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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. incredulous
  283. indomitable
  284. indubitably
  285. infinitesimal
  286. interloper
  287. interrobang
  288. ironclad
  289. izzard
  290. jabberwocky
  291. jacuzzi
  292. jalopy
  293. jamboree
  294. jargogle
  295. jawbreaker
  296. jetsam
  297. jibber-jabber
  298. jitney
  299. jubilee
  300. juggernaut
  301. jujubes
  302. jumbo
  303. junket
  304. juxtaposition
  305. kaleidoscope
  306. kaput
  307. kerfuffle
  308. kerplunk
  309. kibosh
  310. killjoy
  311. kismet
  312. knickerbocker
  313. knickknack
  314. kowtow
  315. kumquat
  316. kvetch
  317. lackadaisical
  318. lagoon
  319. lambasted
  320. lampoon
  321. landlubber
  322. laughingstock
  323. lexicographer
  324. limburger
  325. lingo
  326. loco
  327. loggerhead
  328. logjam
  329. logophile
  330. logorrhea
  331. lollapalooza
  332. lollygag
  333. loofah
  334. loony
  335. loophole
  336. lugubrious
  337. lummox
  338. machinations
  339. madcap
  340. maelstrom
  341. magnificent
  342. majordomo
  343. malapropism
  344. malarkey
  345. manifesto
  346. mastermind
  347. mayhem
  348. mealymouthed
  349. mellifluous
  350. menagerie
  351. miasma
  352. miffed
  353. milquetoast
  354. misanthrope
  355. mishmash
  356. moocher
  357. mojo (also a character in THE MONSTORE)
  358. mollycoddle
  359. mondegreen
  360. moniker
  361. monkeyshines
  362. monsoon
  363. mnemonic
  364. moonstruck
  365. muckety-muck
  366. mudpuppy
  367. mudslinger
  368. muffuletta
  369. mufti
  370. mulligatawny
  371. mumbo-jumbo
  372. murmuration
  373. muumuu
  374. nabob
  375. namby-pamby
  376. nimrod
  377. nincompoop
  378. nitwit
  379. nomenclature
  380. nonplussed
  381. noodge
  382. nudnik
  383. numbskull
  384. onomatopoeia
  385. oomph
  386. orotund
  387. outfox
  388. outlandish
  389. oxymoron
  390. pachyderm
  391. pagoda
  392. palindrome
  393. palomino
  394. panache
  395. pandemonium
  396. pantaloons
  397. papyrus
  398. parabola
  399. parallelogram
  400. parapet
  401. paraphernalia
  402. pedagogue
  403. peewee
  404. pell-mell
  405. persimmon
  406. persnickety
  407. pettifogger
  408. phalanx
  409. phantasmagorical
  410. phantonym
  411. phylactery
  412. piffle
  413. pizzazz
  414. plethora
  415. pogo
  416. pogonip
  417. pollex
  418. pollywog
  419. poltroon
  420. pomposity
  421. poppycock
  422. portmanteau
  423. potpourri
  424. pseudonym
  425. pugnacious
  426. pulchritudinous
  427. pusillanimous
  428. pussyfoot
  429. quibble
  430. quicksilver
  431. quicksticks
  432. quiddle
  433. quinzee
  434. quirky
  435. quixotic
  436. quizzity
  437. rabble-rouser
  438. raconteur
  439. rainmaker
  440. ragamuffin
  441. ragtag
  442. ransack
  443. rapscallion
  444. razzle-dazzle
  445. razzmatazz
  446. rejigger
  447. rendezvous
  448. resplendent
  449. rickrack
  450. ricochet
  451. riffraff
  452. rigmarole
  453. riposte
  454. roundabout
  455. roustabout
  456. rubberneck
  457. ruckus
  458. ruffian
  459. rugrat
  460. rumpus
  461. sabayon
  462. sashay
  463. sassafras
  464. scalawag (also scallywag)
  465. scatterbrain
  466. schadenfreude
  467. schlep
  468. schluffy
  469. schmooze
  470. schmutz
  471. scintillating
  472. scrofulous
  473. scrumdiddlyumptious (Dahlism)
  474. scuttlebutt
  475. serendipity
  476. sesquipedalian
  477. shabang
  478. shenanigans
  479. skedaddle
  480. skullduggery
  481. slapdash
  482. slapstick
  483. slipshod
  484. smithereens
  485. smorgasbord
  486. snollygoster
  487. sobriquet
  488. sojourn
  489. spellbind
  490. splendiferous
  491. squeegee
  492. squooshy
  493. staccato
  494. stupefaction
  495. succotash
  496. supercilious
  497. superfluous
  498. Svengali
  499. swashbuckler
  500. switcheroo
  501. swizzlestick
  502. synchronicity
  503. syzygy
  504. talisman
  505. taradiddle
  506. tchotchke
  507. teepee
  508. telekinesis
  509. thingamabob
  510. thingamajig
  511. thunderstruck
  512. tidbit
  513. tintinnabulation
  514. toadstool
  515. toady
  516. tomfoolery
  517. tommyrot
  518. toothsome
  519. topsy-turvy
  520. trapezoid
  521. tub-thumper
  522. tumultuous
  523. typhoon
  524. ululation
  525. umlaut
  526. umpteen
  527. usurp
  528. uvula
  529. vamoose
  530. verisimilitude
  531. vermicious (well, if I included one Dahlism, why not another?)
  532. vertigo
  533. verve
  534. virtuoso
  535. vivacious
  536. vuvuzela
  537. wackadoodle
  538. wallflower
  539. wanderlust
  540. whatchamacallit
  541. whatsis
  542. whimsical
  543. whippersnapper
  544. whirligig
  545. whirlybird
  546. whizbang
  547. whodunit
  548. whoop
  549. widget
  550. wigwam
  551. willy-nilly
  552. windbag
  553. wipeout
  554. wiseacre
  555. wisecrack
  556. wisenheimer
  557. wishy-washy
  558. woebegone
  559. wonky
  560. woozy
  561. wordplay
  562. wordsmith
  563. wunderkind
  564. wuthering
  565. xylophone
  566. yahoo
  567. yellow-belly
  568. yokel
  569. yo-yo
  570. zaftig
  571. zeitgeist
  572. zenzizenzizenzic (yes, this is a word! look it up!)
  573. zephyr
  574. zeppelin
  575. ziggurat
  576. zigzag
  577. zonked
  578. zoom
  579. zydeco