首先要感謝網友7grizzly在美語世界論壇5/9發表的APAD, 才知道這種重複使用的複合詞的term是叫reduplicated word.
顧名思義，reduplicated words是指重複使用的詞，比如我們常聽到的 win-win, boo-boo這樣的詞，也可以指兩個非常相似的詞合在一起使用，比如常見的： chit-chat, criss-cross, hustle-bustle, ding-dong. 我想Tiktok這個詞的發明應該是受這些詞的啟發，它們朗朗上口，便於記憶，還帶點韻律和節奏感。
轉眼讀雜誌也有好幾年了，堅持讀的主要就是兩本雜誌 The Atlantic 和 The Economist. 記得最初在The Economist裏碰到了一個詞，叫 willy nilly（意思是willing or unwilling)，非常簡潔，印象很深，後來又陸陸續續看到一些類似的詞匯廣泛地運用在文章裏（這種重複詞The Economist出現的頻率要高過The Atlantic)。
這兩天特意翻了翻筆記，特此整理了一些，也便於自己今後補充和收集：
willy nilly: willing or unwilling 不管願意與否
Ms. Johnson suggests other culprits too. Houses were built willy-nilly on lots too cramped to provide “defensible space”, which can act as a firebreak. (The Economist August 21st, 2021)
bigwig: an important person, According to Online Etymology Dictionary , bigwig, also big-wig, "great man, person of consequence," originated in 1781, from big + wig , in reference to the imposing wigs formerly worn by men of rank or authority. 大人物，看到這個詞，我常常會聯想到香港電影裏那些頭戴假發出現在法庭上的法官的形象。
Other bigwigs have come under fire from owning fancy homes in Hong Kong, London and New York.
Ministers who dispense development aid have praised him, as have Bill Gates and other bigwig philanthropists. (The Economist, March 27th, 2021,??)
The real sign that Africans have broken through the glass ceiling in international organisations will be when run-of-the-mill leadership by an African generates no more comment than the tepid tenure of a bigwig from Asia, Europe or the Americas. (The Economist, December 11th, 2021)
A majority is now against it, including bigwigs such as Koizumi Junichiro （小泉純一郎）, a former prime minister from the LDP. (The Economist, Mar 6th-12th, 2021)
hobnob: verb: mix socially, especially with those of higher social status 作動詞用，混跡於社會地位較高的人群
Peacelanders should spend more time working with communities, understanding their grievances and earning their trust, rather than hobnobbing with government officials and UN bigwigs. (The Economist, April 17th, 2021)
“ a select few who hobnob with the biggest celebrities the country has to offer” (The Economist, April 17th, 2021)
hubbub: a chaotic din caused by a crowd of people, chao 混亂嘈雜
Rushdie’s narration is always poly phonic, but here the hubbub is muted. (The Atlantic, January 2023)
humdrum: lacking excitement or variety; dull; monotonous. 單調乏味
While splashing out on big projects, the government has cut spending on humdrum infrastructure. (The Economist, July 1st, 2023)
Add more humdrum annoyances such as launch delays, which are common, and space tourism may remain a hobby for a few super-rich daredevils with lots of time to spare. (The Economist, July 17th, 2021)
New sensors, from humdrum dashboard camera to satellites that can see across the electromagnetic spectrum, are examining the planet and its people as never before. (The Economist August 7th-15th 2021)
Yet what is the humdrum for investors can still be good for the economy. (The Economist December 11th 2021)
hotch-potch: a confused mixture, hodgepodge 大亂燉，大雜燴
Indeed, even the most powerful technologies take time to diffuse, because companies tend to use a hotch-potch of software and services, some of which may be years or even decades old. (The Economist, July 1st, 2023)
hurly-burly: noisy disorder and confusion; commotion; uproar; tumult 混亂無序，常指聲音
In the hurly-burly of a city, those rules weakened. (The Economist, July 1st, 2023)
riffraff: people, or a group of people, regarded as disreputable or worthless: a pack of riffraff. the lowest classes; rabble: the riffraff of the city. trash; rubbish. 渣滓，人渣，低級無用之人
Forming a stampede, the Reddit crowd sent GameStop and other widely shorted stocks to unimaginable heights. They called themselves “degenerates”, casting themselves as the riffraff of the market. (The Atlantic, March 2023)
最後集中幾個意思接近，大家在討論時提到過的，可以簡潔表達的四個詞作為結束，我們一起memorize:
dilly dally: 磨蹭，東摸摸西摸摸，慢吞吞
shilly shally: 猶豫不決，五心不定 Shall I or Shall I not
willy nilly: 不管願意與否 willing or unwilling
wishy washy：也是猶豫不決，做事不果斷沒有成效的意思
