Which Words Do You Find Peculiar or Funny?

[bravejordy]

One word that always makes me laugh is "discombobulated".

Another, although the reason will be obvious, is "Hippopotomonstrosesquipedaliophobia" - the fear of long words!

[DTCwordfan]

it as, typo there.....

[emmie]

cartographer, that's another, i like campanology, or campanologist, funny in a way.

[MarkRae]

As explained earlier, 'underwhelmed' came into being in the mid-50s because of a misunderstanding over the etymology of 'overwhelmed'. I.e., it was assumed that if you can be overwhelmed, then you can also be underwhelmed. Of course, if you think about it, underwhelmed is nothing like an antonym for overwhelmed.

If you work extra hours than are specified in your contract of employment, you could be said to have worked overtime. However, if you bunk off early, you wouldn't say that you'd done "undertime". Not every word prefixed with 'over' has a related 'under' equivalent...

[DTCwordfan]

I will also nominate "Perfidious" - not for "perfidious Albion" but the Gorbachev quote: "It is better to discuss things, to argue and engage in polemics than make perfidious plans of mutual destruction."

Milton also turned a fine line with: "It was that fatal and perfidious bark, Built in th' eclipse, and rigged with curses dark.

[mrs_overall]

I'm very fond of "globular". It has a nice sound to it

[sandyRoe]

Crapulent brings a smile

[MarkRae]

Fulsome is a word which is, almost without exception, used completely wrongly.

[emmie]

salubrious, also a word that is misunderstood or used in the wrong context.

[MarkRae]

Indeed, and let's not get started with 'hopefully'... ;-)

[MarkRae]

Or 'arguably'!

[ladybirder]

Don't you just love our wonderful language.

[heathfield]

I like 'pled', as used in Scottish courts, whereas in England the word 'pleaded' would be used.

[bravejordy]

Similarly, I prefer the word "snuck" to "sneaked". Even though "snuck" is an Americanism, I find that more and more people are now using it here in the UK. I think it sounds better to say "I snuck into the house" than "I sneaked into the house."

[starone]

Does it definitely have to be a word because my mother always used to shout at us while she was walloping us "Now then, now then, now then" and thinking back on it I really wonder what she meant.

[eyesh]

It is unfair that 'Lisp' has an S in it...