The English language is one of the most descriptive languages of all time. At the same time, there are some pretty weird words within the language!
Read on below and discover our picks for 25 of the weirdest words in English.
Top 25 Weird Words in English
English is one of the most diverse Indo-European languages of our times. It is full of wonderful words that allow us to express ourselves in much greater detail than many languages.
That said, being derived from scores of languages, English contains some seriously weird words!
Here are our picks for the top 25 weirdest words in the English language:
1. Gobbledygook (noun)
One of the weirdest sounding American English words ever invented is the noun Gobbledygook! The word dates back to the 1940s and represents something that doesn’t make sense. The word is also used to describe people who purposefully try to confuse others with their words.
Example sentence using gobbledygook:
“That salesman was talking nothing but gobbledygook… I don’t understand a word he said!”
2. Curmudgeon (noun)
This English word dates back to the 1500s, it means; a person that is very bad-tempered. That said, you very rarely hear the word being used today!
Example sentence using curmudgeon:
“I’m not a fan of Lisa’s dad, he seems like a serious curmudgeon!”
3. Kerfuffle (noun)
To kerfuffle is to bother or fuss over something. This weird English word can be traced back to both old Ireland and Scotland during the 19th century or earlier.
Example sentence using kerfuffle:
“What is all this kerfuffle about, then? Where’s the fire?”
4. Lackadaisical (adjective)
The origins of the word lackadaisical aren’t able to be traced back to a specific point and time. What we do know is that it has been in use since the 18th century. It means; someone who lacks drive, or enthusiasm, towards life, in general.
Example sentence using lackadaisical:
“Ha! You asked Jordan to help you? Good luck! That guy is as lackadaisical as they come!”
5. Hullaballoo (noun)
Another seriously weird word, Hullaballoo, has been a part of the language since the 1700s. Just as the name suggests, it represents the loud noise that people make when they are excited or arguing about something or another.
Example sentence using hullabaloo:
“Can you believe the hullabaloo this afternoon in the parking lot? I’ve never seen such a mess before!”
6. Woebegone (adjective)
Woebegone is a word that is used to describe people who are stricken with grief and sorrow. How long the world has been around isn’t quite clear.
Example sentence using woebegone:
“I was woebegone at the thought of losing her forever…”
7. Lollygag (verb)
To lollygag is to lolly or gag around. In other words, one who lollygags takes their dear sweet time in all that they do (and is most likely naturally lazy).
Example sentence using lollygag:
“Here comes another wave of the buggers, boys! Ready yourselves! Now isn’t the time to lollygag!”
8. Cacophony (noun)
A cacophony is practically the opposite of a beautiful symphony; it is a horrible mixture of sounds that is terrible to hear. The word showed up in English back in the middle of the 1500s.
Example sentence using cacophony:
“None of them knew how to play their instruments properly, and the cacophony they produced sent all their parents running.”
9. Flummox (verb)
This clever and weird verb is first used in the 1800s. It means; to confuse someone. If you flummox someone, you’ve gotten one over on them.
Example sentence using flummox:
“The humans were very adept at these sorts of games, but they just couldn’t seem to flummox the AI”
10. Discombobulate (verb)
To discombobulate someone is to confuse them. The word popped up during the middle of the 1800s and has been in use ever since then.
Example sentence using discombobulate:
“The politician’s words went in circles until the whole crowd, and even the politician himself was discombobulated. He had no idea what to say next.”
11. Ragamuffin (noun)
The old English word ragamuffin has been in use for hundreds of years, dating back to the dark ages. The root of the word comes from “rag” or “dirty old cloth”, therefor a ragamuffin is a person that wears dirty old rags, or looks like such.
Example sentence using ragamuffin:
12. Poppycock (noun)
The old Dutch words pap and kak, meaning “soft” and “poop” became a single English word sometime during the 1800s. Since then, it has become a fun way to tell someone that they have no idea what they’re talking about.
Example sentence using poppycock:
“Why, that notion is simply absurd! Poppycock and hogwash, I say!”
