WOTD for Word Nerds, Smart Alecs and Wise Guys

2-13-23

gash-gabbit

(adj. & n.) [ˈgæʃˌgæbɪt] — Scot.: having a projecting chin; one who has such a chin (OED)

God bless the Scots who, as far as I can see, have—per capita, and maybe absolutely—done more to provide the language with colorful, evocative words than any other identifiable segment of the more or less English-speaking world.  This example seems a particularly good one to offer in evidence, not only because it is—dagnabbit!—exceptionally memorable and suggestive, but because I do not believe there is an alternative single term, hyphenated or not, to name the phenomenon.  Jay Leno and Reese Witherspoon, two famous gash-gabbits, might be gratified to know their condition not only has a name but is, by certain self-styled “face-readers,” said to signify determinination, endurance, independence, and a strong will