Jabberwocky

: For other uses of the name Jabberwocky, see Jabberwocky (disambiguation).

Glossary

Several of the words in the poem are of Carroll's own invention, many of them portmanteaus. In the book, the character of Humpty Dumpty gives definitions for the nonsense words in the first stanza. In later writings, Lewis Carroll explained several of the others. The rest of the nonsense words were never explicitly defined by Carroll (who even claimed that he did not know what some of them meant). An extended analysis of the poem is given in the book The Annotated Alice, including writings from Carroll about how he formed some of his idiosyncratic words. A few words that Carroll invented in this poem (such as "" and "galumphing") have entered the language. The word jabberwocky itself is sometimes used to refer to nonsense language.

Related Topics:
Carroll's own invention - Portmanteau - Humpty Dumpty - Stanza - The Annotated Alice - Galumphing

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:Bandersnatch – A swift moving creature with snapping jaws. Capable of extending its neck. (From The Hunting of the Snark.)

Related Topics:
Bandersnatch - The Hunting of the Snark

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:Borogove – A thin shabby-looking bird with its feathers sticking out all round, something like a live mop.

Related Topics:
Bird - Mop

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:Brillig – Four o'clock in the afternoon: the time when you begin broiling things for dinner. (According to Mischmasch, it is derived from the verb to bryl or broil.)

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:Burbled – Possibly a mixture of "bleat", "murmur", and "warble". (according to Carroll in a letter http://www.cd.chalmers.se/~jessica/Jabberwock/maud.html). (Burble is an actual word, circa 1303, meaning to form bubbles as in boiling water.)

Related Topics:
Burbled - 1303

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:Frumious – Combination of "fuming" and "furious." (From the Preface to The Hunting of the Snark.)

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:Gimble – To make holes like a gimlet.

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:Gyre – To go round and round like a gyroscope. (Gyre is an actual word, circa 1566, meaning a circular or spiral motion or form; especially a giant circular oceanic surface current.)

Related Topics:
Gyre - Gyroscope - 1566

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:Jubjub – A desperate bird that lives in perpetual passion. (From The Hunting of the Snark.)

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:Mimsy – Combination of "flimsy" and "miserable."

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:Mome – Possibly short for "from home," meaning that the raths had lost their way.

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:Outgrabe – Something between bellowing and whistling, with a kind of sneeze in the middle.

Related Topics:
Whistling - Sneeze

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:Rath – A sort of green pig. (See Origin and Structure for further details.)

Related Topics:
Pig - Origin and Structure

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:Slithy – Combination of "lithe" and "slimy."

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:Toves – A combination of a badger, a lizard, and a corkscrew. They are very curious looking creatures which make their nests under sundials. They live on cheese.

Related Topics:
Badger - Lizard - Corkscrew - Sundial - Cheese

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:Uffish – A state of mind when the voice is gruffish, the manner roughish, and the temper huffish. (according to Carroll in a letter).

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:Wabe – The grass plot around a sundial. It is called a "wabe" because it goes a long way before it, and a long way behind it, and a long way beyond it on each side.

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