Govende
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Govende is the name of a prank and game on the Usenet newsgroup alt.usage.english. The prank was initiated in 1996 by newsgroup participant Daniel McGrath, who posted a message to the newsgroup asking for the definition of the "word" govende (a nonsense word that he had made up himself) http://www.yaelf.com/archives.shtml.
In subsequent threads on the newsgroup, a custom arose of providing a slightly skewed definition, then following the definition with a request for a definition of another word slightly related, in a humorous way, to the definition that was just provided.
For example: http://groups.google.com/group/alt.usage.english/msg/5aa4567d5c077299
> >> >>> >>>>> > >>A puppet-king with a bad cold. What's a marionette?
> >> >>> >>>>> > >Anything from the earlybird menu. What's a raisons dêtre?
> >> >>> >>>>> > Grapes dried up and shriveled in the summer sun. What's au courant?
> >> >>> >>>>> Shocking. What's electrocution?
> >> >>> >>>>Japanese radio or telephone. What's a diet ?
> >> >>> >>>Nothing, it always smells like that here. What's a pheromone?
> >> >>> >>Yes. Yes. Yes. Oh Baby!. YES! What's a Carmelite?
> >> >>> >Reduced-fat confectionary. What's Tofutti?
> >> >>> A lactose-free sexual initiation rite of the Trobrianders.
> >> >>> What is Cosi fan tutte?
> >> >>A small ice-cream van playing Mozart melodies, What's a Neapolitan?
> >> >A recently coined Metropolitan. What's an Orthodox Archbishop?
> >> Dr Scholls in a seminary. What is the coming of the lord?
> >The ritual that followed the washing of his hair. What's an ablution?
> A cosmetic cream used to make tummy muscles look smooth. What's Botox?
A cuckoo clock shaped like a bikini model. What's a bolero? (etc...)
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