Home » Discussion Forum—A Way with Words, a fun radio show and podcast about language

Discussion Forum—A Way with Words, a fun radio show and podcast about language

A Way with Words, a radio show and podcast about language and linguistics.

Discussion Forum (Archived)

Please consider registering
Guest
Forum Scope


Match



Forum Options



Min search length: 3 characters / Max search length: 84 characters
The forums are currently locked and only available for read only access
sp_TopicIcon
Looking for a word to replace "disenfranchisee"
Guest
1
2015/05/06 - 8:27am

I want a cool word to describe "a person who has lost their vote."  The obvious thing that came to mind (if is even a word) is disenfranchisee, but that seems borderline fake and cumbersome.

 

Any suggestions?

 

sesquiup

Guest
2
2015/05/06 - 1:37pm

Disenfranchisement is certainly the right word for the act of revoking the right to vote.

NYTimes article

Even built on disenfranchise, I would prefer the disenfranchised over disenfranchisees. Although the underlying meaning of disenfranchise relates to the vote, it has broadened. The context would have to make it clear that it is discussing the right to vote. Within that context, the disenfranchised would be able to stand eloquently for what you intend.

Guest
3
2015/05/06 - 5:19pm

I found this list of synonyms for disenfranchised on thesaurus.com, but if your intended meaning is "loss of voting privileges" then I'd tend to go with Glenn's suggestion and use an alternative construction to disenfranchisee, which is a mouthfull of a noun. Use disenfranchised as an adjective, and add whatever articles you need to make it work with your sentence structure.

And welcome to the forum sesquiup!

deaconB
744 Posts
(Offline)
4
2015/05/07 - 4:04am

Denying someone the right of self-determination is political emasculation, or perhaps enslavement.

You could call them the electoral geldings or if you like living danbgerously, neo-niggers.  While either of those could be defended in a calm deliberative envirnment (which is especially unlikely with the second one, for obvious reasons), it has been my experience that when you have to explain a neologism, it is impossible to use it effectively.

So I'd go with disentranchisees or disentranchiseds or disentranchised individuals, because there's no requirement that the reader buy into the semantic judgement that accompanies the neologisms.  Dientranchised is an established term that's fairly neutral, semantically.

And welcome to the forum sesquiup!

Ditto.  And if "sesqui" means "one and a half", I congratulaye you on your language skills!

We get few toddlers here - and stealing from an old joke, at the prices they get charged for booze, no wonder!

Forum Timezone: UTC -7
Show Stats
Administrators:
Martha Barnette
Grant Barrett
Moderators:
Grant Barrett
Top Posters:
Newest Members:
A Conversation with Dr Astein Osei
Forum Stats:
Groups: 1
Forums: 1
Topics: 3647
Posts: 18912

 

Member Stats:
Guest Posters: 618
Members: 1268
Moderators: 1
Admins: 2
Most Users Ever Online: 1147
Currently Online:
Guest(s) 104
Currently Browsing this Page:
1 Guest(s)

Recent posts