Quirklum

I know what you’re going to say, Martha, when I tell you that I was reading a Scottish etymological dictionary.

Oh, aye!

But I found a word in there I didn’t know, and I thought I’d share it with you.

It’s a quirkulum. Guess what a quirkulum is. Q-U-I-R-K-L-U-M. Quirkulum.

Quirkulum. Oh, I love it. Whatever it is.

It’s the cousin to a riddlum.

Well, a riddlum is just a riddle, and a quirkulum is kind of a riddle, but it’s more of those puzzles, those word puzzles where you have to pay attention because the answer is in the wording.

You know?

So here’s one.

Here’s a typical corkulum.

At the ball yesterday, there were three score and three fiddlers, and each fiddler had 20 dancers. How many dancers were there?

Oh, wow.

This means I have to do math on the radio?

What’s the answer?

No, because it’s three score.

Because the answer is right there, and what people start to do is they do the math, and they multiply the fiddlers, time the three score, and they come up with a number that’s way too large.

And so, and as the answer in this dictionary has it, nay, put a wee stop after three score.

That’s the worst Scots accent in the history of the world.

Thank you.

I thought it was pretty good.

Thank you very much.

I like that.

Anyway, that’s a quirkulum.

Quirkulum.

I love it.

Share your quirkulums with us.

Give us a call, 1-877-929-9673 or send an email to words@waywordradio.org.