Bodgery word-coiners (16th century) by David Crystal The history of English contains thousands of words that never made it – coinages invented by individual writers that simply didn’t catch on. There is just a single instance of bodgery recorded in the Oxford English Dictionary. It is from the playwright Thomas Nashe, who used it in 1599. It means ‘bungling, botched work’. … Continue reading Etymology Monday: David Crystal on the word ‘bodgery’