1.
acronym: a word created by using the beginning letters of a phrasal noun
Ex:WASP, NATO, laser, scuba
2.
agglutinated word: a word comprised or created by putting word parts together
Ex:cupboard, blackboard, underwater
3.
anagram: a word whose letters can be rearranged to from another word
Ex: team, tame, meat, mate
4.
doggerel: inferior poetry
Ex: greeting card verse
5.
double entendre: a phrase that has two meanings, one legitamite and the other risque
Ex: Smith College: one hundred years of women on top
6.
Esperanto: an artificially constructed language that attemps to be universal
Ex: Jes(yes), Ne(no), Dankan(thankyou)
7.
etymology: the history, origin, or derivation of a word
Ex: pig-Anglo Saxon
patois- French
8.
initialism: a shortened form of a phrasal noun in which letters (not spoken as a word) represent the longer name
Ex: FYI, POW, TTYL, FBI
9.
jargon: A) nonsensical language
B) the specialized vocabulary of a particular past time, hobby, occupation, etc.
Ex: foot ball jargon- lateral pass, hail mary
10.
libretto: (literally "little book") the text that accompanies an opera, often written in Italian
Ex: The Barber of Serville, Madame Butterfly
11.
litany: A) the responsive reading in a church service
B) an endless list of recitation
Ex: The Apostles Creed
12.
malapropism: humorous misuse of a word by substituting a similar sounding (but incorrect) word
Ex: "spank you very much"
13.
neologism: new word that has come into the language
Ex: texting, ipad, friending, bling
14.
palindrome: a word or phrase that reads the same forwards or backwards
Ex: racecar, mom, dad, hannah
15.
patois: a regional dialect; a language subgroup, usually withoug a literary tradition
Ex: Creole, Gullan, Geechee
16.
polyglot: a person who speaks many languages
Ex: Mr. Parisi, Un interpreters
17.
portmanteau word: a new word comprised of parts of two words
Ex: Broocelli, jeggings, smog
18.
spoonerism: named for william spooner
Ex: let me show you to your seat-----let me sew you to your sheet
19.
tete-a-tete: an intimate conversation, usually romantic conotation
Ex: Kate and Prince William during their interview
20.
truncated word: shortened form of a word
Ex: cell phone, auto, taxi