Today's non-existent word

[triskellian]

Is "vehicling". Being used in an academic paper. Ick.

Comments

[wimble.livejournal.com]

GGgeee. bluck.

Can you send it back with a "dict." note in the margin? Or will this get ignored in the same way that the wiggly red line underneath it did?


I got told off in my last appraisal (at OUP, with Borgykins) for using the word "wrong" in conversation. I should use words like "inappropriate".

So the word "vehicling" is inappropriate (as is, one presumes, treason, murder, and, in the current environment, claiming that 1+1=5).

[triskellian]

Well, I can kind of see Borgykins' point - there are some contexts where "inappropriate" would be a more diplomatic choice than "wrong". But there are some things which are, to steal venta's phrase, Just Plain Wrong, and need to be described as such ;-)

[quantumboo.livejournal.com]

Inventing new words is a good thing, surely? I don't think you can be a fascist about it and ban all new words you don't like the sound of. I have a particular loathing of the word "eatery", for example, but it seems to give some people round here gainful employment.

I have an ulterior motive for my liberal approach. How do you feel about the "word" "distinguishability"? My entire academic career is literally based around this word, which I casually used throughout my first paper (with Mr. Short, incidentally) and as its title. Since then other people have copied me, and it's become commonplace in the tiny field with which I'm concerned. Around two years later, however, I noticed that the word doesn't actually exist - the OED suggests that "distinguishableness" is actually correct.

Should I repent and switch, or brazen it out?

[bateleur.livejournal.com]

which I casually used throughout my first paper (with Mr. Short, incidentally)

Surely that proves it's wrong by association ?

[cardinalsin.livejournal.com]

Write to OED and get it changed. Then you can be right, instead.

[quantumboo.livejournal.com]

I think you need examples of the word being used in three, erm..., distinguishable contexts before it can get into the OED. I've only ever seen it used in information theory, and then only in the context of the "distinguishability of quantum states".

However, I just googled to see if I could find any other context, and I'm chastened to discover that despite the fact the word doesn't officially exist, I was NOT the first physicist to coin it. In fact, the world appears to be full of illiterates like myself. There goes my 15 minutes. :-(

[triskellian]

Making up words is perfectly reasonable as a general pursuit. I use made up words all the time. What I object to is making up a word for use in an academic paper when there are several perfectly good words already in existence for your purpose.

I'm not quite sure why "distinguishability" is perfectly acceptable IMO while "vehicling" isn't. Partly it's to do with the fact that "use of a vehicle" implies, to my mind, driving it around in circles playing with it, rather than using it to get somewhere (which is what I think the writer means with it). The point is the vehicle, not the journey or the destination. And there's that ugly "-cling" in there.

Stick with "distinguishability"! It's much better than "distinguishableness" ;-)

OED

[a-llusive.livejournal.com]

Brazen long enough and it'll get into the OED. Don't repent as it has worked out for all concerned.
/no crime, especially if it remains a "technical" term (ie only used in field) c.f. "ideation" used in psychology.

Burglarized

[(Anonymous)]

Sadly, Burglarized is now so acceptable in the US that the word was used in the New York Times recently. My spelling has fallen apart since I've moved here. Now I have to write and edit professionally in Yank. It's hard.
Love, T. H.

Re: Burglarized

[triskellian]

You have my sympathy. Several of the papers I've recently been proofreading were written in Yank, and I've taken great pleasure in replacing their Zs with Ss and adding Us everywhere. If they'd just write real English, like we do, the world would be a much happier place ;-)