Author Tara Lazar posted a list of Fun Words on her blog. I have done a number of Word Lists on this blog, so as not to reinvent the wheel, I copied Tara’s list and deleted some words so you would have to visit her site. To the right of the column, I added some of my own fun words. I’m sure you have a bunch of words you could add. If you do, just leave them in the comments.
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 here is Tara’s list of fun words and words I have added to it. Have fun, lexicon lovers!
- aficionado
- akimbo
- alfresco
- ambrosial
- anemone
- aplomb
- apoplectic
- appaloosa
- Arietta
- avuncular
- balderdash
- bamboozle
- barnstorming
- befuddled
- berserk Bilge
- boffo
- bombastic
- boondoggle
- bozo
- braggadocio Brewski
- brouhaha
- bucolic
- buffoon Buffoonery
- bulbous
- bumbledom
- bungalow
- cacophony Caboodle
- cahoots
- candelabra
- canoodle
- cantankerous
- caterwaul
- catawampus Chameleon
- chichi
- chimichanga
- claptrap Clairvoyant
- clodhopper
- cockatoo
- codswallop
- comeuppance
- conundrum
- copacetic
- cornucopia Coquette
- cowabunga
- coxcomb
- crestfallen
- cuckolded
- curlicue
- demitasse
- diaphanous Diatribe
- digeridoo
- dilemma Dilettante
- dirigible
- discombobulated
- Donnybrook
- doohickey
- doppelganger Drivel
- ebullient
- effervescence
- egads Enchantress
- extraterrestrial
- finagle
- fandango
- festooned
- fisticuffs
- flabbergasted
- flapdoodle Fledgling
- flibbertigibbet Floozy
- flummoxed
- fortuitous
- fracas
- frippery
- froufrou
- fussbudget
- gadzooks
- gallimaufry Garantuan
- Giddy
- gibberish Ginseng
- gobbledygook
- gobsmacked
- gorgonzola
- gossamer
- guffaw
- haberdashery
- harrumph Harlet
- highfalutin
- hijinks
- hippocampus
- hobbledehoy Hobgoblin
- hodgepodge Hoedown
- hogwash Hooey
- hooligan
- hootenanny Horsefeathers
- hornswoggle
- hubbub
- hullabaloo
- humbug
- humdinger Huzzy
- huzzah
- hyperbole
- idiosyncrasies
- indubitably
- jabberwocky Jibber
- jitney
- juggernaut
- juxtaposition
- kaleidoscope
- kerfuffle
- kerplunk kibosh
- Killjoy
- kismet
- knickerbocker
- knickknack
- kumquat
- lackadaisical
- lambasted
- lampoon
- limburger
- logjam
- logorrhea
- lollapalooza
- lollygag Ludicrous
- lugubrious
- magnificent
- Magnum
- malarkey
- mayhem
- mellifluous Mealymouthed
- menagerie Melee
- milquetoast Mincemeat
- misanthrope
- mishmash
- mojo (character in THE MONSTORE) Motormouth
- mollycoddle Monkeyshine
- mulligatawny Niggle
- nincompoop Nitpicky
- nomenclature
- onomatopoeia
- oxymoron
- pachyderm
- palindrome Palooka
- panache
- pandemonium
- pantaloons
- parallelogram
- persimmon
- persnickety
- pettifogger
- phantasmagorical
- phylactery
- plethora
- pollywog
- pomposity
- poppycock
- potpourri
- Prattle
- quixotic
- raconteur
- ragamuffin
- rapscallion
- razzmatazz
- rejigger
- rendezvous
- resplendent
- ricochet
- rigmarole
- riposte Rotund
- ruffian Ruckus
- sabayon Rumpus
- sassafras
- scalawag
- schadenfreude
- schlep
- scintillating
- scrofulous
- scrumdiddlyumptious
- scuttlebutt
- serendipity
- shenanigans Shindig
- skedaddle
- skullduggery
- smorgasbord
- sojourn Soothsayer
- splendiferous
- squeegee
- squooshy
- staccato
- Stiletto
- superfluous
- Svengali
- swashbuckler
- swizzlestick
- synchronicity
- syzygy
- talisman
- taradiddle Teetotaler
- Teenybopper
- telekinesis Tenderfoot
- thingamabob
- thingamajig Tirade
- tomfoolery Tootsie
- trapezoid Twadle
- usurp
- uvula
- verisimilitude
- vermicious
- vertigo
- verve
- vivacious Voodoo
- vuvuzela
- wanderlust
- whippersnapper
- wigwam
- woebegone
- zaftig Yakkity
- zeitgeist
- zenzizenzizenzic (yes, this is a word! look it up!)
- zephyr
- zeppelin
- zigzag Zombie
Talk tomorrow,
Kathy
Writing and Illustrating 
When I first saw this on Tara’s blog, I immediately printed it out and put it in my “tools” pile. Excellent one to post about, Kathy 😀
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By: writersideup on June 24, 2014
at 9:57 am
As someone who also loves words, wouldn’t it make a great “story starter” to choose three or four words at random and incorporate them into a story? Just sayin’
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By: darlenebeckjacobson on June 24, 2014
at 11:36 am
Nice list! I photocopied the words list from a GRE study guide for the same reason…just to have beautiful words to look through every so often. 🙂
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By: teresarobeson on June 24, 2014
at 2:02 pm
I like the word “diffident” and have to stop every once in a while and see if I still remember it because I’m one of those people who look up the same words over and over in a dictionary and rarely remember them. The writers I read all seem to have such greater vocabularies than I.
I’m impressed with the maker of this list!
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By: Peter Garland on June 24, 2014
at 10:57 pm
Peter, just so you know—I, too, do the same thing. My faulty recall has me forgetting even common words we use all the time, so you are NOT alone! I feel the same way. Still…we HAVE dictionaries and thesauruses to help—thank God! 😀
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By: writersideup on June 24, 2014
at 11:07 pm
Acrid. I was fascinated seeing the word used in a lot of prose and poetry. And, it was one I didn’t have in my working list of words. Great word that is almost an anemonapeia. Did I spell that correctly? Tee Hee.
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By: Carol on June 25, 2014
at 4:28 pm
how is kibosh not on this list!
Great list!
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By: sara on April 22, 2015
at 9:18 am
That is a good one. Thanks!
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By: Kathy Temean on April 22, 2015
at 10:05 am