pixilated · /ˈpɪksɪleɪtɪd/ · /PIK-sə-LAY-təd/. adjective. Whimsical, impish, mischievous. Intoxicated, deranged. In the 20th century, distorted by visible or enlarged pixels. From pixie + -lated (as in titillated, stimulated, elated). ¶ Popularized in the 1936 Frank Capra movie Mr. Deeds Goes to Town, in which a psychiatrist testifies, “Perhaps I can explain, Your Honor. The word pixilated is an early American expression, derived from the word ‘pixies,’ meaning elves. They would say, ‘The pixies had got him,’ as we nowadays would say a man is ‘balmy.’”

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