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All writers love language. And we especially love fun words, don’t we? Some have funky spellings, tongue-twisting turns, a satisfying “ooh”…and some sound too hilarious to be true! So I’ve put together a list of favorite fun words that I’ll add to periodically. Have fun, lexicon lovers!

  1. abecedarian
  2. abracadabra
  3. accoutrements
  4. adagio
  5. aficionado
  6. agita
  7. agog
  8. akimbo
  9. alfresco
  10. aloof
  11. ambrosial
  12. amok
  13. ampersand
  14. anemone
  15. anthropomorphic
  16. antimacassar
  17. aplomb
  18. apogee
  19. apoplectic
  20. appaloosa
  21. apparatus
  22. archipelago
  23. atingle
  24. avuncular
  25. azure
  26. babushka
  27. bailiwick
  28. bafflegab
  29. balderdash
  30. ballistic
  31. bamboozle
  32. bandwagon
  33. barnstorming
  34. beanpole
  35. bedlam
  36. befuddled
  37. bellwether
  38. berserk
  39. bibliopole
  40. bigmouth
  41. bippy
  42. blabbermouth
  43. blatherskite
  44. blindside
  45. blob
  46. blockhead
  47. blowback
  48. blowhard
  49. blubbering
  50. bluestockings
  51. boing
  52. boffo (boffola)
  53. bombastic
  54. bonanza
  55. bonkers
  56. boondocks
  57. boondoggle
  58. borborygmus
  59. bozo
  60. braggadocio
  61. brainstorm
  62. brannigan
  63. breakneck
  64. brouhaha
  65. buckaroo
  66. bucolic
  67. buffoon
  68. bugaboo
  69. bugbear
  70. bulbous
  71. bumbledom
  72. bumfuzzle
  73. bumpkin
  74. bungalow
  75. bunkum
  76. bupkis
  77. burnsides
  78. busybody
  79. cacophony
  80. cahoots
  81. calamity
  82. calliope
  83. candelabra
  84. canoodle
  85. cantankerous
  86. catamaran
  87. catastrophe
  88. catawampus
  89. caterwaul
  90. chatterbox
  91. chichi
  92. chimerical
  93. chimichanga
  94. chitchat
  95. clandestine
  96. claptrap
  97. clishmaclaver
  98. clodhopper
  99. cockamamie
  100. cockatoo
  101. codswallop
  102. collywobbles
  103. colossus
  104. comeuppance
  105. concoction
  106. conniption
  107. contraband
  108. conundrum
  109. convivial
  110. copacetic
  111. corkscrew
  112. cornucopia
  113. cowabunga
  114. coxcomb
  115. crackerjack
  116. crescendo
  117. crestfallen
  118. cryptozoology
  119. cuckoo
  120. curlicue
  121. curmudgeon
  122. demitasse
  123. denouement
  124. desperado
  125. diaphanous
  126. diddly-squat
  127. digeridoo
  128. dilemma
  129. dillydally
  130. dimwit
  131. diphthong
  132. dirigible
  133. discombobulated
  134. dodecahedron
  135. doldrums
  136. donkeyman
  137. donnybrook
  138. doodad
  139. doohickey (this is what I call a library due date card)
  140. doppelganger
  141. dumbfounded
  142. dumbwaiter
  143. dunderhead
  144. earwig
  145. eavesdrop
  146. ebullient
  147. effervescence
  148. egads
  149. eggcorn
  150. egghead
  151. elixir
  152. ephemeral
  153. epiphany
  154. eucatastrophe
  155. extraterrestrial
  156. finagle
  157. fandango
  158. festooned
  159. fez
  160. fiasco
  161. fiddle-footed
  162. fiddlesticks
  163. finicky
  164. firebrand
  165. fishwife
  166. fisticuffs
  167. flabbergasted
  168. flapdoodle
  169. flibbertigibbet
  170. flimflam
  171. flippant
  172. floccinaucinihilipilification
  173. flophouse
  174. flotsam
  175. flummery
  176. flummoxed
  177. flyaway
  178. flyspeck
  179. folderol
  180. foofaraw
  181. foolhardy
  182. foolscap
  183. footloose
  184. fopdoodle
  185. fortuitous
