Articles about reading

The wonderfully weird language of Roald Dahl

Sep 2019

If we said to you "This swatchscollop tastes absolutely filthsome", would you know what we were talking about? Not unless you were fluent in Gobblefunk, a language made up by Roald Dahl in The BFG.

Gloriumptious
Definition: Glorious and wonderful

When you can't quite find the right word to describe a great situation, "gloriumptious" should be your word of choice. It sounds like a combination of all the positive descriptive words in the dictionary rolled into one, and truly describes something wonderful, glorious and triumphant all at the same time.

Jumpsquiffling
Definition: Something absolutely colossal

Think of the biggest thing you can. Now imagine something even bigger. What word would you use to describe it? Roald Dahl's "jumpsquiffling" is perfect!

Trogglehumper
Definition: An absolutely frightful dream

For a nightmare that is truly horrific, the word "trogglehumper" sums it up! It's a wonderful word to describe those dreams where you jump awake, and search the house wide-eyed for the monsters that lurk in the dark.

Frobscottle
Definition: A nice drink with soft drink bubbles

Sometimes a drink is so refreshing, tasty and fulfilling that "drink" just doesn't do it justice. Roald Dahl again has the perfect word: "frobscottle". So when a drink tastes extra good, you could say: "This frobscottle is absolutely gloriumptious!"

Splitzwiggled
Definition: Caught

When someone is caught out doing something they shouldn't be, they have been "splitzwiggled".That's far more fun to say than "caught" isn't it?

Oh, and if you are wondering, the sentence we used earlier, means: "This disgusting food is yucky"!

Happy Roald Dahl Day!