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