# Ajectivalistic words **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [August 25, 2003, 4:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ajectivalistic-words/197461 "2003-08-25T04:54:07Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![The\_Ryan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7feea3/32.png) [@The\_Ryan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Ryan)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2003, 4:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ajectivalistic-words/197461/1 "2003-08-25T04:54:07Z")
Why do people feel the need to adjectify words that are already adjectives? For instance, “fascist” becomes “fascistic”, “economic” becomes “economical”, “ironic” becomes “ironical”. Are people really not able to recognize an adjective? ---
**Author:** ![Brutus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/91b2a8/32.png) [@Brutus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Brutus)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2003, 4:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ajectivalistic-words/197461/2 "2003-08-25T04:58:17Z")
I am no wordologist, but some people think it increases their smartitude to fabricatiate new words, and abusify old ones. ---
**Author:** ![Bambi\_Hassenpfeffer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Bambi\_Hassenpfeffer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bambi_Hassenpfeffer)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2003, 5:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ajectivalistic-words/197461/3 "2003-08-25T05:15:37Z")
People are also incapable of recognizing the verb forms of nouns. They make silly back-formations to replace perfectly good words. orient -\> orientation -\> “orientate” discriminate -\> discrimination -\> “discriminatizion” declare -\> declaration -\> “declaratization” Those last two have me concluding that there is no hope in this world. Prescriptivists such as me may as well give up. **DECLARATIZATION!?** ---
**Author:** ![dwyr](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dwyr/32/363_2.png) [@dwyr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dwyr)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2003, 7:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ajectivalistic-words/197461/4 "2003-08-25T07:12:02Z")
Oh, I don’t know. Sounds like a perfectly cromulentic word to me. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Babbington](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d6d6ee/32.png) [@Mr.Babbington](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Babbington)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2003, 7:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ajectivalistic-words/197461/5 "2003-08-25T07:15:43Z")
my personal favorite is “conversate,” or “to dialogue.” ---
**Author:** ![Derleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2003, 7:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ajectivalistic-words/197461/6 "2003-08-25T07:19:29Z")
I’ll have to interface with you about dialoguing as regards your conversating skills. Bingo! ---
**Author:** ![treis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bc79bd/32.png) [@treis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/treis)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2003, 7:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ajectivalistic-words/197461/7 "2003-08-25T07:49:48Z")
Somebody actually used “facistic” without joking? ---
**Author:** ![Shade](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2bfe46/32.png) [@Shade](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shade)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2003, 10:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ajectivalistic-words/197461/8 "2003-08-25T10:20:33Z")
I can’t think of a good example but sometimes these words find a use. For instance: to lever: use a rigid bar and firm pivot to increase your push leverage: having a greater push due to having a lever leverage: used metaphorically, eg. lever is advantages in negotiation. to leverage: use metaphorical leverage. Not quite justified, but it shows there can be a distinction in meaning. ---
**Author:** ![apricot\_syrup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/6f9a4e/32.png) [@apricot\_syrup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/apricot_syrup)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2003, 10:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ajectivalistic-words/197461/9 "2003-08-25T10:35:51Z")
In the movie “Good Will Hunting” the Robin Williams character uses the word “ironical” in talking to his Harvard-educated ex-roommate, who accepts the word as valid without so much as a trace of discomfort. ---
**Author:** ![curly\_chick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7ba0ec/32.png) [@curly\_chick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/curly_chick)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2003, 10:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ajectivalistic-words/197461/10 "2003-08-25T10:39:16Z")
Expiration date - that’s the one which makes my teeth itch. I have seen it written on labels and in official procedures. Arrgh. ---
**Author:** ![ruadh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/d2c977/32.png) [@ruadh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ruadh)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2003, 10:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ajectivalistic-words/197461/11 "2003-08-25T10:40:57Z")
In this part of the world, people don’t “pressure”, they “pressurise”. I always think that’s such a silly waste of two perfectly unnecessary letters. ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2003, 10:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ajectivalistic-words/197461/12 "2003-08-25T10:47:31Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by treis \* > \*\*Somebody actually used “facistic” without joking? \*\* Probably because it’s a [real word](http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=fascistic). ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2003, 12:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ajectivalistic-words/197461/13 "2003-08-25T12:57:20Z")
I can make up words, because I’m an expert in wordeology. ---
**Author:** ![dantheman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dantheman/32/9421_2.png) [@dantheman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dantheman)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2003, 1:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ajectivalistic-words/197461/14 "2003-08-25T13:01:16Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Bambi Hassenpfeffer \* > \*\* > orient -\> orientation -\> “orientate” > \*\* Know who uses this one a lot? J. K. Rowling. :eek: ---
**Author:** ![The\_Wrong\_Girl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b782af/32.png) [@The\_Wrong\_Girl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Wrong_Girl)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2003, 1:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ajectivalistic-words/197461/15 "2003-08-25T13:04:15Z")
Wait…what’s wrong with “expiration date”? I know I’ve used that one before. Is it like PIN number of ATM machine or something–what am I missing? ---
**Author:** ![MMI](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/53a042/32.png) [@MMI](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MMI)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2003, 1:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ajectivalistic-words/197461/16 "2003-08-25T13:19:51Z")
Does it make it worse if it is a technical term? Is there a better way to wow a customer or colleague then by mangling terminology? Instrumentate? Emissitivity? So many others, so much wincing. ye gods ---
**Author:** ![curly\_chick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7ba0ec/32.png) [@curly\_chick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/curly_chick)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2003, 1:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ajectivalistic-words/197461/17 "2003-08-25T13:46:07Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by The Wrong Girl \* > \*\*Wait…what’s wrong with “expiration date”? I know I’ve used that one before. > \*\* When the yoghurt has passed its “expiration date” has it expirated\*? No, it has expired. But when it has passed its expiry date, it has expired \*Ex-pirates are reformed vagabonds from the high seas. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Polycarp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/82dd89/32.png) [@Polycarp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Polycarp)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2003, 2:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ajectivalistic-words/197461/18 "2003-08-25T14:13:51Z")
So an “expiration date” would be a hot night out on the town with an ex-pirate? :eek: That puts a whole new meaning on “Arrr, Matey!”!! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![dantheman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dantheman/32/9421_2.png) [@dantheman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dantheman)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2003, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ajectivalistic-words/197461/19 "2003-08-25T14:22:07Z")
“Expiration” is the noun form of “expire” and has been for some time, though. M-W sez it’s a synonym of “expiry.” 😃 ---
**Author:** ![StarvingButStrong](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/starvingbutstrong/32/335_2.png) [@StarvingButStrong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StarvingButStrong)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2003, 2:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ajectivalistic-words/197461/20 "2003-08-25T14:39:18Z")
Some of the time there are nuances which make paired adjectives reasonable. Some examples: Magic vs. magical Historic vs. historical and, yes, Economic vs economical In each case the first form carries more significance, the second form simply categorizes. As in, if you went on a ‘magic’ date, I would assume a flying carpet or maybe being cut in two with a buzz saw was involved. ‘Magical’ dates are just extremely nice. D-Day was an historic event. James Michener wrote historical novels. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ajectivalistic-words/197461.md?page=2)