Forgotten Words That Need to Make a Comeback

Every year, a list of new words that are added to the Webster's American Dictionary are celebrated. It's fun to know that words like "sexting" and "selfie" have finally earned their due, but it's not babblement to know that the cycopede is being thought of in its entirety, do you hear me, bro?

What better way to honor old Noah Webster during National Dictionary Week than to make sure his entire book is being used.

Call me a fopdoodle who considers himself a jackpudding, but I seriously would like to see some old words make a comeback.

Here's some ideas for old time words from Webster's American Dictionary that could easily make a comeback if we all choose one or two and use them regularly.

Check out the complete list at the Huffington Post.

BABBLEMENT (n.)

"Senseless prattle" or "unmeaning words," according to Webster. To twattle, incidentally, is to gossip or chatter.

CYCOPEDE
Cycopede is all but unique to Webster, who defined it as both a variation of cyclopedia (as in encyclopedia), and as a term for the entire "circle of human knowledge."

DAGGLE-TAIL (adj.)
As a verb, to daggle is "to befoul" or "dirty", or more specifically, "to trail in mud or wet grass". The adjective daggle-tail ultimately describes someone "having the lower ends of garments defiled with mud."

FOPDOODLE (n.)

The perfect name for "an insignificant fellow" -- Webster described this word as "vulgar and not used."

JACKPUDDING (n.)

A jackpudding is a "merry-andrew" or "a zany" according to Webster -- in other words, a joker who acts the fool to make other people laugh.

KISSING-CRUST (n.)
As loaves of bread expand in the oven as they're cooked, a kissing-crust forms when they spread so far that they touch.

OBAMBULATE (v.)

Literally means "to walk about." The horseback equivalent, incidentally, is toobequitate -- or "to ride about."

RAKESHAME (n.)

"A vile, dissolute wretch" -- also known as a rampallion, a scroyle, a runnion, apander, a cullion and (if they seem destined to a life of crime) a crack-rope.

SHEEP-BITE (v.)
To sheep-bite is "to practice petty thefts" according to Webster. Some of his other criminally underused S-words include scantle ("to divide into small pieces"), scranch("to grind with the teeth"), stalactical ("resembling an icicle"), squabbish ("thick, fat, heavy") and stramash ("to beat," "to destroy"). Less useful is sniggle, defined as "to fish for eels by thrusting the bait into their holes."

WRANGLESOME (adj.)

To wrangle is "to dispute angrily" or "to involve in contention," according to Webster. So if you're wranglesome, then you're "quarrelsome and contentious."

YOKE-MATE (n.)

Also called a yoke-fellow, a yoke-mate is "an associate or companion."

ZUFFOLO (n.)
Z fairs slightly better than X in Webster's dictionary, with a total of 85 entries in all. Azuffolo, he explains, is "a little flute... especially that which is used to teach birds."