  186. fracas
  187. frangipani
  188. freewheeling
  189. fricassee
  190. frippery
  191. frogman
  192. froufrou
  193. fuddy-duddy
  194. fussbudget
  195. futz
  196. gadfly
  197. gadzooks
  198. gallimaufry
  199. gangplank
  200. gangway
  201. gargoyle
  202. gasbag
  203. gazebo
  204. gazpacho
  205. gewgaw
  206. genteel
  207. ghostwriter
  208. gibberish
  209. gimcrack
  210. gizmo
  211. glabella
  212. glitch
  213. globetrotter
  214. gobbledygook
  215. gobsmacked
  216. goosebump
  217. gooseflesh
  218. gorgonzola
  219. gossamer
  220. grandiloquent
  221. greenhorn
  222. guffaw
  223. gumshoe
  224. guru
  225. gussied
  226. guttersnipe
  227. haberdashery
  228. haboob
  229. hairpin
  230. halcyon
  231. halfwit
  232. hangdog
  233. haphazard
  234. harebrained
  235. harumph
  236. harum-scarum
  237. headlong
  238. heartstrings
  239. heebie-jeebie
  240. heirloom
  241. helter-skelter
  242. hemidemisemiquaver
  243. heyday
  244. higgledy-piggledy
  245. highfalutin
  246. hijinks
  247. hillbilly
  248. hippocampus
  249. hippogriff
  250. hobbledehoy
  251. hobnobbed
  252. hocus-pocus
  253. hodgepodge
  254. hogwash
  255. hokum
  256. hoodoo
  257. hoodwink
  258. hooey
  259. hooligan
  260. hoopla
  261. hootenanny
  262. hornswoggle
  263. horsefeathers
  264. hotbed
  265. hotfoot
  266. hothead
  267. hubbub
  268. hullabaloo
  269. humbug
  270. humdinger
  271. humdrum
  272. hunky-dory
  273. hurly-burly
  274. hushpuppy
  275. huzzah
  276. hyperbole
  277. idiom
  278. idiosyncrasies
  279. igloo
  280. ignoramus
  281. impromptu
  282. incognito
  283. incorrigible
  284. incredulous
  285. indomitable
  286. indubitably
  287. infinitesimal
  288. interloper
  289. interrobang
  290. ironclad
  291. izzard
  292. jabberwocky
  293. jacuzzi
  294. jalopy
  295. jamboree
  296. jargogle
  297. jawbreaker
  298. jetsam
  299. jibber-jabber
  300. jitney
  301. jubilee
  302. juggernaut
  303. jujubes
  304. jumbo
  305. junket
  306. juxtaposition
  307. kaleidoscope
  308. kaput
  309. kerfuffle
  310. kerplunk
  311. kibosh
  312. killjoy
  313. kismet
  314. knickerbocker
  315. knickknack
  316. kowtow
  317. kumquat
  318. kvetch
  319. lackadaisical
  320. lagoon
  321. lambasted
  322. lampoon
  323. landlubber
  324. laughingstock
  325. lexicographer
  326. limburger
  327. lingo
  328. loco
  329. loggerhead
  330. logjam
  331. logophile
  332. logorrhea
  333. lollapalooza
  334. lollygag
  335. loofah
  336. loony
  337. loophole
  338. lugubrious
  339. lummox
  340. machinations
  341. madcap
  342. maelstrom
  343. magnificent
  344. majordomo
  345. malapropism
  346. malarkey
  347. manifesto
  348. mastermind
  349. mayhem
  350. mealymouthed
  351. mellifluous
  352. menagerie
  353. miasma
  354. miffed
  355. milquetoast
  356. misanthrope
  357. mishmash
  358. moocher
  359. mojo (also a character in THE MONSTORE)
  360. mollycoddle
  361. mondegreen
  362. moniker
  363. monkeyshines
  364. monsoon
  365. mnemonic
  366. moonstruck
  367. muckety-muck
  368. mudpuppy
  369. mudslinger
  370. muffuletta
  371. mufti
  372. mulligatawny
  373. mumbo-jumbo
  374. murmuration
  375. muumuu
  376. nabob
  377. namby-pamby
  378. nimrod
  379. nincompoop
  380. nitwit
  381. nomenclature
  382. nonplussed
  383. noodge
  384. nudnik
  385. numbskull
  386. onomatopoeia
  387. oomph
  388. orotund
  389. outfox
