A Collection of Word Oddities and Trivia, Page 10

BEAUTIFUL (AND NOT-SO-BEAUTIFUL) WORDS Wilfred Funk's list of the most beautiful words in English: ASPHODEL, FAWN, DAWN, CHALICE, ANEMONE, TRANQUIL, HUSH, GOLDEN, HALCYON, CAMELLIA, BOBOLINK, THRUSH, CHIMES, MURMURING, LULLABY, LUMINOUS, DAMASK, CERULEAN, MELODY, MARIGOLD, JONQUIL, ORIOLE, TENDRIL, MYRRH, MIGNONETTE, GOSSAMER, ALYSSEUM, MIST, OLEANDER, AMARYLLIS, ROSEMARY. [Alysseum may be a misspelling of alyssum, but this is how the word appears in Paul Dickson's Words.]

In the same poll, other American writers, poets, and critics responded with these selections: HOME (Lowell Thomas), CHATTANOOGA (Irvin S. Cobb), MELODY (Charles Swain Thomas), NOBILITY (Stephen D. Wise), VERMILLION (Lew Sarett), GRACIOUS (Bess Streeter Aldrich), PAVEMENT (Arnold Bennett), LOVELY (George Balch Nevin), HARBORS OF MEMORY (William McFee), and NEVERMORE (Elias Lieberman). Louis Untermeyer responded, "The most musical words seem to be those containing the letter 'l'. I think, offhand, of such words as VIOLET, LAKE, LAUGHTER, WILLOW, LOVELY, and other such limpid and liquid syllables" [Charles Turner].

According to James Joyce, CUSPIDOR is the most beautiful word in English [Dickson].

In A Pilgrim at Tinker Creek (page 86), Annie Dillard writes: "My friend Rosanne Coggeshall, the poet, says that 'sycamore' is the most intrinsically beautiful word in English" [Sarah Gossett].

The ten worst-sounding words in English, according to a poll by the National Association of Teachers of Speech in August, 1946: CACOPHONY, CRUNCH, FLATULENT, GRIPE, JAZZ, PHLEGMATIC, PLUMP, PLUTOCRAT, SAP, and TREACHERY.

According to reporter, editor, writer, and author Willard R. Espy, the ten most beautiful words in the English language are GONORRHEA, GOSSAMER, LULLABY, MEANDERING, MELLIFLUOUS, MURMURING, ONOMATOPOEIA, SHENANDOAH, SUMMER AFTERNOON, WISTERIA [The Book of Lists 2 (1980)].

According to Espy, the ten ugliest-sounding words in English, excluding indecent words, are FRUCTIFY, KUMQUAT, QUAHOG, CREPUSCULAR, KAKKAK, GARGOYLE, CACOPHONOUS, AASVOGEL, BROBDINGNAGIAN, JUKEBOX [The Book of Lists: The '90s Edition].

VICTUALS (pronounced "vittles") is the ugliest word in the language according to Harry Golden [Dickson].

NYNEX was deemed to be the worst name of any company in America by the publisher of Advertising Age [Dickson].

MOST FREQUENT APPEARANCE OF EACH LETTER IN A SINGLE WORD Sources: Ross Eckler (Making The Alphabet Dance), Dan Tilque, Rudy Wang, Bruce D. Wilner, Gary Rosenberg, Stuart Kidd, Philip Bennett, Pierre Abbat, Keith Long, Chris Cole, Wordplay, Jeff Grant in Word Ways, Rex Gooch, Nancy F. Lockwood, Darryl Francis in Word Ways, and rec. puzzles.

Abbreviations for this section:
DIC = Dict of Inorganic Compounds, Chapman & Hall, 1992
DOC = Dict of Organic Compounds, Chapman & Hall, 1996
GHCD = Grant and Hackh's Chemical Dict, 1987
IDMB = International Dict of Medicine & Biology, 1986

There are 9 A's in AQUAETHYLENEDIAMINETETRAACETATOMANGANATE (DIC).

There are 6 A's in TARAMASALATA, PALAEACANTHOCEPHALA, TATHAGATAGARBHA, TARANTARRATARA (the sound of a bugle or drum, OED), and ADAMANTOBLASTOMATA. There are also 6 A's in ASTRAGALOCALCANEAL and CALCANEOASTRAGALAR although the status of these words is uncertain.

