrity couple Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie.
So, don't be shy about using this creative literary device in your writing. The options are endless and it's always fun to come up with new combinations.
Throughout literary history, writers have used portmanteau words in creative and witty ways. Here are two examples of how authors have used this literary device to great effect.
In his famous nonsense poem Jabberwocky, Lewis Carroll coined several portmanteau words, including 'chortle' (a combination of 'chuckle' and 'snort') and 'galumph' (a combination of 'gallop' and 'triumph').
In The Importance of Being Earnest, Oscar Wilde famously described the character Algernon as being in a state of 'munching bread and butter', thereby creating the word 'bunburying', as the motivation for doing this is faking a visit to a nonexistent invalid friend named Bunbury.