The Sesquipedalian

"'Well,' said Pooh, 'what I like best...' and then he had to stop and think. Because although eating honey was a very good thing to do, there was a moment just before you began to eat it which was better than when you were, but he didn't know what it was called."
--Winnie-the-Pooh

I'm a pretty big fan of words. I always had fun with vocabulary tests and spelling bees. In fact, I'm still bitter about misspelling the word "porpoise" in the fourth grade. I looked forward to getting new vocabulary books throughout high school.

But when I got to college, the vocabulary quizzes came to a halt. So I did what I always do in times of boredom and stress: I started a list.

The internet is a fantastic thing, isn't it? I just started googling fun words with crazy definitions and before I knew it I had filled a couple of pages in my notebook o' lists.

And now, a vocabulary lesson.

Sesquipedalian: Given to using long words

Phantasmagoria: A shifting series of phantasms, illusions, or deceptive appearances, as in a dream or as created by the imagination.

Discombobulate: To confuse or disconcert; upset; frustrate

Flibbertigibbet: A chattering or flighty, light-headed person

Twitterpated: Confused by affection or infatuation

Tintinnabulation: The ringing or sound of bells

Defenestrate: Throw through or out of the window

Brouhaha: Excited public interest, discussion, or the like

Syzygy: An alignment of three celestial objects, as the sun, the earth, and either the moon or a planet


Save an endangered word and use one of these in a sentence today! Let's bring them into casual colloquy!