word pairing: boring mumbly

Choosing the right word isn't quite as easy as matching socks, but with a little help and some practice you can wow the kids down at the soda shop with language that'll make George Will sound like a narcoleptic circus carny with Tourette's.

The first step on your Road to Erudition is to explore novel word pairings. Used correctly, your lips will tingle from the spiciness of your conversation.

Tonight's word pairing is:

Boring mumbly

First used by Whitney Pastorek on July 23, 2002 to compare different types of "readings"

We've all been to boring mumbly readings, and we've all been to happy fun exciting ones.

this zippy two-fer holds tremendous potential. It's evocative, memorable, and best of all it forces the speaker (and the listener) to slow down. Don't believe me? Try saying boring mumbly five times fast.

Take your time, linger over the words and they will reward you, even in the middle of a more fast-paced sentence (for the advanced practitioner only).

Another asset of this pairing is the way saying it makes you look - laconic, knowing and worldly, and dare I suggest it, aristocratic. Feel the way your face moves under the influence of boring mumbly.

Combine boring mumbly with a sweeping gesture, perhaps that of a hand holding a glass of wine (red, Bordeaux).

Use boring mumbly sparingly, never with the same individual twice.

Examples to follow.