APS
2026 APS Annual Convention · 2026
Funny but Forgettable? Predicting the Plausibility, Humor, and Memorability of Taboo Compounds
- Katherine White
Rhodes College - Hana Jaber
Rhodes College - Julian McMillian
Rhodes College - Alexa Tapia-Plazola
Pomona College - Kalyani Nair
Pomona College - Elisabeth Lootus
Pomona College - Lise Abrams
Pomona College
Abstract
The plausibility and humor of novel taboo compounds (e.g., horny-banana) is predicted by the semantic, emotional, phonological, and orthographic properties of the compound’s constituent words, which in turn predict the memorability of these novel, taboo compounds but not their naming times.
