31 Weird Words That Are Actually In The Dictionary (2023)

resolution

English is a language of suffixes and prefixes. Take a root word, stack the building blocks, and you get longer, more complex words. "Disfoundation" is a 24-letter example of the strange English words you're coming up with as you go along. Refers to efforts to separate church and state, particularly in 18th-century Britain.

zach

Long words aren't the only weird words in the dictionary. Short words can also be quite rare. Especially if you play games likeScratchjwords with friends, "zax" should be a favorite. It's the only three-letter word that has a Z and an X, giving you lots of points. It is an ax-like tool that you would use to cut and skin roofing slate.

for Lautmaler

Be honest with yourself. "Onomatopoeia" is just a fun word that makes sense as it refers to words that resemble or mimic the sounds they describe. If you've ever talked about how a dog "barks" or how an explosion "goes off," you've used onomatopoeia. It's a perennial favorite among comics and children's books.

Onomatopeia Bomb Sound Boom

Cianthropy

"Cyantropy" is the kind of word you have to read at least twice to pronounce correctly. No, this is not "cyan" and has nothing to do with the color blue. And no, this isn't "Tropy" after all. "Kynanthropy" is the illusion where someone believes they have turned into a dog. If it sounds vaguely familiar to you, it's because it resembles lycanthropy. That's where werewolves come from.

embarrassed

Weird words surprised you? You might even say you're "surprised". It means that you are confused and possibly even upset or embarrassed about the issue. When Janine walked into her first theoretical physics class, she found that she was completely dumbfounded by the subject.

consequences

You are forgiven if you pronounce "follow" wrong. Does not rhyme with "peg" or "ragu". Realistically, you may have heard it (or even said it) without knowing how to spell it correctly. "Segue", pronounced "mon-way", is the seamless transition from one piece of music, movie scene or topic of conversation to another.

Quire

While it seems that "quire" must have something in common with the words "inquire" or even "esquire", this is probably not the case. Originally, a "four" consisted of four sheets of parchment folded into eight sheets. This was usually done in connection with medieval manuscripts. Today a notebook has 24 or 25 sheets of paper, which is one-twentieth of a standard pack of paper.

addictive

Does this have anything to do with lewd advertising? You are welcome! Or at least not necessarily. Adscitical is an adjective that means something is additional, extra or insubstantial. Learning as many weird English words as possible is certainly not demanding! It's an essential ingredient for strengthening your communication skills!

gallop

Is it a thick muffin? A smeared muffin? A "ragamuffin" is really none of those things, although the "irregular" connection is true. If a person wears particularly dirty and torn clothes, he can be said to be homeless. You'll use this term primarily to describe children, but it can also describe adults this way.

Rascal Girl with Frog

QWERTZ

Sometimes strange English words come from other languages. In other cases, they arise from changes in our daily lives. Look at your computer keyboard and you'll recognize "qwerty" right away. Describes the standard English keyboard layout and defines the first six keys in the upper left corner. Qwerty is also one of the bestQ-words without U.

Cabotage

What do the Beastie Boys have against leafy greens? Turns out "cabotage" doesn't refer to sabotage by Cabbage or Cabbage Patch Dolls. It's much more mundane than that. "Cabotage" refers to the movement of people and goods within the same country by an operator from another territory. These include sea, air and land transport.

Bandersnatch

Perhaps this term is familiar to you because of someblack mirrorConsequence. While many other strange words in the dictionary make a connection to the real world, this one comes from the world of fiction. A "Bandersnatch" is a fictional creature from the 1871 novel.examined more closelyby Lewis Caroll. To rememberAlice in Wonderland?

bezoar

Here is a strange word whose definition is even less pleasant than it sounds. Did you know that your cat sometimes gets hairballs? A "bezoar" is somewhat similar, except for hairs, plant fibers or seeds that accumulate in the stomach or intestines of animals. This forms a mass of hard, indigestible material, particularly in grazing herbivores such as cattle, goats and deer.

Cair

Here we go again and borrow words from other languages ​​to make them look like strange English words. Originally from the old French worderas, "etui" is a small decorative case for storing small items such as needles. It's quite a pretty word and you can sound more sophisticated when you say it... if you pronounce it correctly, of course.

Idiophone

As much as you'd like to think this is a phone for an idiot, it's not. An "idiophone" is any musical instrument in which sound is produced by its own vibration. This is without strings or membranes, so guitars and drums don't count. Common examples of idiophones are maracas, bells, and xylophones.

Idiophone boy playing cymbals

troquilo

Depending on who you ask, "Trochilus" can mean one of two things. If you are more interested in ancient stories and study the classics, then Trochilus was the son of Callithyia in Greek mythology. If you prefer bird watching, Trochilus is a genus of hummingbirds. You'll find these flowing beauties mostly in Jamaica.

