The Meaning of Liff – Douglas Adams and John Lloyd

A compilation of things that really should have words to describe them given words that have hitherto been languishing in obscurity as mere place names. I’ve owned this for many years and it always makes me laugh. Last week I casually picked it up off the shelf and spent the next 2 days sniggering and reading out entries to my my long-suffering wife. Taken together with the wonderful Uxbridge English Dictionary, this will cater to all of your made-up word requirements.

Somebody’s lobbed the whole thing online.

Here’s a taster:

ABILENE (adj.)
Descriptive of the pleasing coolness on the reverse side of the pillow.

GLASGOW (n.)
The feeling of infinite sadness engendered when walking through a place filled with happy people fifteen years younger than yourself.

NAD (n.)
Measure defined as the distance between a driver's outstretched fingertips and the ticket machine in an automatic car-park. 1 nad = 18.4 cm.