Jan
4
Absquatulate
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Absquatulate (American, 19th c., to depart in a hurry) has it all: action, old-timey adventure, an inflated sense of its own importance, and the funniest sound in English smack dab in the middle of it. A note on Dictionary.com points out that pseudo-Latinate words like absquatulate, formed from an English verb with Latin affixes, “have an old-fashioned and rustic flavor curiously at odds with their elegance,” which perfectly describes absquatulate’s allure. It immediately brings to mind an itinerant ne’er-do-well extending his pinky while sipping birchbark tea from a tin can over a fire on the outskirts of a town he had to flee because he was caught cheating at dice, but who now, dignity regained, can infuse his narrative with romantic and high-falutin’ words like absquatulate to impress the next batch of yokels he meets. Picture him describing his “subsequent absquatulation” and you get the idea.
Bill Braine
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Jan
4
Uncertainty
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Uncertainty is a word that is very powerful to me. I think Uncertainty defines the world that surrounds me. Wherever I go, things may happen with a chance of realization between 0 and 1. I am constantly amazed by the concept of Uncertainty, or how much of what should happen is uncertain. Uncertainty defines the human condition. Most of us seek to reach certainty in our lives. Certainty that I will see my friends tomorrow. Certainty to pass an exam. But the only thing we’re doing is reducing the uncertainty. You cannot be certain. Finally, i love Uncertainty because it makes life a philosophical journey. Most of what we do seem certain. But the most exciting adventures in life come from what is uncertain.
Quentin de Bottini
London
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Jan
4
Incumbent
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Incumbent a. lying; resting upon as a duty; n. holder of benefice; vicar. incumbency, n.
Why? Because you can tell people that it is ‘incumbent upon you do do X and Y’, making you sound clever AND getting people to do things.
Nigel
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Jan
4
Plummet
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It’s such a great sound for the action it describes, it deserves to be listed among the best words.
Alex Clark
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Jan
4
Nebulous
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Because if you are arguing with someone and can’t think of a really snappy intelligent comeback you can put on a superior air and just inform them that their argument/comments/rationale, etc….are nebulous.
Chances are they will not know if you have used the word correctly or not because it can cover so many situations perfectly… And it sounds like such a put-down! Very few can quickly formulate a sufficiently scathing reply.
Jill E. Scarberry
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Jan
4
Recalcitrant
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For the times when you mean “stubborn” but want to imply something rather subtler. The sound of the word, from the undemanding stress on ‘cal’ to the sombre finality of the last ‘t’ gives the expression of someone who quietly, understatedly, is not going to budge. Stubborn? Not me! I’m being recalcitrant.
Liz
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Jan
4
Articulate
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Either the adjective or the verb; because you can articulate it really strongly in order to emphasize its meaning. Words are awesome (which is another good word because its meaning is like “aweful” but not “awful”) when they make sense that way.
ESQG
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Jan
4
Ethos
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It’s just a great, time-saving word with which lots of people are unfamiliar. I like to use it in relation to myself. (”That just goes along with my ethos.”) Saves me the time and trouble of having to offer any more of an explanation. And most of the time, if people don’t know what it means, they won’t ask, for fear of embarrassment.
Lisa A. Palumbo
New Orleans, LA
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Jan
4
Woot
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It’s a great little expression of joy, covering anything from “Hey, no homework tonight” to “Hey, World Peace has been declared.” Also, it has myriad variations and compounding possibilities (”wootastic”, “wootworthy”, “wootable”). Typeable, speakable, and malleable, woot is my favorite unofficial word in the English language.
Will Styler
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Jan
4
Wasps
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My favorite word is wasps. No other word in the English language provides such a satisfying conclusion while saying it. The effort it takes to provide the marvelous “ssspspsss” sound at the end is a marvel in itself.
Brooke Cale
Denver, CO
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