13. Bumfuzzle (verb)
The weird English word, bumfuzzle, means to purposefully confuse, fluster, or perplex someone. The word is much more commonly used in the Eastern and Southern parts of the United States.
Example sentence using bumfuzzle:
“That woman is a real bumfuzzle! She gets me every time!”
14 Cattywampus (adjective) (adverb)
The meaning of this weird English word is; something that is sideways, askew, or otherwise sitting at an angle from your standpoint. The term catty-corner (or kitty-corner) is a much more widely used version of the word.
Example sentence using cattywampus:
“Help me move this wardrobe cattywampus to the foot of the bed. Thanks, we can sit it down right here!”
15. Gibberish (noun)
The exact origins of the word gibberish are unknown, though it is thought to be an older version of gobbledygook. The word possibly evolved into a weird English word from the Swedish or Spanish language.
Example sentence using gibberish:
“Those old boys were talking nothing but gibberish! I have no idea what they were saying!”
16. Taradiddle (noun)
The weird English word taradiddle is another way of saying a “fisherman’s tale.” For those who aren’t familiar with the term, it represents someone who is regularly exaggerating or outright lying about things (like the size of the fish they caught).
Example sentence using taradiddle:
“I didn’t dare share the most pivotal parts of my cryptid encounters in my book, for fear of being labeled a taradiddle for sure!”
17. Whippersnapper (noun)
A whippersnapper originally represented a young ruffian who lived on the street and stole things, tricked people, and/or was mouthy. The word has been around since the 1600s when the sound of it was much more commonplace.
Example sentence using whippersnapper:
“Why, you little whippersnapper! I oughta give ya what for!” *Shakes fist at a pack of young hooligans*
18. Widdershins (adverb)
To move in widdershins is to move counter-clockwise. The old English word is often used today in poetry, literature, and occult practices like Wicca.
Example sentence using widdershins:
“The witches gleefully chanted up at the moon, moving widdershins around the circle, in their nakedness fully attuned.”
19. Bumbershoot (noun)
Believe it or not, this old English word means “umbrella.” In fact, if you’ve ever heard it in use before it was probably in reference to an umbrella in a Disney film!
Example sentence using bumbershoot:
“Oh no, here comes the rain! We better open our Bumbershoot before we get wet”!
20. Collywobbles (noun)
When you have the “collywobbles”, you have a strange feeling in the pit of your stomach. The Latin term, cholera morbus, or Cholera, is thought to be the origin of the weird English word, collywobbles.
Example sentence using collywobbles:
“As soon as the teacher called my name to come to the front of the class and write my answer on the blackboard, I felt the collywobbles.”
21. Malarky (noun)
The term “malarky” has been around since the early 20th century and is still in use today. The word means; something that is insincere or foolish.
Example sentence using malarky:
“That’s nothing but a big fat load of malarky! Not a single word of it is true!”
22 Brouhaha (noun)
A “brouhaha” is a weird English word that represents the sound that a large group of people make when they are excited or angry about something and moving around, talking, yelling, and otherwise making a racket.
Example sentence using brouhaha:
“Did you hear that brouhaha this afternoon in the parking lot? I’ve never in my life witnessed such a scene!”
23. Nincompoop (noun)
The weird word “nincompoop” has been used in the English language for three-quarters of a century. It is used to describe someone that is foolish, stupid, or silly.
Example sentence using nincompoop:
“That Jordan guy bangs on keyboards all day. What is actually he doing with his life? He seems like a real nincompoop!”
24. Snollygoster (noun)
A “snollygoster” is the type of politician that does things for themselves, and their benefactors, rather than for the people who voted them into power (which is who they represent).
Example sentence using snollygoster:
“That governor from £$%&*$* is a real snollygoster. I wonder how that rich a£$%^&e sleeps at night!”
25. Frankenfood (noun)
The term Frankenfood sprang into existence back in the late 20th century. The monstrous-sounding word is simply another way to say GM food, or genetically modified food.
Example sentence using frankenfood:
“I wouldn’t touch that frankenfood with my worst enemy’s fork! Look at it! This GM chicken filet is bigger than Pam Anderson’s left breast!”