Portmanteaus Are Not Just for Travel Quiz

Answer: cultivar

A blend of "cultivated" or "cultigen" (a plant deliberately selected for cultivation) and "variety", the word cultivar is one of the oldest portmanteaus in use today, as it was created in 1923 by American horticulturist Liberty Clyde Bailey of Cornell University. He proposed the word to denote a variety of a plant that has originated under cultivation. Usually the product of hybridization or cloning, cultivars are not regarded as a separate species. The word is normally used in reference to plants grown as food crops or for ornamental purposes.

Unlike other neologisms, cultivar (which has the same spelling as the Spanish and Portuguese verbs for "to cultivate") was readily accepted by the scientific community after it was first introduced, and its use had become common by the mid-20th century.

Answer: affluenza

Affluenza combines "affluent" and "influenza" in a portmanteau word that describes the negative psychological and social effects of affluence, compared to a sort of illness. Though probably coined in the early years of the 20th century, the term was popularized by a documentary of the same name produced by PBS (Public Broadcasting Service) in 1997, and then by the book "Affluenza: The All-Consuming Epidemic", originally published in 2001.

A high-profile case of multiple vehicular homicide that occurred in 2013 - when 16-year-old Ethan Couch, driving while intoxicated, killed four pedestrians and injured nine others - brought the word back to public attention. The psychologist in court referred to the teenager as having a case of affluenza: according to the psychologist, having been taught by his wealthy parents that wealth buys privilege, Couch was unable to realize that actions have consequences.

In Italian, affluenza (which is not a portmanteau word) means "influx" or "turnout".

Answer: bromance

A blend of "bro" (short for brother) and "romance", the word bromance refers to a close, platonic relationship between two or more men - the kind that involves a very high level of emotional intimacy. Its female counterpart, though much more rarely used, is "womance". The term was reputedly coined in the 1990s by Dave Carnie, the editor of the skateboarding magazine "Big Brother", to describe the close relationships that developed between skaters that spend a lot of time together. However, the use of bromance did not become widespread until the mid-2000s, when it achieved particular visibility thanks to the depiction of such close relationships in movies (such as "The Lord of the Rings" trilogy) or TV shows.

Bromance is often employed in journalism - particularly in the context of politics or current affairs - with an ironic, slightly derogatory edge. The term has been criticized as homophobic (for emphasizing the non-sexual nature of a bromance), or just as superfluous, for implying that close friendships between men are unusual.

Answer: fanzine

As the first half of the word implies, a fanzine is a non-official publication (a magazine, or simply zine) created by a group of fans of a cultural phenomenon such as a musical or literary genre. It should not be confused with a fan magazine, which is produced according to professional standards and available through mainstream channels.

The earliest examples of fan-produced publications were the product of amateur press associations formed by literary groups in late 19th-century US. The first modern-style fanzines - called "fanmags" - developed among readers of science fiction in the early 1930s. The word itself was coined in October 1940 by Russ Chavenet, a chess player who was one of the founders of science fiction fandom. Though printed fanzines are still being published, in today's world many of them are published in digital format on the Internet. They are usually called e-zines, as the term webzine also denotes professionally-produced online magazines.

Answer: athleisure

Athleisure is a blend of "athletic" and "leisure", denoting clothes originally meant for various kinds of physical activity (such as jogging or yoga) that are worn as everyday attire. Such clothing includes leggings, sweatpants, hooded sweatshirts, sneakers and ballet flats. The word was coined in the mid-1970s, but became common currency in the mid-2010s, reflecting the increasing popularity of this clothing category with people of all ages. A closely related term, first attested around 2016, is that of athlingerie (athletic + lingerie), which designates underwear combining the functionality of athletic wear with the attractive look of lingerie.

Another recent portmanteau word coined by the fashion industry in the context of fitness/activewear in the 2010s is "jeggings", a blend of "jeans" and "leggings", denoting leggings made to look like skin-tight denim jeans.

Answer: cosplay

The origin of the word cosplay is a very unusual and intriguing one, as it was coined by blending two English words - "costume" and "play" - but in a non-English-speaking context. A form of roleplay that involves impersonating fictional characters by wearing elaborate costumes, often crafted by the players themselves, cosplay is a modern variation on traditional Carnival or Halloween masquerades that originated in the 1930s at US science-fiction conventions.

In Japan, wearing costumes at fan conventions became popular in the 1970s: however, the word describing this activity - rendered in Japanese as "kosupure" - was coined in 1983 by publisher and media producer Nobuyuki Takahashi, and first used in an anime magazine. English eventually reborrowed the word, whose first use (both as a noun and a verb) dates from 1993.

Answer: staycation

The portmanteau word staycation - blending "stay" and "vacation" - looks very much like an oxymoron, at least superficially, as we are used to associate vacations with traveling. However, the concept behind the word has become increasing popular in the last few decades. Either because of limited financial resources or simply dislike of travel and crowds, many people choose to spend their breaks from work relaxing at home, maybe taking day trips in their region or just getting to know their home town better.

However, as revealed by an article on the Merriam-Webster website, both the word staycation and the activity it describes are much older than one might believe. In fact, the earliest mention of the word in English (spelled with a hyphen) is found in a full-page ad for beer published in the "Cincinnati Enquirer" in July 1944.

Answer: hazmat

Though generally labeled as a portmanteau, hazmat is one of a peculiar sort, as it combines the three-letter abbreviations of "hazardous" and "material". The word refers to substances that can be dangerous to health, property or the environment if not handled or contained with the utmost care. Hazmat include flammable, explosive and radioactive materials, as well as all kinds of poisons and toxic substances.

Though technically a noun, hazmat is often used as a modifier, as in "hazmat suit", an impermeable suit that covers the entire body, or "hazmat team", denoting a group of people who specialize in the handling of dangerous goods. Its earliest use in English dates from the 1970s.

Answer: precariat

There are quite a few modern portmanteau words that do not relate to technology or entertainment. One of these is precariat, a blend of "precarious" and "proletariat" used in a socioeconomic context to describe the condition of many people who work as freelancers or in the so-called "gig economy". Unlike the proletarians in the 19th and early 20th century, who were industrial workers paid to operate the means of production that belonged to the bourgeoisie, the members of the precariat are often educated, but are forced by circumstances to accept underpaid, intermittent jobs without any security.

Coined by British labour economist Guy Standing, the word appears in the title of his most famous book, "The Precariat: The New Dangerous Class", published in 2011. Precariat is recorded as an entry by the Collins English Dictionary, but not (at least at the time of writing) by the Merriam-Webster.

Answer: webinar

Webinar is one of a number of coinages that reflect the increasingly prominent role of the Internet in our modern society. A blend of "web" and "seminar", this word became particularly relevant in 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic that caused many in-person activities to be moved to an online setting. Unlike other kinds of web conferencing, webinars are mainly used as tools for education, instruction or professional training. Though conducted remotely, they are live, interactive events whose participants are encouraged to communicate with the presenter and each other.

The word webinar was first attested in English in 1998, though at the time it was not employed as extensively as it is today. Included in the Merriam-Webster dictionary in 2008, it has been criticized for being badly formed, or just plain unpleasant to the ear.