Portmanteau and Blend Words: How Brunch, Smog and Podcast Were Born

Smog (smoke + fog). Coined in the early twentieth century, often attributed to Dr Harold Des Voeux in 1905, to describe the polluted air of British cities.

Motel (motor + hotel). Associated with the Milestone Mo-Tel, which opened in California in 1925, for travellers by car.

Podcast (iPod + broadcast). The term appeared in 2004, in a newspaper article by Ben Hammersley, and became widely used.

Chortle (chuckle + snort). Invented by Lewis Carroll in "Jabberwocky".

Spork (spoon + fork). A single utensil with features of both.

Infomercial (information + commercial). A long television advertisement that looks like a programme.

Docudrama (documentary + drama).

Webinar (web + seminar).

Brexit (Britain + exit). Modelled on the earlier Grexit (Greece + exit).

Bromance (brother + romance). A close friendship between men.

Spanglish (Spanish + English).

Emoticon (emotion + icon).

Workaholic (work + alcoholic). This one is a so-called "splinter" that produced -aholic (chocoholic, shopaholic).

Splinters and combining forms

Some blends leave behind a fragment, a splinter, that becomes productive:

• -holic/-aholic: shopaholic, chocoholic
• -athon: walkathon, hackathon (from marathon)
• -gate: any scandal, from Watergate
• -tainment: infotainment, edutainment
• -nomics: Reaganomics, freakonomics

Blends versus compounds versus abbreviations

• Compound: two whole words: toothbrush.
• Blend: parts of two words: brunch.
• Clipping: a shortened word: gym from gymnasium.
• Acronym: initials pronounced as a word: NASA, laser (light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation).

Why blends are popular

• They're compact and memorable.
• They capture new ideas that mix two old ones.
• They're playful, and fun to invent.
• Technology and culture keep producing new things to name.

Which survive?

Some blends stick (brunch, smog), and some fade (guesstimate remains, but many trendy blends disappear). A word survives if people find it useful and keep using it.

Spotting blends

If a word seems to contain two familiar chunks, check the dictionary etymology. Look for entries that say "blend of" or "portmanteau".

Invent your own

Blending is a creative exercise. Try combining words to describe a new situation, then ask whether anyone else would understand it. Playful coinage is part of how English grows.

Practice

Look up brunch, smog, motel and podcast, and read their etymologies. Then try to work out what hangry, glamping and staycation are blends of.

Look up word origins and blends with English Dictionary →