Dahl Dictionary: A List of 103 Words Made-up By Roald Dahl

When watching the 90s movie Matilda, you’ll learn how to spell the big word “difficulty” the Miss Honey way. It goes like this: missus D, missus I, missus F-F-I, missus C, missus U, missus L-T-Y. Thank you, Miss Honey, for this snappy way of spelling.

Matilda is an adaptation of a novel by Roald Dahl, the British author behind Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Fantastic Mr. Fox, and James and the Giant Peach. Dahl was a swashbogglingly imaginative person. Fun fact: he wrote most of his books in his garden shed, nestled in a cosy armchair.

This space is to shine a bright, yellow, warm light on 103 "Dahlisms"—words the author invented to make his worlds more "gloriumptious."

But first, here is Matilda’s way of making her favorite reading drink, a mug of Hot Chocolate:
Step 1: Warm up the milk in a saucepan.
Step 2: Add the hot chocolate mix (Matilda sometimes uses Ovaltine).
Step 3: Pour into a mug, take a sip, and enjoy a great read.

• giganticus: something very gigantic and grand
• whooshey: something very strong and powerful
• wondercrump: something wonderful
• snozzberry: a type of berry
• flushbunking: something nonsensical
• fizzwiggler: a very mean and cruel person
• redunculous: something ridiculous
• glubbage: disgusting food that is not meant to be eaten
• scrumdiddlyumptious: something scrumptious and delicious
• zozimus: the stuff that dreams are made of
• biffsquiggled: confused
• bibble: a soft bubbling sound
• churgle: a gurgle mixed with laughter
• frumpet: someone old and ugly
• chatbag: a chatterbox who talks nonstop
• gloomness: nighttime
• mideous: something horrible and dreadful
• plussy: someone vibrant and full of life
• hugtight: a very, very sticky glue
• argy: an argument
• mushious: something mushy and delicious
• plexicated: something very complicated
• razztwizzler: something very exciting
• whunking: something very big and heavy
• whiffsy: something that is always moving
• scrotty: to feel sad and gloomy
• babblement: a conversation or talk
• sickable: something that makes you sick
• slugburger: a burger made of slugs
• crabcruncher: a creature that lives by the cliff
• sogmire: a very soggy environment
• catasterous: something catastrophic and disastrous
• manhugger: an unfriendly giant
• spliffling: splendid and magnificent
• ringbeller: a very nice and sweet dream
• dumbsilly: something nonsensical
• huggybee: a term of endearment (like darling)
• bish: to destroy something
• gloriumptious: glorious and wonderful
• swashboggling: something very special
• pibbling: small and unimportant
• squishous: something squishy
• kiddle: a very young child
• mispise: something you hate very much
• twizzler: something difficult
• icky-poo: something disgusting
• witching hour: midnight, when magical creatures come alive
• mintick: a minute
• natterbox: a chatterbox
• notmucher: someone who does nothing
• jumpsy: feeling anxious
• grunion: someone who is grumpy
• gollup: to swallow
• flavory-savory: something delicious
• exunckly: exactly
• daddle: to run very fast
• bundongle: something filled with air
• crodsquinkled: something hopeless
• fluckgungled: hopeless
• glimp: a quick peek
• horrigust: horrible and disgusting
• suspichy: suspicious
• frightsome: something scary
• human bean: a human being
• oompa loompa: a creature from Loompaland
• splendiferous: splendid and marvelous
• phizz-whizzing: excellent
• swigpill: disgusting food
• filthsome: filthy and gross
• frobscottle: a fizzy drink
• trogglehumper: a nightmare
• snozzcucumber: a horrible-tasting vegetable
• rommytot: nonsense
• uckyslush: untasty food
• snozzwanger: a dangerous creature
• telly-telly bunkum box: a television
• lickswishy: delicious
• diddly: unique and special
• inky-booky: tasting like book ink
• glamourly: very interesting
• bopmuggered: very difficult
• whoppsy-whiffling: very crazy
• hopscotchy: cheerful and happy
• gobblefunk: to play around with words
• splatch-winkle: to hurry
• maidmasher: an unfriendly giant
• muckleberry: a special berry
• squifflerotter: a mean person
• gropeflunking: difficult to explain
• cloud-men: creatures living in clouds
• dogswoggler: someone silly
• delumptious: delicious
• majester: majesty
• whizzpopper: a fart
• earbusting: very loud
• splitzwiggled: caught doing something forbidden
• giggler: a little girl
• jiggyraffes: giraffes
• time-twiddler: something timeless
• figglers: fingers
• squibbling: writing
• quogwinkle: an alien
• frosty: cold weather