25 Funny Words Unbelievably Found In The Dictionary

Posted by , Updated on March 7, 2024

They say that to be reasonably fluent in a language you only need to know about 2,000 words. In fact, those 2000 words will account for about 80% of everything you could ever hope to say. About 5,000 words constitute the active vocabulary of native speakers without a higher education and those with a higher education have an active vocabulary of maybe 10,000. In order to fully understand famous novels you’ll probably need a passive vocabulary (be able to recognize) around 20,000 words. The crazy part? English has about a quarter million words! That’s 250,000! To give you an idea of how much that is, those educated native speakers (the ones with an active vocabulary of 10,000 words) have a passive vocabulary of maybe 60,000 to 80,000 words. This means that even the smartest people among us would only recognize maybe one-third of all the words in the English language. That means that there are probably several hundred thousand English words that you have never heard of in your entire life. So, whether you are super smart or not these are 25 Funny Words Unbelievably Found In The Dictionary!

25

Widdershins

WiddershinsSource: wiktionary, Image: wikipedia

This word basically means to move in a counter-clockwise direction.

24

Pandiculation

PandiculationSource: wiktionary, Image: wikipedia

You know how you wake up in the morning, stretch, and your muscles temporarily stiffen? Well this is the technical term for that ordeal.

23

Wabbit

WabbitSource: wiktionary, Image: wikipedia

Coming from Scottish, to be wabbit is to be tired.

22

Quire

QuireSource: wiktionary, Image: wikipedia

One quire is 25 sheets of paper (formerly 24).

21

Brouhaha

BrouhahaSource: wiktionary, Image: wikipedia

A brouhaha is a noisy or overexcited reaction or response to something.

20

Donnybrook

DonnybrookSource: wiktionary, Image: wikipedia

A donnybrook refers to an uprising or a riot. It originates from the name of a suburb of Dublin, Ireland that was known for its annual fair.

19

Ratoon

RatoonSource: wiktionary, Image: wikipedia

Nope, it doesn’t have anything to do with rodents. It’s actually a small shoot that grows off of the roots of a plant.

18

Bibble

BibbleSource: wiktionary, Image: wikipedia

To bibble is to eat or drink noisily.

17

Bumbershoot

BumbershootSource: wiktionary, Image: wikipedia

It’s a synonym for umbrella.

16

Gubbins

GubbinsSource: wiktionary, Image: wikipedia

Gubbins is basically anything that has little or no value, in other words, it’s rubbish.

15

Snickersnee

SnickersneeSource: wiktionary, Image: wikipedia

It might sound cute but this is actually a large knife.

It looks like you like learning about exotic, weird, or otherwise rare words. Then you should check out these 25 English Words That Hilariously Mean Something Else In Other Languages.

14

Cattywampus

CattywampusSource: wiktionary, Image: wikipedia

Often used in the Midwest and Southern United States, if something is cattywampus then it is not lined up correctly i.e. it is diagonal. You may recognize similar terms like catty-corner.

13

Bumfuzzled

BumfuzzledSource: wiktionary, Image: wikipedia

It means to be confused or perplexed and used to be very popular below the Maxon Dixon line in the United States.

12

Taradiddle

TaradiddleSource: wiktionary, Image: wikipedia

A taradiddle is essentially a lie or a tall tale.

11

Flibbertigibbet

FlibbertigibbetSource: wiktionary, Image: wikipedia

This word refers to someone who is silly and talks a lot. They might be prone to tell taradiddles.

10

Sialoquent

SialoquentSource: wiktionary, Image: wikipedia

An adjective describing someone who sprays saliva while speaking.

9

Nincompoop

NincompoopSource: wiktionary, Image: wikipedia

Someone who is silly or foolish.

8

Snollygoster

SnollygosterSource: wiktionary, Image: wikipedia

A snollygoster is someone (usually referring to politicians) that is only guided by personal gain and not consistent principles.

7

Erinaceous

ErinaceousSource: wiktionary, Image: wikipedia

Here is another strange adjective. It describes someone who looks like a hedgehog.

6

Yarborough

YarboroughSource: wiktionary, Image: wikipedia

A yarborough is a hand of cards that doesn’t contain anything above a 9.

5

Comeuppance

ComeuppanceSource: wiktionary, Image: wikipedia

This is a fate or punishment that someone deserves.

4

Borborygm

BorborygmSource: wiktionary, Image: wikipedia

A borborygm is when your stomach rumbles because you are hungry.

3

Nudiustertian

NudiustertianSource: wiktionary, Image: wikipedia

This adjective describes the day before yesterday, as in the nudiustertian episode of a TV show.

2

Collywobbles

CollywobblesSource: wiktionary, Image: wikipedia

Another word used to describe something related to your stomach, this time it refers to nausea or queasiness.

1

Absquatulate

Funny WordsSource: wiktionary, Image: wikipedia

If you leave suddenly, then this is what you are doing.



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