Patrick Andries scripsit: > Obviously, the AP has found someone to say it is artificial. Actually, a > study made by the Quebec linguist Marie-�va de Villers(*) shows that > newspapers (like Le Monde) in France as in Qu�bec tend to use more and more > the term now preferred by the French government.
I'm also glad to learn the French for "portmanteau word", viz. "forme t�lescopique". The former term was devised by Lewis Carroll for his coinages "chortle" (chuckle+snort) and "galumph" (gallop+triumph). Modern examples are "brunch" (breakfast+lunch), "smog" (smoke+fog), and "Chunnel" (Channel+tunnel). -- John Cowan [EMAIL PROTECTED] www.reutershealth.com ccil.org/~cowan Dievas dave dantis; Dievas duos duonos --Lithuanian proverb Deus dedit dentes; deus dabit panem --Latin version thereof Deity donated dentition; deity'll donate doughnuts --English version by Muke Tever God gave gums; God'll give granary --Version by Mat McVeagh
