Coins in Bubbles

Cartoons and comic strips have contributed an inordinate number of neologisms to the English lexicon. Many terms we commonly use made their debut in cartoons and comic strips such as Li’l Abner (double whammy), The Timid Soul (milquetoast), and Popeye (goon). The contributions to the vernacular from these sources are due in part to the fact that so many have had longer runs (more than four decades for Li’l Abner alone) than their counterparts in electronic media. In addition, space constraints keep cartoonists from using big words. Active, vivid language is their stock in trade. That terseness, simplicity, and zaniness has appealed to cartoon fans of all ages. During the past century especially, words in comic strips, cartoons, and comic books were among the first ones children read in adult media, and at an impressionable age. Those they assimilated over time became a common part of our discourse.