'desquiciante' - use it or not?

Question

From the RAE, **La palabra desquiciante no está en el Diccionario. **

But, the word exists in other dictionaries, like the Oxford Spanish Dictionary and the Collins Spanish Dictionary. It's not in the dictionary on this site either.

It doesn't seem to be too common, but my tutor uses the word. He is a college level professor, a native speaker from South America, so in my mind that gives the word some validity.

Should I use 'desquiciante' or not? How do you decide what is 'right' or 'wrong' with words like this?

Thanks,

Jack O'Brien

Hey JOB, if you drag and highlight the word in question, you get some idea: "maddening" as noted by Laz and if you happen to include the single quotes, you get "unsettling"... so both seem to work... :) - cristalino, May 26, 2011

Thanks cristal, I wasn't looking for a definition :~) - Jack-OBrien, May 26, 2011

This dictionary has quite few errors on occasion. I use this site for self studying. Here a more accurate diccionary. http://www.diccionarios.com/ - Tasear, May 26, 2011

Answer 1

Not only has this post tuaght me a new "adjective" but also a new verb and noun

Desquiciar - To take off its hinges, to unhinge, to drive mad, to upset.

Desquiciarse - To go mad.

Desquicio (sm, Cam, Cono Sur) - confusion, disorder.

You can also say that something "te saca del quicio." - gintar77, May 26, 2011

Answer 2

The DRAE does not have all the possible verbal adjectives (or active participles) that you can use by adding -nte to a verb.

Thank you. These are the types of things that confuse me. There have been arguments in the past about the legitimacy of a word based on whether or not it appeared in the DRAE. I guess I was treating it too much like a bible :~)

The dictionary does not have many words that are formed with prefixes and suffixes, like des-, -nte or -mente, and it does not have terms that have only been used for a short period of time (e.g. a decade) - lazarus1907, May 26, 2011

Answer 3

The DRAE does not have all the possible verbal adjectives (or active participles) that you can use by adding -nte to a verb. For example, electrificante does not appear either, but that doesn't mean that the word does not exist. "Desquiciante" (maddening) is a perfectly legitimate word, and yes, it can be found in other dictionaries. My dictionary from Manuel Seco (from the RAE), for example, has "desquiciante" in it, so don't worry.

Another example: "tronante" is quoted in the latest grammar from the Academies (the RAE and the other 21) with examples, but it is not in the dictionary either.

Answer 4

The SD dictionary doesn't have desquiciante. But if you double-click the word, it displays "maddening" for a translation. The dictionary used here for double-click popup is obviously different than the main dictionary feature here.

Answer 5

Hi Jack,

I wonder why you don't tell us what it means.

Maddening. - lazarus1907, May 26, 2011

Thank you, L - Sabor, May 26, 2011

I'm sorry, I wasn't even thinking about the meaning, I got 'caught up' in the maddening search of right and wrong :~) - Jack-OBrien, May 26, 2011

Answer 6

Do you use "nerve wrecking"?

Then you **might* use "desquiciante" if you wish, for example.

"Nerve wracking"? - Sabor, May 26, 2011