Tom Swifties

My desk

In the 1960’s, a series of books featuring a character named Tom Swift were quite popular. These books included a writing style that incorporated clever adverb puns. These are known as “Tom Swifties.”

Some examples are: "'I lost my crutches,' said Tom lamely"; and "'I'll take the prisoner downstairs', said Tom condescendingly."

Here are a few Tom Swifties that I’ve concocted during idle moments at my desk:

 “Can I have another cookie?” she asked sweetly.

“I love it when my hair looks wind-blown,” she said breezily.

“You remind me of a witch,” she said wickedly.

“Repeat after me,” she said mockingly.

“I don’t care about nature,” he said woodenly.

“I finished making all the beds,” he said tiredly.

“The smell of that garbage is making me gag,” she said reflexively.

“I hate lemonade,” he said sourly.

“I can’t find the farm animals,” he said sheepishly.