The Phrontistery
A classic collection of obscure words, arranged for curious browsing.
Resources
50 links for strange, obscure, silly, and gloriously overbuilt words.
This page collects useful outside reading for anyone who wants more absurd English words, longer words, weirder word histories, and delightfully specific vocabulary.
Jump to
Browse the resources by theme.
Obscure & Forgotten
Funny & Silly
Very Long Words
Words for Things
Etymology & Oddities
Old Slang & Expression
Use these links alongside the full word browser, the category archives, and the A-Z index if you want more rabbit holes to fall into.
Obscure, Forgotten, and Beautiful Words
Rare, elegant, old-fashioned, and delightfully unnecessary vocabulary.
International House of Logorrhea
An expansive index of rare and unusual English words.
Three-Letter Rare Words
Tiny words with unexpectedly obscure lives.
Lost Words A-E
Forgotten vocabulary from the first part of the alphabet.
Lost Words F-M
More lost words arranged for alphabetical wandering.
Lost Words N-R
A further batch of obsolete and neglected terms.
Lost Words S-Z
The final stretch of forgotten words from S to Z.
Merriam-Webster: Obscure & Fun
A Merriam-Webster roundup of weird, old, and playful vocabulary.
Beautiful and Useless Words, Vol. 1
A list of gorgeous oddities and wonderfully impractical words.
Beautiful and Useless Words, Vol. 2
More elegant, obscure, and slightly absurd vocabulary.
Beautiful and Useless Words, Vol. 3
Another volume of beautiful linguistic curiosities.
Beautiful and Useless Words, Vol. 5
A later volume in Merriam-Webster’s wonderful word lists.
Funny-Sounding, Absurd, and Silly Words
Words that are memorable simply because they sound ridiculous out loud.
Nonsense Words
An index of words that sound playfully absurd or gloriously silly.
Funny-Sounding Words
Merriam-Webster’s list of comic words such as taradiddle and cattywampus.
Silly 19th-Century Words
A lively selection of odd Americanisms from the 1800s.
Greatest Word Hits
A crowd-pleasing set of weird favorite words.
80 Weird Words and Phrases
A wide-ranging list of unusual vocabulary and expressions.
50 Strange Words You’ll Want to Start Using
A practical set of strange words ready for everyday mischief.
Obscure Regional Phrases
Regional language with excellent comic and expressive flavor.
Words That Sound Like Insults
Words with mock-insult energy but entirely different meanings.
Word Genius: Strange Hobbies
An editorial feature with quirky language and oddball subject matter.
Very Long Words and Sesquipedalian Curiosities
For readers who enjoy words that are amusingly, gloriously overbuilt.
Sesquipedalian Words
A dedicated page for very long and dramatic vocabulary.
13 Unusually Long English Words
Merriam-Webster’s guide to some famously oversized terms.
The Longest Long Words List
A longer look at enormous, hard-to-finish words.
What Is the Longest Word in English?
A useful explainer on very long English words and their contenders.
Long Words in English
A readable overview of long-form English vocabulary.
Long Words
A broader guide to lengthy and unusual vocabulary items.
7 Longest Words in the English Language
A concise round-up of some of English’s longest terms.
Words for Things You Did Not Know Had Names
Highly specific words for objects, situations, colors, and everyday oddities.
Words About Words
A useful collection of terms describing language and named concepts.
Words You Didn’t Know Had Names, Vol. 1
Merriam-Webster’s first list of delightfully specific terms.
Words You Didn’t Know Had Names, Vol. 2
More precise, surprising, and oddly satisfying vocabulary.
Words You Didn’t Know Had Names, Vol. 4
Another set of exact words for things people rarely name.
48 Things You Didn’t Know Had Names
A classic roundup of named details hiding in plain sight.
Unusual Words for Everyday Things
A satisfying list of terms for common things people rarely label.
Rare and Obscure Color Words
Beautifully niche color vocabulary.
Uncommon Singular Words
A list of singular forms that are stranger than you expect.
Wordplay, Etymology, and Language Oddities
For curious readers who want context, origin stories, and linguistic trivia.
Old and Odd Directional Words
A set of unusual words for orientation and direction.
Wonderful Words With No English Equivalent
Foreign terms that highlight expressive gaps in English.
Interesting Etymologies of Everyday Words
Surprising origin stories for familiar vocabulary.
Words Named After People
A guide to eponyms and words with personal origins.
Cool Words About Words
Dictionary.com’s guide to wordplay and linguistic terminology.
Words With Odd Origin Stories
An accessible set of especially surprising etymologies.
The Longest Palindrome in English
A niche language question with a very satisfying answer trail.
9 Weird Words in Moby-Dick
A literary side path into older, stranger vocabulary.
Old Slang, Swears, and Expressive Language
Colorful language with attitude, theatricality, and personality.
Old Slang Phrases We Should Bring Back
Vintage slang worth reviving for dramatic effect.
40 Intriguing I-Words
An alphabetical list for strange, expressive vocabulary.
40 Super S-Words
A fast browse through strong, unusual S-words.
40 Zesty Z-Words
Rare Z-words with plenty of comic energy.
The Era of Nerdy New Swearwords
A playful look at inventive and expressive modern swearing.
33 Hard Words to Spell
A spelling-focused detour into difficult and memorable words.