20 Weird and Wonderful Words

As a writer, I have a fondness for weird and whacky words. There's just something interesting about a funny-sounding wonderful word. 

Photo by Art Lasovsky on Unsplash

Of course, narrative cannot be built off of weird words. It's usually advisable to go simpler. But every once in awhile it's fun to throw in a whacky word to give it a pop of color.

Here are twenty weird and wonderful words: 

(The list is not in alphabetical order.)

1. Effervescent: a liquid/substance that is fizzy or gives off bubbles. (Ex: He never will have suspected that effervescent liquid is an acidic poison.)

2.  Compendium: collection of detailed information on something. (Ex: She offered him a large compendium packed to the brim with scribbled notes...) 

3. Constabulary: a term for all the constables in an area. :D (Ex: "If you're going to go, then you'd better do it! We've upturned the constabulary!!") 

4. Calaboose: a weird, Victorian slang term for "jail"--particularly a local jail. (Ex.: We haven't seen him around here since he got put up in the calaboose).  

5. Emporium: basically a fancy word for a large store that sells a wide variety of things. (Ex: They looked up at the sign that read: "Madame Hichiken's Magic Emporium" in gold letters...) 

6.  Higgledy-piggledy: (adv. & adj) 'confusion/disorder'. If you read Beatrix Potter, I'm willing to bet you've run into this. (Ex: and so they went, higgledy-piggledy down the road, looking for the little lost button.)

7.  Puckish: (from the name: Puck) mischievous/impish. (Ex: "I'd keep a good eye on that bad if I were you. He's been positively puckish ALL DAY.")

8.  Miasma: a poison vapor. (Ex: "Hold your breath! This miasma is coming in fast!)

9. Risible: (adj) something that makes you laugh. (Ex: His risible hat was about the most ridiculous thing they had ever seen...)

10. Fingle-Fangle: something with little to no importance/a trifling thing. (Ex: "I sent you to buy a coat and you come back with some fingle-fangely THING?!?!?") 

11. Quixotic: completely unrealistic and impractical. Has anyone here read Don Quixote?  (Ex: They thought his quixotic behavior would frighten the guests, so they put him up in the attic with a pile of books to keep him company...) 

12. Arcane/arcana/arcanum: hidden secrets or mysteries. (Ex: The book was dusty and old. It read:" A Collective Compilation of Arcane and Esoteric Findings"). 

13. Soliloquy: a practice of saying exactly what you think. (Ex: The art of soliloquy was well practiced in the higher grades--then again, the academy was very strange...)

14. Penumbra (noun): a spot of partial-illumination (Also used in astronomy to relate to the part of a planet that is glowing during an eclipse...or something). (Ex: The evening was fine--the two moons were giving off a faint, penumbral glow.)

15. Balter: old-fashioned word that basically means to dance clumsily or 'clownishly'. (Ex: They watched the fool and his small troupe balter down the road to a rather awful tune...)

16. Workaday: common place or prosaic. Generally unimaginative. Sounds pretty awful, yeah? (Ex:"I believe these students need a more of a workaday-type environment. All this imagination is clouding their studies...")

17.  Crabbit: Scottish adjective for 'bad tempered'. x) I'm curious to see what sort of things people can do with this word. 

18. Erinaceous: (adj) 'resembling a hedgehog.' (Ex: A little boy came in just this Tuesday with the most erinaceous-looking hair I've ever seen. It was absolutely spiky!!)

19. Wimble: any tool used for boring or making holes. (Ex: The little people used several tiny wimbles in the walnut tree. They reminded her very much of woodpeckers.)

20. Zoanthropy: (noun) a condition when someone believes he or she is an animal. This strikes me as an interesting trait in a background character. (Ex: "Jimmy has Zoanthropy, you know. Yesterday he was positive he was a canary. Wouldn't eat anything but sunflower seeds.")

Let's Chat! 

1. Are you a fan of weird and wonderful words? 

2. What is your favorite whacky word? 

3. Do you think weird and wonderful words can color up your writing? Or do you think it should stay pretty plain? 

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