Vol. 10 · Portmanteaus ·Early 20th century ·1915
Pyrex
pie Nonex
- Meaning
- A brand of heat-resistant borosilicate glass cookware.
- Source words
- pie + Nonex
- Coined by
- Corning Glass Works
- Year
- 1915
Background
The leading theory of the name blends *pie* (the first product was a pie dish) with *Nonex* (an earlier Corning glass). Corning insisted the *py-* was for the pie dish, not for "pyre" or Greek *pyr* (fire), as is often assumed.
Early 20th century
Industrialisation generated new things that needed new names, fast. Motoring, electricity, telecommunications, and urban pollution all produced portmanteaus within a generation of their arrival.
Two words, one coinage.
Browse every portmanteau on the shelf — or cross over to the loanwords atlas.