Friday 17 December 2010

More jabbelling

The answers then to yesterday's quiz on The BFG by Roald Dahl.

  • crodscollop – in among the extras at the back of the version I'm reading (still) we're told the word means 'mouth-watering', but there's no definition in the text itself as far as I can see; it's used for the taste of a certain nationality and for me the vagueness is the joke
  • schnozzle – this is a noun, probably 'nose'
  • scuddle – a verb used to describe something ants do, almost certainly 'move' or 'walk', and most likely the BFG mispronouncing 'skedaddle' - what would it say about Dahl's creativity and passion for language and fun if he couldn't leave alone even a word as odd as that?
  • uckyslushyou know as well as I do now this is an adjective, probably meaning 'bad-tasting' or – in the context of the whole book – 'disgusting'; I'm glad The Happy Whisk was sensitive enough to peace among nations that we were spared the next sentence, in which the word is also used as a noun
  • whizzpopper – the explosive finale – this may be produced when drinking frobscottle, a fizzy drink in which the bubbles move downwards...

How did you do? I hope it wasn't a trogglehumper.

2 comments:

The Happy Whisk said...

Whizzpopper. I just wanted to say that. And human beans. So funny.

Porky said...

Whizzpopping is another of the unexpected highlights, or rather lowlights, of the book. I've finally read the last few pages and decided I need to go back to more of the stories I enjoyed as a child.