fictionary

English

WOTD – 9 October 2015

Pronunciation

  • (US) IPA(key): /ˈfɪkʃəˌnɛɹi/
  • (UK) IPA(key): /ˈfɪkʃən(ə)ɹi/
    • (file)
  • Rhymes: -ɪkʃənɛəɹi

Etymology 1

From fiction + -ary.

Adjective

fictionary (not comparable)

  1. Fictional.
    • 1853, Mary Anna Needell, Ada Gresham, page 53:
      I used to spend my mornings in the large, deserted drawing-room, whose charm was not yet broken, inditing ardent letters, into which my whole soul undisguised, was breathed to an imaginary friend; or writing some fragmentary sketches of the life of some fictionary favourite of fortune, in whose fate I always foreshadowed my own.
    • 1869, The Cornhill Magazine, Volume XIX: January to June, 1869, page 37:
      Lastly, there were not a few scholars who, discarding the idea that myths were purely fictionary, and admitting a basis of reality, yet found that basis not in historical occurrence but in natural phenomena.
    • 1882, Journal of the British Archaeological Association, volume 38, page 53:
      Omitting, for the occasion, all thought of Anglo-Saxon literary remains, histories, chronicles, theological, fictionary, and scientific works, the entire number of documentary evidences, such as charters, wills, etc., of the Saxon period in England is very limited.
    • 1907, Kemp Plummer Battle, History of the University of North Carolina: From its beginning to the death of President Swain, 1789-1868, volume 1, page 574:
      Showing a lady into a library in which were alcoves, the books being arranged by subjects, he said, "Now, Miss Mary, I will show you the concave[sic] of fictionary novels."'

Etymology 2

Blend of fiction + dictionary.

Alternative forms

  • Fictionary

Noun

fictionary (countable and uncountable, plural fictionaries)

  1. A parlor game in which participants invent definitions for an unfamiliar word found in a dictionary, and as one person reads them out, the others try to guess which one is the correct definition.
    • 2001, Susannah Seton, 365 Simple Pleasures, page 14:
      I generally hate playing games, but recently I was introduced to one that I think is actually fun: fictionary.
    • 2007, David Elkind, The Power of Play: Learning What Comes Naturally, page 190:
      One of our favorites is Fictionary, which we play on holidays or during storms.
    • 2010, Wanda Urbanska, The Heart of Simple Living: 7 Paths to a Better Life, page 223:
      Turns out, it's reminiscent of the game of Fictionary that was the hit of a recent Thanksgiving at my home (see below).
  2. (countable, rare) A dictionary with contrived entries.
    • 1980, Gyles Daubeney Brandreth, The Joy of Lex: How to Have Fun with 860,341,500 Words, New York: Morrow, →ISBN, page 269:
      Daffynitions appear in fictionaries, not dictionaries, and they add hidden dimensions to the words they describe.
    • 2019 May 27, Eley Williams, “From anemoia to zagreb: how ‘fictionaries’ are liberating the word”, in The Guardian:
      From anemoia to zagreb: how ‘fictionaries’ are liberating the word [title]
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