Word for use of big words - Word и Excel - помощь в работе с программами

What’s an adjective for someone that uses $10 words when a 50 cent word will do nicely? I’m trying to describe how in academic articles on political theory that there are so many big words that the meaning and purpose of the article gets lost.

A compulsive polysyllabricator?
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Vanda

sesquipedalian, adjective:
1. Given to or characterized by the use of long words.
2. Long and ponderous; having many syllables.

Oops, post crossing!

Doodlebugger and Vanda

I think this is a wonderful word (which I admit to never having heard of) and one which I shall add to my vocabulary.

(My late, dear old father, whenever I used a long word, used to say, «Where did you find that word? Hanging on the bathroom door? )

He would have had a lot to say about your offering.

Thanks,
LRV

Ah yes— that’s the standard. Couldn’t think of it, so I coined something.
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Nice to see ‘sesquipedalian’ getting so much respect. I suggested it in a similar thread a few months back and it attracted no attention. A great word for which we have Horace to thank.

Hyperarticulate:
hi-per-ar-TIC-you-lit

I don’t use big words. I’m hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobic.

Hi Mary & welcome to the forums!

There’s also pleonastic but this is the use of more words than necessary (not necessarily the size of the words).

Also: ostentatious.

Don’t know why, but sesquipedalian sounds like some kind of early primate…

… and a very big welcome to maryp3177

Sorry for not noticing that this was your first post (fortunately french4beth and panjandrum did!). Welcome!

I’m trying to describe how in academic articles on political theory that there are so many big words that the meaning and purpose of the article gets lost.

Academics often write in purple prose, or at least have the occasional purple passage in their articles.

Don’t know why, but sesquipedalian sounds like some kind of early primate…

How many feet would it have? Bi-, tri-…. sesqui. Or would sesqui refer to the kind of legs or feet? :confused:

Yes, Mary, welcome to the forums.!

An excellent first post if I may say so.

Kind regards,
LRV

«sesquipedalian»… I did not know that word either, and it is a beauty! Excellent, excellent…

rsweet

I found a few to add.

macroverbumsciolist
1) a person who is ignorant of large words
2) a person who pretends to know a word, then secretly refers to a dictionary

grandiloquent
pompous or extravagant in language, style, or manner, esp. in a way that is intended to impress

fustian
pompous or pretentious speech or writing

LRV, when I was younger and used a big word, my dad used to say, «You do and you’ll clean it up!» :rolleyes:

How many feet would it have? Bi-, tri-…. sesqui. Or would sesqui refer to the kind of legs or feet?

Almost certainly the kind of feet, Lola. Really, really long ones which allowed it to ski across snowy wastes as the first ice age approached. :cool:

LRV

Another couple of lovely words:

bombastic — grandiose but with little meaning, ostentatiously lofty in style
turgid — (of language or style) tediously pompous or bombastic.

Edit: I love your explanation of sesqui, LRV!

How many feet would it have? Bi-, tri-…. sesqui. Or would sesqui refer to the kind of legs or feet?

Horace’s phrase was verba sesquipedalia which would mean «words a foot and a half long’

Like ‘sesquicentennial’ means the 150th anniversary.

How many feet would it have? Bi-, tri-…. sesqui. Or would sesqui refer to the kind of legs or feet?

Yes, it refers to the beast’s ability to move its manifold feet sequentially
When you’ve got 20+ it takes some concentration to get the rhythm right, I imagine.

Yes, it refers to the beast’s ability to move its manifold feet sequentially
When you’ve got 20+ it takes some concentration to get the rhythm right, I imagine.

Millipedes seem to do it well (she said, continuing to go off topic).

«This year is the sesquicentennial of my stone-built cottage», she added (truthfully) to get back on topic.

LRV

Prolix is a good word, but it refers to the quantity of words and their obfuscatory characteristics rather than their length.

What a great selection of words, especially that sesqui… thing! I’d never remember how to write it.

Prolix is a good word, but it refers to the quantity of words and their obfuscatory characteristics rather than their length.

Obfuscatory is a good word, too: very good indeed!

I agree with «grandiloquent», seems accurate to me.

