[Amazing] 25 Funny Words You Won’t Believe Are Actually In The Dictionary
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 that you won’t believe are actually in the dictionary!
Widdershins
Source: wiktionary, Image: wikipedia
This word basically means to move in a counter-clockwise direction.
Pandiculation
Source: 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.
Wabbit
Source: wiktionary, Image: wikipedia
Coming from Scottish, to be wabbit is to be tired.
Quire
Source: wiktionary, Image: wikipedia
One quire is 25 sheets of paper (formerly 24).
Brouhaha
Source: wiktionary, Image: wikipedia
A brouhaha is a noisy or overexcited reaction or response to something.
Donnybrook
Source: 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.
Ratoon
Source: 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.
Bibble
Source: wiktionary, Image: wikipedia
To bibble is to eat or drink noisily.
Bumbershoot
Source: wiktionary, Image: wikipedia
It’s a synonym for umbrella.
Gubbins
Source: wiktionary, Image: wikipedia
Gubbins is basically anything that has little or no value, in other words, it’s rubbish.
Snickersnee
Source: 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.
Cattywampus
Source: 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.
Bumfuzzled
Source: 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.
Taradiddle
Source: wiktionary, Image: wikipedia
A taradiddle is essentially a lie or a tall tale.
Flibbertigibbet
Source: wiktionary, Image: wikipedia
This word refers to someone who is silly and talks a lot. They might be prone to tell taradiddles.
Sialoquent
Source: wiktionary, Image: wikipedia
An adjective describing someone who sprays saliva while speaking.
Nincompoop
Source: wiktionary, Image: wikipedia
Someone who is silly or foolish.
Snollygoster
Source: wiktionary, Image: wikipedia
A snollygoster is someone (usually referring to politicians) that is only guided by personal gain and not consistent principles.
Erinaceous
Source: wiktionary, Image: wikipedia
Here is another strange adjective. It describes someone who looks like a hedgehog.
Yarborough
Source: wiktionary, Image: wikipedia
A yarborough is a hand of cards that doesn’t contain anything above a 9.
Comeuppance
Source: wiktionary, Image: wikipedia
This is a fate or punishment that someone deserves.
Borborygm
Source: wiktionary, Image: wikipedia
A borborygm is when your stomach rumbles because you are hungry.
Nudiustertian
Source: wiktionary, Image: wikipedia
This adjective describes the day before yesterday, as in the nudiustertian episode of a TV show.
Collywobbles
Source: wiktionary, Image: wikipedia
Another word used to describe something related to your stomach, this time it refers to nausea or queasiness.
Absquatulate
Source: wiktionary, Image: wikipedia
If you leave suddenly, then this is what you are doing.
