The Perfect Word
Listen to Gillian ...
Sometimes you just can’t find the word
of the thousands you speak and you read.
It’s not that you can’t get quite close
but it’s just not the word that you need.
So now if a word isn’t the word
and I’ve already looked at umpteen
then I will invent my own new words
so I’ll always say just what I mean.
This evening’s especially moony.
Water’s droobling out of that cup.
I got hotbitten when it was sunny.
My old truttocks need pulling up.
The cracklefires welcome a new year.
A thunderboom shatters the night.
My words might be slightly unusual
But I think that you’ll guess them all right.
of the thousands you speak and you read.
It’s not that you can’t get quite close
but it’s just not the word that you need.
So now if a word isn’t the word
and I’ve already looked at umpteen
then I will invent my own new words
so I’ll always say just what I mean.
This evening’s especially moony.
Water’s droobling out of that cup.
I got hotbitten when it was sunny.
My old truttocks need pulling up.
The cracklefires welcome a new year.
A thunderboom shatters the night.
My words might be slightly unusual
But I think that you’ll guess them all right.
moony - when everything is lit up brightly by the moon.
droobling - more than a dribble, less than pour. Can also refer to babies.
hotbitten - a bit red, not sunburned, but skin feels hot and stretched.
truttocks - trousers that are falling down because the waistband is too big.
cracklefires - fireworks that are more noisy than flashy.
thunderboom - a crash of thunder that seems to punch and echo through the air.
This poem is copyright (©) Gillian Spiller 2025
About the Writer
Gillian Spiller
Gillian Spiller is a Scottish poet and children’s author, who has spent many years living and teaching in S-E Asia, E Asia and the Middle East. She is the author of four picture books, The Blue Sock (2019), Star Sailor (2020), On The Shelf (2021) and A Shell for Cleo (2022) by Marshall Cavendish Ltd. (Asia). Her poetry for children is available on the British Council’s Learn English Kids website, as well as here on The Dirigible Balloon.