Is there an English word for «big words»
….and a word for someone who chooses a big word when they could just as eaisly use a simple word.

thanks for your suggestions, scotu

KHS

Senior Member

Some possibilities:

complex word, multisyllabic word, difficult word, obfuscatory word

Karen

Is there an English word for «big words»
….and a word for someone who chooses a big word when they could just as eaisly use a simple word.

thanks for your suggestions, scotu

In one sense, polysyllabic words are big or long words, although I think that you’re looking for another sense, perhaps something along the lines of highfalutin or verbose language or speech.

You could call somebody who uses such speech pompous or a pedant and maybe a logophile, although that’s somebody who loves all words, not just big ones.

One who chooses to use them might be termed sesquipedalian.

Is there an English word for «big words»
….and a word for someone who chooses a big word when they could just as eaisly use a simple word.

thanks for your suggestions, scotu

The standard BE expression is long words — complicated, latinate, difficult: all these things are suggested by the adjective long.

Thank you all for the suggestions.

Jefe, I like your word so much I’m going to use it in my signature. Thanks.

edit: and it lead me to another interesting word: hippopotomonstrosesquipedaliophobia = Fear of big words

hippopotomonstrosesquipedaliophobia = Fear of big words

I thought it was hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia :eek: .

I thought it was hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia .

wikidictionary suggests that hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia is a deliberate mispelling just to make the word longer.

wikidictionary suggests that hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia is a deliberate mispelling just to make the word longer.

:cool:

nzfauna

Verbose means to use more words than are necessary to describe a concept that can be expressed with fewer words or in less space or less time, particularly when the concept can be expressed more simply.

As an example, see the preceding sentence. Verbose doesn’t have anything to do with using big words.

In view of some of the words offered on this thread, I wonder if anybody could use them without being guilty of that which they are describing.

I don’t think so. Verbose applies to using more words than necessary and has nothing to to do specifically with long words.

nzfauna

Yeah, I knew that I thought it might be good to describe the overall phenomenon of the piece of writing. Just an idea. I should have explained myself

polysyllabricator The word you’ve entered isn’t in the dictionary. Click on a spelling suggestion below or try again using the search bar above.

JamesM

Yes, but sesquipedalian is in the dictionary. (I think polysyllabricator was an invention of Foxfirebrand’s.)

-He likes using big/fancy words.
-high-flown rhetoric
-stilted style of writing

Источник

Stupendous!

Can you use it in a sentence?

Updated: March 21, 2022

Originally Published: Dec. 28, 2020

Getty Images

Language really is a beautiful thing. Just think about it — all around the world, people are using different languages to speak and communicate with each other. Language is so vast that we can even communicate thoughts and feelings solely by using our bodies. Expanding on your vocabulary is always a great thing, especially if you’re looking for new ways to get your point across. Big meaningful words shouldn’t be intimidating. Instead, these words should be embraced and used way more often. You’re not an egghead if you use different words to express yourself! Rather, you call that a sesquipedalian (aka lover of long words).

Writers love learning unfamiliar words, but so do kids. That means that language can be a blast and an excellent way to bond with your family. Your family can try to use fancy words every day as a challenge. Making those words positive is even better. Right now, our world needs every little bit of cheer it can get, right? So, here are some fun big words for good, words for beautiful, and — of course — the fanciest of words to express love.

Looking for more pages to help boost your brainpower? Check out our funny brain teasers page and are you smarter than a fifth-grader questions.

Big Words for Good

Exceptional — unusually excellent; being out of the ordinary
Positive — fully assured; having or showing a mind free of doubt
Adept — very skilled; proficient
Stupendous — astounding and marvelous
Delightful — highly pleasing
Favorable — winning approval; marked by impressive success
Magnificent — great in deed, or exalted in place; impressive to the mind or spirit
Quintessential — perfectly typical or representative of a particular kind of person or thing
Marvelous — causing wonder; of the highest kind or quality
Tremendous — notable by reason of extreme size, power, greatness, or excellence; being such may excite trembling or arouse dread, awe, or terror
Commonsensical — sound and prudent judgment based on a simple perception of the situation or the facts
Righteous — genuine, excellent
Virtuous — having or exhibiting virtue; morally excellent
Exemplary — deserving imitation because of excellence
Immaculate — having or containing no flaw or error

