How to Use A Portmanteau (Explained, Examples & Worksheet)

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The meaning of portmanteau

The words listed above all have something in common—they fall under the literary device known as portmanteaus.

What does Portmanteau: What Are They?

A portmanteau (also called a blend) is like a word-smoothie. Portmaneatus combine two or more words by removing parts of both words original spelling to form a new word altogether.

Smog = smoke + fog

Portmanteaus adopt the meaning of both of the words it comprises. With smog, for example, the dictionary definition is, “fog or haze combined with smoke and other atmospheric pollutants“. Put more simply, it’s when you have both smoke and fog in the air simultaneously, this forms “smog“.

The takeaway is that portmanteaus are not just “word-smoothies” in the sense that the letters are chopped up and blended together, but also in the literal meaning as both words merge to form the new word altogether.

Portmanteaus vs. compound words

Compare the following group of words:

Internet (interconnected + network), Brunch (breakfast + lunch); Hangry (hungry + angry)

Afternoon is 'after' and 'noon' , airport is from 'air' and 'port', and baseball is 'base' plus 'ball'.

The latter group is closed compound words, which comprise two or more words, such as baseball and basketball. As you can see, the difference between them is simply in how each is formed:

• Compound words keep part of the original words’ spellings to create the new word; i.e., baseball uses the individual words base and ball entirely.

• Portmanteaus use portions or segments of the original words and then glue them together; brunch combines breakfast and lunch, but it only uses the letters “br” from breakfast; the rest is lunch.

Popular Portmanteaus (A to E)

Worksheet

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