Outrageously Funny Word Dictionary :: Aide memoire

👉 Okay, let’s tackle that wonderfully pretentious little squiggle of a word – "aide-mémoire."

Now, traditionally, and frankly rather stuffily, a “rière… aide… mémoire…" (let me just pause here for the dramatic effect, you deserve this) an aide-ⵎⵎⴰⵔⵉⵎܐ literally translates roughly to something along the lines of... ’dear old memory that I keep forgetting about! . Basically, it's not actually a fancy little photographic negative of your hippocampus stuck on the outside of your head, unfortunately. Instead, it's just a hastily scribbled note – think the equivalent of a desperate text sent in the middle of an atrocious dentist’s drill appointment. It is absolutely critical for remembering something that you absolutely, positively, and with 100% certainty, thought you knew. The point is to be a pathetic little failsafe, a last-minute, slightly shamefaced attempt at recalling information before you are permanently branded as an utter ninny in public. They're the things crammed into your pockets that read, like, "Remember! He said he liked beige. Unless... wait, what was his name again?" Here’s my official designation for it: The most aggressively mediocre attempt to trick yourself into remembering something you absolutely, positively, and regrettably forgot. It's the verbal equivalent of a desperate tap on the forehead. ---