What's your favorite word in Merriam-Webster's Dictionary?

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justincredible's avatar

justincredible

Nick Mangold

32,056 posts
Dec 17, 2009 4:14 PM
Spin off of the Urban dictionary thread.

dickcissel: a common migratory black-throated finch (Spiza americana of the family Cardinalidae) of the central United States.

I use the word as an insult almost daily.
Dec 17, 2009 4:14pm
wes_mantooth's avatar

wes_mantooth

Tomfoolery & shenanigans

17,977 posts
Dec 17, 2009 4:15 PM
ballcock-

is a mechanism for filling water tanks, such as those found in flush toilets, while avoiding overflow
Dec 17, 2009 4:15pm
j_crazy's avatar

j_crazy

7 gram rocks. how i roll.

8,372 posts
Dec 17, 2009 4:29 PM
Main Entry: 1fuck
Pronunciation: \?f?k\
Function: verb
Etymology: akin to Dutch fokken to breed (cattle), Swedish dial. fókka to copulate
Date: circa 1503
intransitive verb
1 usually obscene : copulate
2 usually vulgar : mess 3 —used with with
transitive verb
1 usually obscene : to engage in coitus with —sometimes used interjectionally with an object (as a personal or reflexive pronoun) to express anger, contempt, or disgust
2 usually vulgar : to deal with unfairly or harshly : cheat, screw
Dec 17, 2009 4:29pm
ernest_t_bass's avatar

ernest_t_bass

12th Son of the Lama

24,984 posts
Dec 17, 2009 4:31 PM
Dictionary

dic?tion?ar?y??[dik-shuh-ner-ee] Show IPA
–noun, plural -ar?ies.
1. a book containing a selection of the words of a language, usually arranged alphabetically, giving information about their meanings, pronunciations, etymologies, inflected forms, etc., expressed in either the same or another language; lexicon; glossary: a dictionary of English; a Japanese-English dictionary.
2. a book giving information on particular subjects or on a particular class of words, names, or facts, usually arranged alphabetically: a biographical dictionary; a dictionary of mathematics.
3. Computers.
a. a list of codes, terms, keys, etc., and their meanings, used by a computer program or system.
b. a list of words used by a word-processing program as the standard against which to check the spelling of text entered.
Origin:
1520–30; < ML dicti?n?rium, dicti?n?rius < LL dicti?n- word (see diction ) + -?rium, -?rius -ary
Dec 17, 2009 4:31pm
BigAppleBuckeye's avatar

BigAppleBuckeye

Senior Member

2,935 posts
Dec 17, 2009 4:40 PM
I always enjoyed "onomatopoeia:"

Main Entry: on·o·mato·poe·ia
Pronunciation: \?ä-n?-?mä-t?-?p?-?, -?ma-\
Function: noun
Etymology: Late Latin, from Greek onomatopoiia, from onomat-, onoma name + poiein to make — more at poet
Date: circa 1577
1 : the naming of a thing or action by a vocal imitation of the sound associated with it (as buzz, hiss)
2 : the use of words whose sound suggests the sense
Dec 17, 2009 4:40pm