Big Words for Beautiful

Resplendent — shining brilliantly
Statuesque — majestic dignity, grace, or beauty
Pulchritudinous — physically beautiful
Sublime — supreme or outstanding
Beauteous — beautiful
Ravishing — enchanting; entrancing
Splendiferous — extraordinarily or showily impressive
Ravishing — unusually attractive, pleasing, or striking
Aesthetical — concerning or characterized by an appreciation of beauty or good taste
Bewitching — powerfully or seductively attractive or charming
Exquisite — pleasing through beauty, physical fitness, or perfection
Captivating — charmingly or irresistibly appealing
Comely — having a pleasing appearance
Fetching — attractive, appealing
Alluring — having a strong, attractive, or enticing quality
Junoesque — imposingly tall and shapely
Telegenic — very photogenic

Big Words for Smart

Resourceful — able to deal skillfully with new situations
Prompt — quick or alert
Sagacious — having or showing keen mental discernment or judgment; shrewd
Canny — astute and skilled
Astute — very clever and sometimes cunning
Intelligent — having or indicating a high or satisfactory degree of mental capacity
Insightful — exhibiting or characterized by insight
Perceptive — capable of exhibiting keen insight or sympathetic understanding
Perspicacious — of acute mental vision or discernment
Discerning — showing insight and understanding
Knowledgeable — having or showing knowledge or intelligence
Well-informed — having extensive knowledge, especially of current topics and events
Enlightened — freed from ignorance and misinformation
Comprehending — grasping the nature, significance, or meaning of something
Ingenious — having or showing an unusual aptitude for discovering, inventing, or contriving

Big Words for Amazing

Prodigious — wonderful or marvelous
Astonishing — causing astonishment or surprise; amazing
Astounding — capable of overwhelming with amazement
Phenomenal — highly extraordinary or prodigious; exceptional
Breathtaking — exciting, thrilling; very great, astonishing
Extraordinary — going beyond what is regular or customary; exceptional to a very marked extent
Sensational — exceedingly or unexpectedly excellent or great
Awe-inspiring — that arouses awe
Incomparable — eminent beyond comparison
Indescribable — surpassing description
Ineffable — incapable of being expressed in words
Transcendent — extending or lying beyond the limits of ordinary experience; being beyond comprehension
Wondrous — that is to be marveled at
Majestic — having or exhibiting majesty
Flabbergasting — overwhelming with shock, surprise, or wonder

Big Words About Love

Devotion — earnest attachment to a cause, person, etc
Adulation — excessive devotion to someone; servile compliments and flattery
Allegiance — loyalty or devotion to a person, group, cause, or the like
Amorousness — the act of being in love
Amativeness — relating to or indicative of love
Enamored — affected by strong feelings of love, admiration, or fascination
Enchantment — the act or art of enchanting
Reverence — honor or respect felt or shown
Infatuated — filled with or marked by a foolish or extravagant love or admiration
Affection — a feeling of liking and caring for someone or something; tender attachment
Tenderness — gentleness and affection
Besottedness — related to being blindly or utterly infatuated
Canonize — to treat as illustrious, preeminent, or sacred
Canoodle — to engage in amorous embracing, caressing, and passionate kissing
Predilection — an established preference for something
Fondness — affection for someone or something
Endearment — a phrase that expresses love