Dome

A distant relative of filmmaker Francis Ford or Sofia? You are welcome. A "dome" is also not an extra large cup of anything ("a big juice dome"). Rather, it is a relatively small structure on top of a building. Typically, a "dome" is a small dome situated on top of an even larger dome. It is intended to let in light and air or provide a point of view.

Novato

E,Jargon der Gaming-Kulturalso infiltrated the official dictionary. Short for "newbie", a "newbie" is a person who is new to something and therefore doesn't know much about it. It's especially relevant to games and online culture like calling someone a "newbie" when they're playing for the first time and don't know the controls.

cruelty

Because English borrows words from so many languages, some strange words just don't seem to belong in English. "Crwth" is a good example ofenglish word without vowels. That's because he's technically Welsh. The "W" there is literally a "double U" to make a long U sound. A "Crwth" is an ancient Celtic instrument.

Flibbertigibbet

Strange and amusing words belong in the dictionary as much as their mundane counterparts. With "flibbertigibbet" you are talking about a person who is particularly talkative. They love gossip and are full of imagination. They can also be silly or thoughtless.

roomy

While you might think this has something to do with sending mashed potatoes back to the kitchen, that's not the case. Rather, a "badmash" is a rogue or brawler. You will most often use this term in India to refer to a bad person in general or a criminal in particular.

Roomy

You don't find this very often.Words with three or more vowelsin such a series, but they appear from time to time. Take "half" as a good example. As a formal noun, "half" describes a part or part, particularly in relation to being one of two equal parts. This is particularly relevant in anthropology and chemistry.

Oxifenbutazona

Big weird words mean big points in your favorite word games. "Oxyphenbutazone" is the oneWord with the highest score in Words With Friends. Save that, and without bonuses, you get a cool 44 points. Not bad for an anti-inflammatory! Scientifically speaking, and you'll need your fancy white coats for this, it's a "phenylbutazone metabolite."

Oxyphenbutazone vial tablets

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Wobbegong

A "Bandersnatch" is a fictional creature created by a famous author. A wobbegong is a very real creature that has been studied by scientists. It is a type of carpet shark that lives on the bottom and is characterized by flaps of skin around its mouth. There are eight types in total. It might not be the great white shark, but a tasseled wobbegong is way more fun to say.

health care

An orator or veterinarian is not a valetudinarian, but a weak or infirm person. can also be someonethinkThey are weak and sick all the time, as is the case with hypochondria. This is the state in which a person constantly and morbidly worries about having an illness and constantly thinks about his (poor) health.

Just

Weird words have a habit of tricking you into thinking they mean something else entirely. A "kermis" has nothing to do with Kermit the Frog's epidermis. Rather, it's a generic term, at least in the US, to mean a fair or carnival, especially when it comes to raising money for charity. In the Netherlands, a "Kermis" is just a summer festival.

Coracle

Don't expect to ask questions of a coral-colored oracle. Instead, a "coracle" is just a small, round type of boat traditional in places like Wales, Ireland and Scotland. They build a wicker or wood frame and then spread a waterproof material over it. You can also use the term to describe similar ships in countries like India, Iraq and Vietnam.

Speaker

Speaking of talking a lot, "chatty" is another word to add to your growing vocabulary. It is an adjective used to describe someone who talks a lot. Regina is particularly quiet and shy, but her brother Thomas is one of the most talkative guys we've ever met!

Cattywampus

A word that may or may not be related to cats, "cattywampus" is an adjective that means something is crooked, messy, or misaligned. Also spelled Katawampus. This term, people think, also derives from related terms like "kitten corner" or "saucy corner", which refer to places diagonally across from each other.

Fachf

If you look up strange words in the dictionary, you will sometimes find alternate spellings. Borrow a word from another language with a different alphabet or writing system and there will always be differences in how those sounds are interpreted. "Trayf" can also be written as treif, treyf or tref. Describes foods that are not kosher.

Widdershins

Last but not least, in this list of weird dictionary words, we have "Widdershins". It sounds like a made-up word, but it's definitely real. As an adverb, the term derived from Scotland means that something moves counterclockwise. Moving along the shin is considered bad luck.

Weird words can help you win

One of the great joys of exploring a language is learning all about the odd words in the dictionary. Some of them make sense, many don't, but they're all fun and fascinating. While you might not be able to defuse your favorite wordplay anytime soon, you can brush up ontop rated crosswordsto play big points. Let the chips fly!

Michael's roomis a professional writer and editor with over 14 years of experience. Fueled by caffeine and WiFi, he's no stranger to puns and dad jokes.