There are four B's in BUBBYBUSH (W3), BEBLUBBERED, FLIBBERTIGIBBET, and BIBLIOBIBULI (a word coined by H. L. Mencken which means "people who read too much and so are generally oblivious to the world around them").

There are 6 C's in CHOLANGIOCHOLECYSTOCHOLEDOCHECTOMY (IDMB) and CLACK-CLACK-CLACK (OED).

There are 5 C's in COCCOCHROMATIC (W2), CIRCUMCRESCENCE (W3), MICROCOCCACEAE (a type of bacteria), SACCHAROCOCCUS (a type of bacteria), CHROOCOCCACEAE (the family of blue-green algae), CHROOCOCCACEOUS, and ECHINOCOCCIC.

There are 4 C's in BECCACCIA, BOCCACCIO, CACHECTIC, CONCYCLIC, GONOCOCCIC, MICROCOCCI, and SCACCHIC (of or pertaining to chess).

There are 5 D's in DISDODECAHEDROID (W3) and DUNDERHEADEDEDNESS.

There are 4 D's in CONDIDDLED, DADDED, DIDDERED, DODDED, DADDLED, DIDDLED, DODDARD, DODDERED, DEADHEADED, DISBUDDED, DOGSLEDDED, DUNDERHEADED, GRANDDADDY, MUDDLEHEADED, SKEDADDLED, WOODSHEDDED, DENDRODENDRITIC.

There are 9 E's in DIHYDROXYBENZENEHEXAMETHYLENETETRAMINE (GHCD).

There are 8 E’s in PEEKEENEENEE (OED).

There are 7 E's in ETHYLENEDIAMINETETRAACETATE (MWCD10). There are also 7 E's in ELECTROTELETHERMOMETER. However, no actual use of this word has been found.

There are 6 E's in DEGENERESCENCE, STEREOTELEMETER, FEEBLEHEARTEDNESS, HEXAMETHYLENETETRAMINE, and BEEVEEDEE (men’s underwear, OED).

There are 4 F's in RIFFRAFF, NIFFNAFF, CHIFFCHAFF, and GIFFGAFF (mutual accommodation, mutual giving - W2).

There are 17 G's in the Massachusetts lake name CHARGOGGAGOGGMANCHAUGGAUGGAGOGGCHAUBUNAGUNGAMAUGG.

There are 5 G's in HIGGLEHAGGLING (W3) and HUGGERMUGGERING.

There are 4 G's in GAGGING, GIGGING, GAGGLING, GIGGLING, GLUGGING, GOGGLING, GUGGLING, AGGREGATING, CHUGALUGGING, DOGLEGGING, WIGWAGGING, ZIGZAGGING, AGGREGING, DISAGGREGATING, and GANGGANG.

There are 8 H's in DIPHENYLDIPHENYLPHOSPHINOTHIOYLMETHYLPHOSPHINE (DOC). (The -thioyl- part of the spelling may be incorrect.)

There are 4 H's in DICHLORODIPHENYLTRICHLOROETHANE, PHENOLSULPHONPHTHALEIN, PHOSPHORIBOSYLPYROPHOSPHATE, PHTHALYLSULPHATHIAZOLE, ICHTHYOPHTHIRA (a crustaceous fish parasite), DINAPHTHOTHIOPHENE (a derivative of coal tar used in moth balls), ICHTHYOPHTHALMITE (a mineral: apophyllite), ICHTHYOPHTHIRIUS (a genus of fish parasite), RHAMPHORHYNCHID, RHAMPHORHYNCHUS (a genus of pterodactyls), and OPHTHALMOPHTHISIS (abnormal softness of the eye - Dorland's Medical Dictionary).

There are 9 I's in FLOCCINAUCINIHILIPILIFICATION.

There are 8 I’s in DISINDIVISIBILITIES (OED).

There are 7 I's in INDIVISIBILITIES and INDISTINGUISHABILITIES.

There are 6 I's in INDIVISIBILITY, MINIMIFIDIANISM (OED2), IMPOSSIBILIFICATION, INDISTINGUISHABILITY, HISTOINCOMPATIBILITIES, PERICARDIOMEDIASTINITIS, DIRIGIBILITIES, DISCRIMINABILITIES, DISTINGUISHABILITIES, DIVISIBILITIES, IGNITIBILITIES, IMMISCIBILITIES, INDISCERNIBILITIES, INDISCERPTIBILITIES, INDISTINGUISHABILITY, INELIGIBILITIES, INFINITESIMALITIES, and INVISIBILITIES.

