brillig

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Contents

English [edit]

Alternative forms [edit]

Pronunciation [edit]

  • IPA: /ˈbɹɪ.lɪɡ/
  • enPR: brĭʹlĭg
  • Hyphenation: BRI(L)-lig

Etymology [edit]

Supposedly from bryl or broil.

Noun [edit]

brillig (uncountable)

  1. A nonce word in Lewis Carroll's Jabberwocky, explained by Humpty Dumpty as "four o'clock in the afternoon — the time when you begin broiling things for dinner."
    'Twas brillig, and the slithy toves / Did gyre and gimble in the wabe — Lewis Carroll, Jabberwocky.

Translations [edit]

See also [edit]