CURRENT CONTENTS
Clap-trap
Cootchie-(cootchie-)coo
Dilly-dally
Fuddle-duddle
Fuddy-duddy
(for continuation, see the link below)
Hanky-panky
Harum-scarum
Helter-skelter
(for continuation, see the link below)
Authors' Note: Reduplications as they are best known, sometimes also called duplications, are language forms (morphs), usually for nouns, in which an element of the word is repeated with little or no change; they figure prominently among the most musical elements in English and in other languages. To this author, the more commonly used term seems redundant.
The disparaging term gobbledegook was first used in 1944 by a Texas politician named Maverick (scion of the original staunchly independent thinker). Its meaning — pompous, overinflated language — gave rise a few year later to the equivalent bafflegab. These expressions, employing repetition of sounds, have a musical and amusing quality, as do their venerable synonyms --hogwash, poppycock, balderdash, bunkum and tommyrot, but only their close cousin claptrap (alternately clap-trap) -- would qualify as a reduplication.
Authors' Note: Cootchie coo, sometimes cootchie cootchie coo, with its many spelling variants, has evolved as a (re)duplication voiced when tickling a baby, or possibly other targets, as described [[47817:here]]. Bloviation, and the blowhard are described in other verses.
Authors' Note: The essential appended line (L6) of this verse is acknowledged by the author to have a puzzling rhyming scheme, although the latter is partly offset by the action taking place near the palpitatingly iconic Palindrome Valley. Another redeeming feature is that, unlike the other half-dozen or so other poems on this topic at the collaborative online site OEDILF, it is gratifyingly concordant with the normal conversational stressing of DIL-ly-dal-ly on its first syllable.
Another view of wordplay competitions in Palindrome Valley can be found HERE.
Authors' Note: (usually, FUD-uhl-dud-uhl, or with a French lilt, as here, fud-uhl-DUD-uhl)
fuddle-duddle: an infrequently used (re)duplication, voiced dismissively in dealing with opinions that the speaker rejects.In 1971 Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau, father of current PM Justin Trudeau, unleashed a minor scandal by using unparliamentary language in the Canadian House of Commons (parliament). A portion of the ensuing brouhaha, deftly sidestepped by Trudeau, revolved around whether he had actually spoken or merely mouthed the inappropriate words.Web discussion:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fuddle_duddle
Authors' Note:
(FUD-ee-dud-ee, or as a possibility here, fud-ee-DUD-ee). Another example of a (re)duplication.
Authors' Note: Reduplications as they are best known, sometimes also called duplications, are language forms (morphs), usually for nouns, in which an element of the word is repeated with little or no change; they figure prominently among the most musical elements in English and in other languages. To this author, the more commonly used term seems redundant. Many other examples begin with the letter 'h', e.g. harum-scarum, helter-skelter, higgeldy-piggeldy, hillbilly, and hubba-hubba.
SONGS about REDUPLICATIONS!
The authors of the above poetic verses got so enthused about reduplications that they composed a series of patter-songs (in the style of Tom Lehr) dealing with this intriguing linguistic curiosity. If you follow along these links you can learn more grammar, and see dozens of surprising and enlightening examples of this phenomenon. Grab your ukulele, your guitar, or just your larynx, and enjoy singing along!
For more intriguing verses about "(re)DUPLICATIONS", please proceed to part #2 by clicking HERE.
GENERAL DIRECTIONS FOR WEB-EXPLORERS:
To resume your review of the sequence of daily titillations on our related blog "Daily Illustrated Nonsense", click HERE. Once you arrive, you can select your time frame of interest from the calendar-based listings at the bottom of the page, and check the daily offerings for any month from the start of 2020 until July 2025. As of July 20, 2025, there are 2,000 unique entries available on the daily blog, displaying individual poems (often illustrated) and wordplay, but also with some photo-collages and parody song-lyrics.
Most of the key elements, such as this one, are also assembled here on "Edifying Nonsense" in topic-based collections.
The "Daily" format, a formidable mix of genres, also has the advantage of including song-lyrics, videos and other material that are not shown here on this topic-based blog.