Other Big Words to Use

Elucidate — to explain or make something clear
Selcouth — unusual, strange
Halcyon — characterized by happiness, great success, and prosperity
Orphic — mystic, oracular; fascinating, entrancing
Malaise — physical discomfort or a general feeling of being under the weather
Scintillating — something fascinating or brilliantly clever
Ebullience — the quality of lively or enthusiastic expression of thoughts and feelings
Quiddity — whatever makes something the type that it is; the essence
Aeonian — lasting for an immeasurably or indefinitely long period of time
Coruscate — to reflect or give off light in bright beams or flashes; sparkle
Atelophobia — the fear of not doing something right or not being good enough
Cimmerian — very dark or gloomy
Adamancy — the quality or state of being adamant; obstinacy
Evenfall — the beginning of evening, dusk
Orgulous — proud
Parsimonious — frugal
Tantalizing — tormenting or teasing with the sight or promise of something unobtainable; exciting one’s senses or desires
Teasing — in a sexual sense, it means to be sexually arousing
Pulchritudinous — attractive or beautiful
Bellwether — a leader, trendsetter, or boss
Accoutrements — accessories
Magnanimous — courageous, noble, unselfish, or extremely generous
Unencumbered — free or unburdened with responsibilities
Acumen — quickness to judge
Unparagoned — having no equal; matchless, incomparable
Osculator — someone who kisses
Anomalistic — deviation or departure from the norm or rules; phenomenal, exceptional
Usufruct — the right to use and enjoy the profits and advantages of something belonging to another
Luminescent — something that displays light that is not caused by heat
Auspicious — favorable, flourishing
Winebibber — a person who drinks too much wine
Excogitate — thinking of something carefully or thoroughly
Gasconading — to brag or gloat
Idiosyncratic — traits that belong to a person’s character
Nidificate — to nest
Cacophony — a loud, obnoxious blend of sounds
Ennui — feeling simultaneously bored and annoyed
Aquiver — feeling overcome with emotion
Umbrage — displeasure, resentment, or anger
Glib — suave or smooth-talking
Ubiquitous — universal or everywhere
Nefarious — wicked or criminal
Capricious — whimsical, fickle, or careless
Boondoggle — work or activity that is wasteful or pointless but gives the appearance of value
Sycophant — a person who flatters someone important in order to take advantage of them
Mellifluous — sweet or musical, pleasant to hear
Brogue — a strong outdoor shoe, usually made of leather
Intelligentsia — intellectuals who form an artistic, social, or political vanguard or elite
Consanguineous — of the same blood or origin; someone who descends from the same ancestor
Grandiloquent — a lofty, extravagantly colorful, pompous, or bombastic style, manner, or quality, especially in language
Psychotomimetic — relating to, involving, or inducing psychotic alteration of behavior and personality
Perfidiousness — a betrayal of trust
Preposterous — contrary to nature, reason, or common sense
Anagnorisis — the point in the plot especially of a tragedy at which the protagonist recognizes his or her or some other character’s true identity or discovers the true nature of his or her own situation
Circumlocution — the use of an unnecessarily large number of words to express an idea

This article was originally published on Dec. 28, 2020

Источник

The biggest word in the English language is 189,819 letters long, and takes three hours to pronounce! More commonly used big words are several syllables long, and often make people feel smart when they say them out loud. Somewhat ironically, however, study after study has shown that using big words usually makes people sound dumb.

Unsplash / Rob Hobson

There is a time and a place for big words. If you’re a writer, you might want to be careful about how often you invoke long words that no one has ever heard of before. Mark Twain has a few good quotes about why writers should be economical and precise:

“Don’t use a five-dollar word when a fifty-cent word will do.”

“The difference between the almost right word and the right word is really a large matter – it’s the difference between the lightning bug and the lightning.”

With that said, below is a list of some of the biggest words in the English language, which you can choose to ignore, or insert into your writing and vocabulary. Remember, sometimes, a big word works better. Try to insert a new word into your vocabulary every day until you’re able to use them naturally, without thinking about it. Here are some big words that you can use to sound smart around your family and friends, along with their meaning so you use them in the correct way:

Unsplash / Sandy Millar

1. Abstentious

Self-restraining; also the longest word in the English language to use all five vowels in order once

2. Accoutrements

trappings, esp. related to apparel

3. Acumen — ability, skill

4. Anachronistic — a story that didn’t actually happen

5. Anagnorisis — the moment in a story when the main character realizes something that leads to a resolution

6. Anomalist — difficult to classify

8. Apropos — appropriate

9. Arid — dry

10. Assiduous — painstaking; taking great care through hard work

11. Auspicious — signaling a positive future

Big Words (B-C)

12. Behoove — something that is a personal duty

13. Bellwether — the first sheep in a flock, wearing a bell around its neck

14. Callipygian — having large, round, succulent buttocks

15. Circumlocution —the act of using too many words

16. Consanguineous — of the same blood or same ancestor

17. Conviviality — friendliness

18. Coruscant — sparkling

19. Cuddlesome — cuddly

20. Cupidity — greed

21. Cwtch — from the Welsh word for “hiding place”; the longest word in English to be entirely composed of consonants

22. Cynosure — center of attention

Big Words (D)

