help needed with nonce-words :)

Hello :)

I'm writing a linguistic (textual) analysis of "Nonceness," a subchapter of David Crystal's "Language Play" [Crystal, D. 1998. Language Play. Penguin Books, London].

The author selected 24 nonce-words (from the collection by Neil McNicholas, to be exact), and the problem is... I don't understand some of them. I searched the dictionaries, they answered some of my questions, but I still have doubts. So, could you help me please?


circumtreeviation (n.) The tendency of a dog on a leash to want to walk past poles and trees on the opposite sied to its owner.

Is it, perhaps, circumambulation (or maybe circumference?) + tree + (??) deviation?


coinsonance n. The ability of your telephone and doorbell to ring at the same time.
Is it coincidence (?) + consonance?


inspectorate v. The habit paople have of checking their hankerchief afyer they've used it.
Inspect - all right, but what about the rest? And what does it have to do with handkerchiefs?

premavision n. The way a TV company knows you are about to switch on your set, and so you will be just in time for a commercial break.
"Television" is obvious, but what about "prema-"? It sounds like "premature" but this explanation isn't very convincing.


reincaffeination n. The practice of coffee cups always being refilled in restaurants.
Here I see "reincarnation + caffeine" but I don't really understand what's going on in restaurants. It must be different in my country.

I'll be grateful for your help.

matinee6

circumtreeviation (n.) The tendency of a dog on a leash to want to walk past poles and trees on the opposite sied to its owner.

Is it, perhaps, circumambulation (or maybe circumference?) + tree + (??) deviation?


Probably circumnavigation + tree + deviation


coinsonance n. The ability of your telephone and doorbell to ring at the same time.
Is it coincidence (?) + consonance?

I'm thinking coincidence + dissonance.


inspectorate v. The habit paople have of checking their hankerchief afyer they've used it.
Inspect - all right, but what about the rest? And what does it have to do with handkerchiefs?

Inspect + expectorate. Checking to see how much snot you've deposited in your handkerchief after blowing your nose.


premavision n. The way a TV company knows you are about to switch on your set, and so you will be just in time for a commercial break.
"Television" is obvious, but what about "prema-"? It sounds like "premature" but this explanation isn't very convincing.

Why not?


reincaffeination n. The practice of coffee cups always being refilled in restaurants.
Here I see "reincarnation + caffeine" but I don't really understand what's going on in restaurants. It must be different in my country.

You are correct: reincarnation + caffeine. I don't know how it is in your country or where the author of these words is from, but in the US it is common practice in restaurants for the waiter to keep refilling your drink (coffee, tea, soda, water, whatever) throughout your meal. For free. (It IS just flavored water, after all. Doesn't cost the restaurant much.)

>>circumtreeviation (n.) The tendency of a dog on a leash to want to walk past poles and trees on the opposite sied to its owner.

>>Is it, perhaps, circumambulation (or maybe circumference?) + tree + (??) deviation?

>Probably circumnavigation + tree + deviation

Sounds OK, thanks :)

>>coinsonance n. The ability of your telephone and doorbell to ring at the same time.
>>Is it coincidence (?) + consonance?

>I'm thinking coincidence + dissonance.

According to www.thefreedictionary.com, "dissonance" is "a lack of agreement,... conflict". "consonance" is "agreement, harmony, accord."

This is just my intuition, but the telephone and the doorbell can be said to "agree" with each other because they ring at the same time, together. OTOH, it is a kind of conflict, isn't it? So "dissonance" fits as well. For me it just depends on a point of view. But "coinsonance" sounds similar to "consonance," and that's why I'd opt for "consonance." I'm not a native speaker of English, so I may be wrong, of course.

> Inspect + expectorate. Checking to see how much snot you've deposited in your handkerchief after blowing your nose.

Perfect! I'd never think of it!

>> premavision n. The way a TV company knows you are about to switch on your set, and so you will be just in time for a commercial break.
>> "Television" is obvious, but what about "prema-"? It sounds like "premature" but this explanation isn't very convincing.

> Why not?
I just thought that I could come up with something better. If this company knows that you are to switch the set on BEFORE you do it... OK.

>You are correct: reincarnation + caffeine. I don't know how it is in your country or where the author of these words is from, but in the US it is common practice in restaurants for the waiter to keep refilling your drink (coffee, tea, soda, water, whatever) throughout your meal. For free. (It IS just flavored water, after all. Doesn't cost the restaurant much.)

I don't think I've ever seen it in my country. Thanks very much for this explanation and all your help!