# Humpty Dumptyism

idiom

Source: https://englishreference.com/idiom/humpty-dumptyism
Updated: 2026-08-10

## Meaning

The practice of insisting that a word means whatever one wishes it to.

## Examples

- Using Humpty Dumptyism makes it impossible to have a clear conversation.
- You practice Humpty Dumptyism when you invent your own meanings for common words.
- The politician relied on Humpty Dumptyism to redefine common terms, leaving the audience confused about his actual policy goals.
- The lawyer accused the witness of Humpty Dumptyism after he claimed that the word 'stolen' actually meant 'borrowed' in his personal vocabulary.
- By engaging in blatant Humpty Dumptyism, the author forced his own subjective definitions onto the text, effectively stripping the original language of its established meaning.

## Origin

From Humpty Dumpty + -ism, after the fictional character in Lewis Carroll's Through the Looking-Glass, who, when asked what he means by glory, replies, "I meant 'there's a nice knock-down argument for you!'" Alice protests that this isn't the meaning of glory and Humpty Dumpty replies, "When I use a word, it means just what I choose it to mean——neither more nor less."

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.