  390. outlandish
  391. oxymoron
  392. pachyderm
  393. pagoda
  394. palindrome
  395. palomino
  396. panache
  397. pandemonium
  398. pantaloons
  399. papyrus
  400. parabola
  401. parallelogram
  402. parapet
  403. paraphernalia
  404. pedagogue
  405. peewee
  406. pell-mell
  407. persimmon
  408. persnickety
  409. pettifogger
  410. phalanx
  411. phantasmagorical
  412. phantonym
  413. phylactery
  414. piffle
  415. pizzazz
  416. plethora
  417. pogo
  418. pogonip
  419. pollex
  420. pollywog
  421. poltroon
  422. pomposity
  423. poppycock
  424. portmanteau
  425. potpourri
  426. pseudonym
  427. pugnacious
  428. pulchritudinous
  429. pusillanimous
  430. pussyfoot
  431. quibble
  432. quicksilver
  433. quicksticks
  434. quiddle
  435. quinzee
  436. quirky
  437. quixotic
  438. quizzity
  439. rabble-rouser
  440. raconteur
  441. rainmaker
  442. ragamuffin
  443. ragtag
  444. ramshackle
  445. ransack
  446. rapscallion
  447. razzle-dazzle
  448. razzmatazz
  449. rejigger
  450. rendezvous
  451. resplendent
  452. rickrack
  453. ricochet
  454. riffraff
  455. rigmarole
  456. riposte
  457. roundabout
  458. roustabout
  459. rubberneck
  460. ruckus
  461. ruffian
  462. rugrat
  463. rumpus
  464. sabayon
  465. sashay
  466. sassafras
  467. scalawag (also scallywag)
  468. scatterbrain
  469. schadenfreude
  470. schlep
  471. schluffy
  472. schmooze
  473. schmutz
  474. scintillating
  475. scrofulous
  476. scrumdiddlyumptious (Dahlism)
  477. scuttlebutt
  478. serendipity
  479. sesquipedalian
  480. shabang
  481. shenanigans
  482. skedaddle
  483. skirmish
  484. skullduggery
  485. slapdash
  486. slapstick
  487. slipshod
  488. smithereens
  489. smorgasbord
  490. snollygoster
  491. sobriquet
  492. sojourn
  493. spellbind
  494. splendiferous
  495. squeegee
  496. squooshy
  497. staccato
  498. stupefaction
  499. succotash
  500. supercilious
  501. superfluous
  502. surreptitious
  503. Svengali
  504. swashbuckler
  505. switcheroo
  506. swizzlestick
  507. synchronicity
  508. syzygy
  509. talisman
  510. taradiddle
  511. tchotchke
  512. teepee
  513. telekinesis
  514. thingamabob
  515. thingamajig
  516. thunderstruck
  517. tidbit
  518. tintinnabulation
  519. toadstool
  520. toady
  521. tomfoolery
  522. tommyrot
  523. toothsome
  524. topsy-turvy
  525. trapezoid
  526. tub-thumper
  527. tumultuous
  528. typhoon
  529. ululation
  530. umlaut
  531. umpteen
  532. usurp
  533. uvula
  534. vagabond
  535. vamoose
  536. verboten
  537. verisimilitude
  538. vermicious (well, if I included one Dahlism, why not another?)
  539. vertigo
  540. verve
  541. virtuoso
  542. vivacious
  543. vuvuzela
  544. wackadoodle
  545. wallflower
  546. wanderlust
  547. whatchamacallit
  548. whatsis
  549. whimsical
  550. whippersnapper
  551. whirligig
  552. whirlybird
  553. whizbang
  554. whodunit
  555. whoop
  556. widget
  557. wigwam
  558. willy-nilly
  559. windbag
  560. wipeout
  561. wiseacre
  562. wisecrack
  563. wisenheimer
  564. wishy-washy
  565. woebegone
  566. wonky
  567. woozy
  568. wordplay
  569. wordsmith
  570. wunderkind
  571. wuthering
  572. xylophone
  573. yahoo
  574. yokel
  575. yo-yo
  576. zaftig
  577. zeitgeist
  578. zenzizenzizenzic (yes, this is a word!)
  579. zephyr
  580. zeppelin
  581. ziggurat
  582. zigzag
  583. zonked
  584. zoom
  585. zydeco