Writing Question: Cliquey or Cliquish

[neonlyte]

Can't find a spelling for either. here is the sentence: The office thrived on misnomers in the cliquey way small close knit groups find a common strand to bind, ours happened, bizarrely, upon misnomers.

 

[Stella_Omega]

You've created a "nonce word" and you get to define the spelling.

I say "cliquey" works best. I think I've seen "clique-y" somewhere, if that feels better to you...

 

[neonlyte]

You've created a "nonce word" and you get to define the spelling.

I say "cliquey" works best. I think I've seen "clique-y" somewhere, if that feels better to you...

Yeh... I had cliquey from the beginning, but in editing... Worst still, it's in the first 300 words of the second chapter! Will disappointed readers, read on?

 

[Jenny_Jackson]

Dictionary.Com - cliquey

 

[Stella_Omega]

Perhaps if you got rid of a repeated word, and replaced one of your commas with a semicolon, thusly

The office thrived in the cliquey way small close knit groups find a common strand to bind; ours happened, bizarrely, upon misnomers.

Or maybe better like this;

The office thrived in the cliquey way small close knit groups do. Ours happened to find a commonality, in misnomers.

Or;

...bizarre misnomers.

 

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

Adj. 1. cliquish - befitting or characteristic of those who incline to social exclusiveness and who rebuff the advances of people considered inferior

use 'snobs'

 

[neonlyte]

Thanks for the suggestions Stella, and others who contributed spellings.

 

[Stella_Omega]

Thanks for the suggestions Stella, and others who contributed spellings.

I hope they weren't irritating-- if they weren't useful

 

[neonlyte]

I hope they weren't irritating-- if they weren't useful

Of course they were helpful! I welcome any and all comments.

 

[Grushenka]

Can't find a spelling for either. here is the sentence: The office thrived on misnomers in the cliquey way small close knit groups find a common strand to bind, ours happened, bizarrely, upon misnomers.

I've read all the other posts too, but I would not even use the word, however spelled. I think the sentence reads fine without the intrusive adjective and well explains what you mean to say.

 

[elfin_odalisque]

The OED requires 5 published references before citing a word.

I've seen 'cliquy' in a newspaper, but I'm still not convinced you can make an adjective/adverb outof this noun.

 

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

IT and several related adjectives are in my dictionary.

 

[gauchecritic]

cliquish goes better with the other ten-dollar words.

cliquey. Just testing, and my in-line spell check doesn't underline either of them.

 

[sr71plt]

Can't find a spelling for either. here is the sentence: The office thrived on misnomers in the cliquey way small close knit groups find a common strand to bind, ours happened, bizarrely, upon misnomers.

Either is fine in U.S. use. Both are listed in Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, the usual choice of dictionary authority in U.S. publishing. Can't say as definitively for UK usage, but Collins gives only "cliquish."

 

[Oblimo]

We clicked over misnomers.

 

[Stella_Omega]

The OED requires 5 published references before citing a word.

I've seen 'cliquy' in a newspaper, but I'm still not convinced you can make an adjective/adverb outof this noun.

Sure you can! To toot once more my favorite tune-- that nearly infinite malleability is the beauty and virtue of the English language.