So, You Think You Know The Longest and Weirdest Words?

Longest and weirdest words

Next time you need a password no one else will check you could try one of these:

1) Pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis

It’s a ‘contrived’ word – for an unpleasant lung disease usually known as silicosis. (The Oxford Dictionaries define it as "an artificial long word said to mean a lung disease caused by inhaling very fine ash and sand dust" https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis

2) Hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia

The fear of long words…. Yes, really. (Also known as Sesquipedalophobia – which is hardly a short word.) Healthline

3) Pseudopseudohypoparathyroidism 

The longest uncontrived word (It’s an inherited thyroid disorder.) Wikipedia

Science and medicine have more than their fair share of weighty words.

4) Floccinaucinihilipilification 

The longest unchallenged nontechnical word that not all directories recognize, that including Merriam-Webster. According to alternative sources, floccinaucinihilipilification is the act or habit of describing or regarding something as unimportant, of having no value or being worthless. Oftentimes, it is used in a humorous way or on quiz shows.

5) If you can’t decide what to eat in a restaurant, you could always ask for Lopadotemachoselachogaleokranioleipsanodrimhypotrimmatosilphiokarabomelitokatakechymenokichlepikossyphophattoperisteralektryonoptekephalliokigklopeleiolagoiosiraiobaphetraganopterygon

(English translation of  λοπαδο¬τεμαχο¬σελαχο¬γαλεο¬κρανιο¬λειψανο¬δριμ¬υπο¬τριμματο¬σιλφιο-καραβο¬μελιτο¬κατακεχυ¬μενο¬κιχλ¬επι¬κοσσυφο¬φαττο¬περιστερ¬αλεκτρυον¬οπτο¬κεφαλλιο¬κιγκλο-πελειο¬λαγῳο¬σιραιο¬βαφη¬τραγανο¬πτερύγων)

It's a fictional recipe used by Aristophanes, comprising 16 ingredients including several fish (including rotting shark’s head, meat from various birds and wine. Wikipedia

And finally, if you have 3 hours or so to spare – check out the pronunciation of the chemical name of titin, the largest know protein…it’s 189819 characters.

Next time you go to the pub quiz/online quiz or word game think of the words below.

A word with three lots of double letters

Bookkeeper – has three sets of double letters – O, then K, then E. Also bookkeeping

Unusual words  - try to sneak these into conversation.

Expergefactor – is anything that wakes you up. An alarm clock, a cockerel crowing, the neighbours returning from a night out at 4am…

Zwodder – a drowsy and stupid state of body and mind. If you come back from that late night/early morning after a night of ale-passion (used in the old way to mean suffering not the modern way of lustful) you may suffer zerostomia (dry mouth) and possibly even obdormition (having fallen asleep on your arm). You may feel lucifugous too (‘fleeing the light’), after all the jactating you did in bed. No – it doesn’t mean something rude….

Sesquipedalianism – the tendency to use long words…. I have this.

Words without vowels:

By

Crypt

Fly

Flyby

Glycyl

Gypsy

Hymns

Hmm

Lynx

Myrrh

Myth

My

Nymphs

Nymphly (another usage of nymph-like)

Psst (contained in OED)

Pygmy

Rhythms

Shh

Shy

Shyly

Scry

Shy

Sky

Sync

Try

Trysts

Wry/Wryly

Xyst (a long and open portico in a gymnasium (Greek)

Without y as a substitute vowel-

(These are of Welsh Origin – so don’t count as strictly English words). Welsh uses ‘w’ as a vowel sound

Crwth (a celtic stringed instrument)

https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/crwth

Cwtch (a shed, cuddle or hiding place)

And for a word with ONLY vowels, you could try Euouae – a musical term from medieval times.

Uncopyrightable is an isogram. That is a word that has no repeated letters. Another is Subdermatoglyphic 

If you would like some more weird words check out this link https://www.grammarly.com/blog/14-of-the-longest-words-in-english/

https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/cootch

https://wordfinder.yourdictionary.com/blog/21-english-words-without-vowels/

https://www.thefreedictionary.com/words-without-vowels.htm

https://blog.collinsdictionary.com/language-lovers/the-longest-word-in-the-collins-english-dictionary/

Post by

A.L Butcher

https://libraryoferana.wordpress.com/