Premium 
Download Edit
Download the Portmanteau Worksheets, Examples & Definition
Click the button below to get instant access to these worksheets for use in the classroom or at a home.
Download This Worksheet
This download is exclusively for KidsKonnect Premium members!
To download this worksheet, click the button below to signup (it only takes a minute) and you'll be brought right back to this page to start the download!
Sign Me Up
Edit This Worksheet
Editing resources is available exclusively for KidsKonnect Premium members.
To edit this worksheet, click the button below to signup (it only takes a minute) and you'll be brought right back to this page to start editing!
Sign Up
Not ready to purchase a subscription? Click to download the free sample version Download sample
Download This Sample
This sample is exclusively for KidsKonnect members!
To download this worksheet, click the button below to signup for free (it only takes a minute) and you'll be brought right back to this page to start the download!
Sign Me Up
A portmanteau is a suitcase that has two distinct sections. Interestingly, the word portmanteau itself is also a blend of two different words: porter (to carry) and manteau (a cloak).
The term “portmanteau word” was coined by Lewis Carroll in “Through the Looking Glass” (1871), when Humpty Dumpty explained to Alice, “You see it’s like a portmanteau — there are two meanings packed up into one word.”
Portmanteau words are extremely popular in modern-day English and new word combinations are regularly popping up.
A very common example of this is the word smog, which is a combination of the words “smoke” and “fog.” Not only does “smog” combine the (sm-) of smoke with the (-og) of fog, but the meanings are also combined. The basic definition of smog is a smoky haze made up of fog and air pollutants.
Portmanteau words can also be celebrity names. One of the most famous combined names is Brangelina which is a combination of Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie.
Here are some examples and their meaning:
- bionic (biology/electronic): artificial body parts that have been enhanced by technology.
- Bollywood (Bombay/Hollywood): the Indian movie industry.
- bromance (brother/romance): a close relationship between two men.
- chillax (chill/relax): calm down, rest.
- Chinglish (Chinese/English): a variation of the English language as spoken by people of Chinese descent.
- cineplex (cinema/complex): a movie theatre with several screens.
- cosplay (costume + play): dressing up in costumes that resemble characters from popular culture.
- crunk (crazy/drunk): out of control after consuming alcohol.
- faction (fact + fiction): a story, speech or novel that contains historical and real-life facts combined with invented information.
Other famous portmanteau words:
| breakfast | lunch | brunch |
| car | hijack | carjack |
| cheese | hamburger | cheeseburger |
| friend | enemy | frenemy |
| guess | estimate | guesstimate |
Portmanteau Worksheets
This bundle contains 10 ready-to-use Portmanteau worksheets that are perfect to test student knowledge and understanding of Portmanteau which is blending of two words together to make a new word with its own special meaning.
Link/cite this page
If you reference any of the content on this page on your own website, please use the code below to cite this page as the original source.
Link will appear as Portmanteau Worksheets, Examples & Definition: https://kidskonnect.com - KidsKonnect, February 26, 2018
Use With Any Curriculum
These worksheets have been specifically designed for use with any international curriculum. You can use these worksheets as-is, or edit them using Google Slides to make them more specific to your own student ability levels and curriculum standards.