23. Deleterious — harmful

24. Desideratum — something needed or wanted

Big Words (E)

26. Enervating — exhausting

27. Equanimity — level-headedness

28. Euouae — a medieval musical term; the longest word in a major dictionary entirely composed of vowels

29. Excogitate — to plan

Big Words (F)

31. Florid — red and inflamed

32. Fortuitous — lucky

33. Frugal — cheap, thrifty

Big Words (G-M)

34. Gasconading — bragging

35. Grandiloquent — verbally pompous

36. Hackneyed — clichéd

37. Honorificabilitudinitatibus — an extremely long-winded way to say “honorable”; at 27 letters, the longest word in the work of William Shakespeare; also the longest word in the English language featuring alternating consonants and vowels

38. Idiosyncratic — peculiar

39. Indubitably — without a doubt

40. Ivoriate — to cover in ivory

41. Lopadotemachoselachogaleokranioleipsanodrimhypo…pterygon — (ellipsis used because the word is 182 letters long) an elaborate fricassee; coined word that appeared in the play Assemblywomen by Aristophanes

42. Methionylthreonylthreonylglutaminylalanyl…isoleucine … the chemical name for titin, the largest known protein; ellipsis used because at 189,819 letters, it’s the largest known word and takes over three hours to pronounce

43. Milieu — environment

Big Words (N-P)

44. Nidificate — to build a nest

45. Nonchalant — carefree and unbothered

46. Osculator — one who loves or is loved

47. Paradigm — model

48. Parastratiosphecomyiastratiosphecomyiodes — a species of fly native to Thailand

49. Parsimonious — cheap

50. Penultimate — second to last

51. Perfidious — treacherous

52. Perspicacious — perceptive

54. Proficuous — profitable

55. Predilection — preference

56. Pseudopseudohypoparathyroidism — an inherited thyroid disorder

57. Psychotomimetic – inducing psychotic alteration of behavior and personality

Big Words (Q-Z)

58. Querulous — fussy

59 Rancorous — bitter and argumentative

60. Remunerative — lucrative

61. Rotavator — a soil tiller; at 9 letters, the longest palindromic word in the English language (i.e., it’s spelled the same way backwards)

62. Saxicolous — something that lives on rocks

63. Sesquipedalian — involving long words, just like this article

64. Splendiferous — wonderful

65. Squirrelled — put away; the longest one-syllable word in the English language

67. Supercilious — when a person is arrogant

68. Synergy — extra energy generated by cooperation

69. Unencumbered — free

70. Unparagoned — without equal

71. Winebibber — an alcoholic —

Источник

To many Americans, big words are an affront. People who use fancy words are trying to show us up, flaunting their education and intelligence, rubbing our noses in our own shortcomings.

It’s true there are people who use their vocabularies to intimidate. It’s a shabby tactic, and it’s sad how effective it can be. Many a faulty argument has been won by the side with the glib, silver-tongued wordsmith.

Still, a highly developed society needs big words. Most multisyllabic words combine two or more smaller words to express complex ideas that come about as a culture copes with the world’s intricacy, uncertainty, and inscrutability.

In the end, big words take up far less space than repeatedly articulating the complicated concepts they represent. Not so long ago, paranoid was an exotic word that only intellectuals used. (It’s from the Greek para: “amiss, incorrect” + nous: “mind.”) Nowadays even seventh-graders use paranoid. The culture needed a word that could sum up, in a few pithy syllables, “having an irrational belief that you’re being persecuted.”

So below are several big words that, like paranoid, might come in handy in certain situations. The problem is how to get them into general usage. If you take a shine to any of these words, try slipping one in around friends who wouldn’t hate you for it and might even ask you what it means.

Pareidolia You know how every so often you read about people who see Jesus Christ in a tree trunk? Or some woman in Ohio who keeps a swirl of moldy Cheez Whiz in a vault because she sees the visage of Elvis? That’s pareidolia: the phenomenon of finding the familiar in an improbable place.

