What is the term for two capitalized words that have been conjoined, like "MasterCard" or "SplashZone"?

Welcome, O mysterious chloe!
There; at last someone really IS calling you!

As to your question, my first thought was, "grotesque" and then "ungrammatical." However, it needs something less negative than that, I suppose.
How about "TooCapital for words?"; or "SpacedOut?"

Nice to have you, chloe!

I'll bet tsuwm, at least, knows this word--it would be
appropriate for this week's words for the day, for sure!

I put the question into a reverse dictionary, and got a most interesting list of words, four of which were:
malocclusion, gnash, verbiage, and redundant!

Hi,
My bet is there is no expression yet for these creations, which play havoc with spellcheckers among other things. I propose "CapitalMergers".

malocclusion

Oh boy!! I like that one! Can we have the full definition, please, Jackie dear?

>malocclusion

I'm afraid, he said with a frown, that it's a word used mostly by orthodontists...

Malocclusion:
Faulty contact between the upper and lower teeth when
the jaw is closed.

But that means there is a space!

As to it being used mainly by orthodontists, I don't mind that - I'm ecumenical.

> I propose "CapitalMergers".

Yes, I like the drift of this - but wouldn't any such creation, however cutely made, be self-defeating if not easy on the tongue?

Working at the moment for a firm guilty of these linguistic horrors, I am very much aware it is a commercial expedient, to capture multiple senses in a TM registered word. In other words, it's an attempt to stick several meanings together typographically for trade reasons.

I would therefore like to suggest sellotype (or SelloType if you prefer).

It's suggestive of something cheap and tacky, and only just hanging together. It also lends itself to phrases like "the name's been SelloTyped" or "They are sellotyping all available options" - could even be extended to the underlying pattern of behaviour, as in "Sellotypically, they covered the whole mall in their corporate colours".

I used to work in the arts, too, and there was a parrallel but different angle there. Some acts would seek to describe themselves with sellotype labels: 'DanceTheatre' is one that comes to mind!

>>As to your question, my first thought was, "grotesque" and then "ungrammatical."

Perhaps its a case of immersion therapy, but any initial reservations I may have had to such words have disappeared after years of exposure to software product names like WinZip, VirusScan and QuickTime. IT industry marketers have in fact abandoned nearly all rules about case, with names like AutoCAD and pcANYWHERE. Even the press picked up on this, referring to the phenomenal increase in market capitalization of such companies. (Sorry!).

Programmers, too, have sought refuge in this technique from that formerly ubiquitous character, Underbar (or Underscore), in cases where the software system dictates a single word but they have a complicated variable or subroutine to name. So read_drawing_param_file has become readDrawingParamFile (yes, usually no initial capital, again just like the software company about to float).

One of my pet hates is the proper noun with no capitals, eg the pop group silverchair, or the IT company eisa, because on a quick read of a sentence I sometimes miss the fact that a name has been mentioned. If indeed, the name of the company/product/whatever is already an accepted word or expression, like strawberry jam for example, it can only lead to mass confusion.

>it can only lead to mass confusion.

this can mean one of three only things:
a) chaoS (multiple units of the sacred chao)
b) liturgy in the original Latin
C) the web page for the pop group Mass Confusion (massConfusion... or MassConfusion... )

I would therefore like to suggest sellotype (or SelloType if you prefer).

FWLIW, I like sellotype! It seems very apt, one of that rare breed, an elegant neologism. Well done!

Maverick, "Sellotyped" is exactly the mot juste!
Many thanks for a useful addition to the language.

Thanks also to chloe for sarting this one!

> Maverick, "Sellotyped" is exactly the mot juste!
Many thanks for a useful addition to the language.
Thanks also to chloe for sarting this one!


Glad you approve, Hilary.
OK, I don't know if this should be in another string, but what is this (verb?) to sart? Suggestions, please!

to sart?

It just means that I haven't had enough tea today.

>enough tea today

I tease
You tease
Witties

(A very irregular verb)

She tease?

(regularly, for her health's sake, we hope)

>what is this verb sart?

sart - to commit yart; from Still Another Rehashed Thread