Every poet (probably every writer) is, on some level, a word nerd, a grammar geek. True to form, I have been learning about unpaired words. These are words whose root form has fallen out of use and only survive in our language as words paired with a suffix or prefix. For instance, we might say something or someone is impeccable. But we never say anyone or anything is peccable (though, were someone attacked by a horde of chickens, we might say that person is peckable 😆).
For fun (and to take word-nerding to the next level), I am working on a poem that uses unpaired words. Were I to finish it, I’m not sure it would make it into any of my books, or if I’ll even finish it for that matter. (It might only be publishable by death).
At any rate, below is a draft stanza from my unfinished poem “Unpaired” just to give you an idea of what a poem of unpaired words would be like. After all, confession is good for the soul 😆. And for the closet word nerds out there, here is a nice starter list of unpaired words: https://www.bitsandpieces.us/2014/03/08/a-list-of-unpaired-words/
Though generally gruntled,
he was nevertheless chalant because
he wished his life was more sipid.
He was pervious to the vague sense
something (or someone) was missing,
a prefix or suffix to his noun,
icing to his cake.
A Wandering Minstrel 