Misology This is a word for our times. It means hatred of reason, logic, enlightenment. People who oppose higher learning and progress used to be dismissed as fools. Now a potential voter’s misology is something many politicians pander to.

Sesquipedalian This really long adjective means “really long.” It was coined to describe big words, so it is what it means. It can also refer to someone who uses words that are really long, maybe too long.

Billingsgate Foul or abusive language. It derives from a rowdy fish market in seventeenth century London. It’s innocuous-sounding and obscure enough to work to your advantage if you’re ever sitting with your family near a foul-mouthed sot who won’t shut up. “Please, dude, go easy on the billingsgate, huh?” OK, that probably wouldn’t work, but you tried, and let’s hope it sounded mild enough to avoid a drubbing.

Prelapsarian If you describe a garden as prelapsarian, you’re praising its unspoiled loveliness, not criticizing it for being dated or out of fashion. We get this word from theology. It’s meant to evoke the state of innocence before the Fall of Man.

Paraprosdokian One or more sentences that end in an unexpected way. Here’s a fine example: “The car stopped on a dime—which unfortunately was in a pedestrian’s pocket.” Bet you never saw that coming. (Neither did the pedestrian.)

Orthoepy It’s supposed to be or-THO-a-pee, and by telling you that, I sort of defined the word: it’s the study of proper pronunciation.

Callipygian Here’s a strikingly euphonious alternative to leering-frat-boy language. It means “having shapely buttocks.” I think I prefer it to badonkadonk.

—Tom Stern

If the article or the existing discussions do not address a thought or question you have on the subject, please use the «Comment» box at the bottom of this page.

Источник

Published August 27, 2021

That’s a big word, indeed!

Most of the longest words in the English language are scientific and technical terms, like pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis. But what are some long words that you might actually use one day, without having to become a microbiologist or something? We have gathered up over a dozen lengthy words that you might actually come across in the wild (or at least might actually want to use). If you are a sesquipedalian, or hope to become one one day, this slideshow is for you. And to find out what sesquipedalian means, read on.

For a look at the longest words you’re likely never to use, just click here.

sesquipedalian

Sesquipedalian [ ses-kwi-pi-dey-lee-uhn ] means “given to using long words.” It comes from Latin sesquipedālis meaning “measuring a foot and a half.”

The professor was so sesquipedalian that he was often incomprehensible to his students.

The poet Horace, who is credited with coining the term sesquipedalian in Latin, used the word to warn young poets against using overly long and complicated words. Horace, of course, ironically did not take his own advice here to make his point—sesquipedalian itself is 14 letters long.

magnanimity

If someone asks you the meaning of a word, it’s important to have magnanimity [ mag-nuh–nim-i-tee ] about it. Magnanimity means “the quality of being generous in forgiving an insult or injury; free from petty resentfulness or vindictiveness.”

We hoped that the Queen would show magnanimity and not sentence us to prison for the slight.

The related term magnanimous comes from the Latin for “great-souled.” Impressive.

Speaking of soul, experience the linguistic offerings of soul food by reading about its history and vocabulary.

decompensation

As we noted, many of the longest terms in English are scientific and or medical terms. Some of these are so complex, it is unlikely you will come across them unless you are in the field. Others you are more likely to encounter, like decompensation [ dee-kom-puhn-sey-shuhn ]. Decompensation means “the inability of a diseased heart to compensate for its defect.”

I observed some symptoms of heart decompensation in the patient, including difficulty breathing and leg swelling.

While typically decompensation refers to the heart organ no longer working properly, it can also be used to refer to other organs or a psychological state.

counterrevolutionary

One way long words are created in the English language is by combining different word elements together to create a new word. That’s the case with counterrevolutionary, a combination of counter, revolution, and the suffix –ary. Counterrevolutionary means “opposing a revolution or revolutionary government.”

After the revolutionaries came to power, the landed gentry began plotting a counterrevolutionary movement to regain control.

deinstitutionalization

Public policy is another domain where you will find especially long words. An example is deinstitutionalization, meaning “the release of institutionalized people, especially mental health patients, from an institution for placement and care in the community.”

