portmanteau

[ pawrt-man-toh, pawrt-man-toh ]

/ pɔrtˈmæn toʊ, ˌpɔrt mænˈtoʊ /

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noun, plural port·man·teaus, port·man·teaux

[pawrt-man-tohz, -toh; pawrt-man-tohz, -toh,]. /pɔrtˈmæn toʊz, -toʊ; ˌpɔrt mænˈtoʊz, -ˈtoʊ,/.

Chiefly British. a case or bag to carry clothing in while traveling, especially a leather trunk or suitcase that opens into two halves.

Linguistics.

Also called port·man·teau word . a word that combines the form and meaning of two or more other words; a blend.
Also called port·man·teau morph . a phonological unit of more than one morpheme, as French au (to the) from à to + le masculine article, which realizes a preposition and the definite article; a single morph that is analyzed as representing two underlying morphemes.

something that combines or blends several items, features, or qualities: I've gathered a portmanteau of ideas from my colleagues.

adjective

combining or blending several items, features, or qualities: a portmanteau film with two good stories.

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Origin of portmanteau

From French portemanteau literally, “(it) carries (the) cloak”; see port⁵, mantle;def. 1 was first recorded in 1575–85, and def. 2a in 1871 in Through the Looking Glass by Lewis Carroll.

Words nearby portmanteau

Portlaoise, Port Lavaca, Port Louis, portly, Port Lyautey, portmanteau, portmanteau word, Port Moody, Port Moresby, Port Neches, Portnet

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use portmanteau in a sentence

Marketers love a portmanteau, and this one refers to the blending of physical and digital realms that gathered steam due to the pandemic.
CMO Summit Recap: How marketers are adjusting to the delayed phase-out of third-party cookies|Sara Jerde|July 27, 2021|Digiday
Plogging—a portmanteau of jogging and the Swedish term plocka upp, which means “pick up”—was created in 2016 by Erik Ahlstrom, a Swedish runner who was tired of seeing so much trash on his daily jogs.
Plogging Is Our New Favorite Way to Get Outside|Outside Editors|April 15, 2021|Outside Online
One of my biggest concerns was balancing work and vacation, and not tipping the portmanteau scale too far in one direction.
Was a three-week trip to New Orleans for work or vacation? Both.|Andrea Sachs|February 19, 2021|Washington Post
Making this dish for my Jamaican husband and our two small “Trin-Ja-Merican” children — a fitting portmanteau to describe their multicultural heritage — I appreciate the warmth and satiating quality that aloo and channa confers.
Trinidad-style aloo and channa infuses an Indian classic with Caribbean flavor|Brigid Washington|January 22, 2021|Washington Post

This dermatological condition—a portmanteau of “mask” and “acne”—affects people of all ages and skin types, regardless of whether they have a history of skin irritation.
Mask up without breaking out. Here’s how to prevent pandemic acne.|Sandra Gutierrez G.|December 3, 2020|Popular-Science
Allie calls it “Fat Boy,” an unsubtle portmanteau of the nicknames—“Fat Man” and “Little Boy”—given the bombs dropped over Japan.
American Dreams: ‘The Mosquito Coast’ by Paul Theroux|Nathaniel Rich|September 20, 2012|DAILY BEAST
And yet, they got over it and would go on to earn the portmanteau "Merkozy."
Francois Hollande: France’s Anti-Sarkozy President|Tracy McNicoll|May 7, 2012|DAILY BEAST
Whichever way you look at it, the are-they-or-aren't-they couple earned the portmanteau Brittana and a lot of attention.
Most Memorable Kisses of the Year|Shefali Kulkarni|December 30, 2010|DAILY BEAST
A portmanteau by way of the frontier, this term was given flight by Sarah Palin.
The 2010 Political Dictionary from A to Z|Samuel P. Jacobs|December 12, 2010|DAILY BEAST
This longing for grimness actually has its own portmanteau word, ostalgie.
The Week in Polls|Adam Hanft|October 17, 2008|DAILY BEAST
The portmanteau was the sign of youth and progress; old-fashioned people stuck to the carpet bag.
Fifty Years of Railway Life in England, Scotland and Ireland|Joseph Tatlow
Such thoughts as these passed through the worthy officer's mind as he carefully packed his portmanteau.
The Pit Town Coronet, Volume I (of 3)|Charles James Wills
He had not even had the energy to finish his packing, and his clothes and papers lay on the floor about the portmanteau.
Summer|Edith Wharton
When they saw my portmanteau (twenty-five pounds in weight), they were quite puzzled to know what to do with it.
A Woman's Journey Round the World|Ida Pfeiffer
And he rose at once, reshouldered the portmanteau, and taking the candle in his other hand, moved forward to the Lodge.
Tales and Fantasies|Robert Louis Stevenson

British Dictionary definitions for portmanteau

portmanteau

/ (pɔːtˈmæntəʊ) /

noun plural -teaus or -teaux (-təʊz)

(formerly) a large travelling case made of stiff leather, esp one hinged at the back so as to open out into two compartments

(modifier) embodying several uses or qualitiesthe heroine is a portmanteau figure of all the virtues

Word Origin for portmanteau

C16: from French: cloak carrier, from porter to carry + manteau cloak, mantle

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

portmanteau

Origin of portmanteau

Words nearby portmanteau

Words related to portmanteau

How to use portmanteau in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for portmanteau

Word Origin for portmanteau