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What does 'brillig' mean in Jabberwocky?

Answer:

Lewis Carroll originally defined brillig in this way:

BRYLLIG: (derived from the verb to bryl or broil). "the time of broiling dinner, i.e. the close of the afternoon"

A definition reiterated by Humpty Dumpty in Through the Looking Glass:

`there are plenty of hard words there. "Brillig" means four o'clock in the afternoon -- the time when you begin broiling things for dinner.'

First answer by MisoSoup. Last edit by MisoSoup. Contributor trust: 104 [recommend contributor ]. Question popularity: 7 [recommend question].

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