Many studies find that deinstitutionalization led to an increase in the number of mentally ill people in prison.

transcendentalism

Our next term, transcendentalism [ trans-sen-den-tl-iz-uhm ], also describes an American social experiment, of sorts, from the 19th century. Transcendentalism, or transcendental philosophy, is “a philosophy emphasizing the intuitive and spiritual above the empirical.”

The group quickly embraced the principles of transcendentalism, including respect of nature and the importance of human effort.

The writers most closely associated with transcendentalism are Margaret Fuller, Ralph Waldo Emerson, and Henry Thoreau.

paleoanthropology

As you may have gathered, many academic terms are quite long. Even the names of some academic disciplines can get up there in length, like paleoanthropology [ pey-lee-oh-an-thruh–pol–uh-jee ]. Paleoanthropology is “the study of the origins and predecessors of the present human species, using fossils and other remains.”

One of the most important aspects of paleoanthropology is determining whether ancient fossilized remains are Homo sapien or another hominin species.

Learn about other intriguing areas of study and profession with this article on 10 other “-ologist” professions.

psychophysiology

Another academic domain with a daunting name is psychophysiology, “the branch of physiology that deals with the interrelation of mental and physical phenomena.” Physiology is the branch of biology that deals with the functions and activities of living organisms.

The medical students studied psychophysiology to learn how heart rate is related to a patient’s emotional state.

The psycho- part of the word psychophysiology is a combining form meaning “psyche” or “mind.”

countercyclical

Yet another area where you are likely to find long, complex terminology is in business and economics. That’s where we get the term countercyclical, “opposing the trend of a business or economic cycle; countervailing.” For example, reducing spending when the economy is doing well is an example of a countercyclical economic policy.

Our panel of economic advisors recommends that we enact countercyclical infrastructure investment; when the economy is doing poorly, we should spend more on roads and bridges.

profligacy

Another lengthy term related to economics is profligacy [ prof-li-guh-see ], meaning “reckless extravagance” or “great abundance.”

Budget hawks were once again warning that the government’s profligacy was going to increase the nation’s debt.

The word profligacy ultimately comes from the Latin prōflīgātus, meaning “degraded” or “debased.”

palingenesist

Philosophy and theology are also great sources for long words. One example is palingenesist [ pal-in-jen–uh-sist ], “a person who believes in a doctrine of rebirth or transmigration of souls.”

The palingenesist Plutarch believed that the soul is reborn into another body after death, a theory known as metempsychosis.

(Bonus big word: metempsychosis!)

The original use of the word palingenesis, or the continual rebirth of the universe, dates back to ancient Greek philosophers known as the Stoics.

palimpsest

Another long word we can thank the Greeks for is palimpsest [ pal-imp-sest ], from Greek palímpsēstos, meaning “rubbed again.” The word palimpsest in English originally meant “a parchment or the like from which writing has been partially or completely erased to make room for another text.”

Scholars use sophisticated equipment like optical scanners to read the remains of erased texts on Medieval palimpsests.

These days, palimpsest is most often used figuratively to mean “something that has a new layer, aspect, or appearance that builds on its past and allows us to see or perceive parts of this past.”

antepenultimate

Our third to the last word in this slideshow is, appropriately, antepenultimate [ an-tee-pi-nuhl-tuh-mit ]. Antepenultimate means “third from the end.”

I was relieved to see that I was slated to be the antepenultimate speaker, so I would only have to wait for two more presentations after my own.

The word antepenultimate ultimately comes from the Latin antepaenultima meaning “the second (syllable) from the last.”

dodecaphonism

Some long words are just fun to say. That’s the case with dodecaphonism, “musical composition using the 12-tone technique.” Dodecaphonism [ doh-dek–uh-fuh-niz-uhm ] is a composition technique that uses all 12 notes of the chromatic scale and is atonal.

The dodecaphonism in the composer’s work created a strange and unsettling feeling in the listeners.

amelioration

A particularly long word that we hope you find a lot of good use for is amelioration, “an act or instance of making better.”

We were hopeful that the move would lead to an amelioration of our living conditions and a better quality of life overall.

Funnily enough, amelioration [ uh-meel-yuh-rey-shuhn ] and melioration mean the exact same thing.

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