[Ads-l] Word: wrongteous, wrong-teous

ADSGarson O'Toole adsgarsonotoole at GMAIL.COM
Thu Dec 28 20:46:19 UTC 2017


This word often appears coupled with an antonym, e.g., "righteous or
wrongteous". The construction is based on the whimsical creation of a
parallel term. Maybe linguistic nomenclature has a concise descriptor
for this mechanism.

Not listed in the Oxford English Dictionary or Merriam-Webster Online.
Urban dictionary has two entries; here is one:
https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=wrongteous

[Begin excerpt]
wrongteous
The opposite of righteous.
That party last night was so terrible. It was wrongteous.
#righteous#wrong#bad#opposite#wrongteous
by Ammnontet April 22, 2010
[End excerpt]

The word was used during an episode of the animated TV series
"Adventure Time". This YouTube clip is rotated 90 degrees and the
audio is poor, perhaps to avoid a copyright strike.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Ca6WQbI5Eo

A match in Google Books suggests that "wrongteous" appeared in a 1986 book.

Year: GB 1986
Title: Relationships: The Art of Making Life Work
Author: John-Roger
Publisher: Mandeville Press, Los Angeles, California
Quote Page 35
Database: Google snippet; must be verified with hardcopy; search for
"1986" yields a copyright notice for 1986.

https://books.google.com/books?id=3-9xJmeKlUQC&dq=isbn%3A0914829505&focus=searchwithinvolume&q=wrongteous

[Begin excerpt]
By putting your righteous (or "wrongteous") positions on the shelf,
you are giving your heart the time to dissolve or resolve the
conflict.
[End excerpt]

Garson

------------------------------------------------------------
The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org



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