Words

[choccoweeble]

I love words. Some of you may have noticed this from the fact that I use a lot of them, a lot of the time. I particularly like big and complicated words, words that sound nice, old-fashioned words and words with interesting meanings.

I have a lot of words I really like for various different reasons, but my favourite word has to be "undermine". I like it because it is very, very literal and conjures a lovely mental image.

un⋅der⋅mine
   /ˌʌndərˈmaɪn or, especially for 1, 2, 4, ˈʌndərˌmaɪn/[uhn-der-mahyn or, especially for 1, 2, 4, uhn-der-mahyn]
–verb (used with object), -mined, -min⋅ing.
1. to injure or destroy by insidious activity or imperceptible stages, sometimes tending toward a sudden dramatic effect.
2. to attack by indirect, secret, or underhand means; attempt to subvert by stealth.
3. to make an excavation under; dig or tunnel beneath, as a military stronghold.
4. to weaken or cause to collapse by removing underlying support, as by digging away or eroding the foundation.
Extract from Dictionary.com

I now invite you to do two things :
1/ Share with me your favourite word(s) and explain what about them appeals to you
2/ If you aren't already, sign up to receive "Word of the Day" email from Dictionary.com, and share with me the fun of words! They also have interesting podcasts on the etymology and derivation of words, for anyone who's as geeky as I am interested

Comments

[tusenord.livejournal.com]

I have to chose one word!? My nickname isn't "thousand words" for nothing...

hugs

[ephrael.livejournal.com]

Dunno if your library is part of this, but mine is.
Using my library card number, I can log in and peruse at my leisure. Oxford English Dictionary, all of it, from the comfort of your own sofa.

http://dictionary.oed.com/

[choccoweeble]

Thanks for the tip - will find out :D

[trevor-davies.livejournal.com]

My *favourite* word is "autodefenestrate" - the act of throwing one's self out of a window.
I have no idea why - I only discovered it on my honeymoon in Prague when I discovered that the entire City Council had killed themselves this way out of of one of the Castle's windows (I think) in protest about something being forced upon them.

Closely following by "Palimpsest" & "Deglove"

[choccoweeble]

Ah, good old autodefenestration, again a favourite for very much the same reasons :D

Thanks for palimpsest - I wasn't familiar with that one and it's a lovely word.

[sarahlascelles.livejournal.com]

Ever since I learned it at school, I've liked Onomatopoeia, because I think IS onomatopoeic

on⋅o⋅mat⋅o⋅poe⋅ia   /ˌɒnəˌmætəˈpiə, ‑ˌmɑtə‑/ Show Spelled Pronunciation [on-uh-mat-uh-pee-uh, ‑mah-tuh‑] Show IPA
–noun 1. the formation of a word, as cuckoo or boom, by imitation of a sound made by or associated with its referent.
2. a word so formed.
3. Rhetoric. the use of imitative and naturally suggestive words for rhetorical effect.

[choccoweeble]

Onomatopoeia is a great word - I also love similar words for rhetorical devices, such as oxymoron.

[sarahlascelles.livejournal.com]

oxymoron is indeed a wonderful word

[midnightoak.livejournal.com]

I always had a fondness for superfluous, because of the way it sounds.
Thanks to my MA and work, this has been quickly followed by Liminal and liminality, again on sound, but also because it addresses the area of the world I've always been fascinated by.

[choccoweeble]

Superfluous is one of those self fulfilling words that's description fits the word itself - in this sense longer and more elaborate than it strictly needed to be.

[lucian-albrecht.livejournal.com]

"Indolence"