There are 4 J's in JEJUNOJEJUNOSTOMY.

There are 4 K's in KAKKAK (a small bittern of Guam - W3), KUKUKUKU (tribespeople of New Guinea), KNICKKNACK (W3), KUKUMAKRANKA, and KVIKKALKUL (a Swedish programming language).

There are 11 L's in the Welsh city LLANFAIRPWLLGWYNGYLLGOGERYCHWYRNDROBWLLLLANTYSILIOGOGOGOCH. An alternate spelling changes the -TYSILIO- to -DYSILIO-: LLANFAIRPWLLGWYNGYLLGOGERYCHWYRNDROBWLLLLANDYSILIOGOGOGOCH which still has eleven L's.

There are 6 L's in ACYLHALOGENALKYL(ALPHYL)AMINE and LLULLAILLACO (a volcano in North Chile).

There are 5 L's in ALLOPLASTICALLY (W3), LILLIBULLERO, POLYSYLLABICALLY, ALLOCHLOROPHYLL, ALLOPLASTICALLY, and LILLYPILLY.

There are 9 M's in DIMETHYLAMINOMETHYLENEAMINOMETHYLENEDIMETHYLAMMONIUM (DOC).

There are 5 M's in AMMOPALLADAMMONIUM and FORMALDEHYDETETRAMETHYLAMIDOFLUORIMUM.

There are 4 M's in MUMMYDOM (W3), MAMMIFORM, MAMMONISM, MUMMIFORM, MOHAMMEDISM, IMMUNOCOMPROMISED, MESEMBRYANTHEMUM, MAMMECTOMY, MULTIMAMMATE, and MAMMOGRAM.

There are 6 N's in NONANNOUNCEMENT (W2), ONNFANNGENN, and UNNBIGUNNEN (OED).

There are 5 N’s in INCONVENIENCING, NONCONFINING, NONDENOMINATIONAL, NONINTERVENTION, NANNOPLANKTON, NONTANNIN, NOVEMNONAGINTILLION (10³⁰⁰), and NONWINNING.

There are 9 O's in PNEUMONOULTRAMICROSCOPICSILICOVOLCANOCONIOSIS (W3 and OED2) and DICHLOROISOTHIOCYANATOOXOPHOSPHORUS (a highly reactive liquid - DIC).

There are 8 O’s in TOOMATOOGOOROO (a spiny New Zealand shrub, OED).

There are 7 O's in CHOLANGIOCHOLECYSTOCHOLEDOCHECTOMY and CHRONONHOTONTHOLOGOS (Roget’s).

There are 6 O's in MONOGONOPOROUS, ODONTONOSOLOGY, PROCTOCOLONOSCOPY, DUODENOCHOLEDOCHOTOMY, CHOLEDOCHODUODENOSTOMY, PSEUDOMONOCOTYLEDONOUS, ZOOLOGICOARCHAEOLOGIST, BROMOCHLORODIFLUOROMETHANE, HYDROCHLOROFLUOROCARBON, PHOTOGEOMORPHOLOGY, and ROOCOOCOO (a pigeon noise, OED).

There are 5 P's in PHOSPHORIBOSYLPYROPHOSPHATE.

There are 4 P's in WHIPPERSNAPPER, HAPLOPAPPUS, PENTAPOPEMPTIC, POLYAPOPEMPTIC, SNIPPERSNAPPER, APLOPAPPUS, UPPOPPED (W2), and UPPROPPED [SOWPODS].

There are 4 Q’s in QAWIQSAQQ (an Alaskan bluff).

There are 3 Q's in QARAQALPAQ (W3), QUINQUESQUAMATA (a species of rubberweed plant of southwest USA), QAQAQ (an insular hill surrounded by glacial ice in Greenland, Word Ways), and QUATTUORQUINQUAGINTILLION (a name for 10¹⁶⁵ in the American system). Allowing proper nouns, there are 3 Q's in QEQERTARSUAQ and QAQORTOQ (both are place names in Greenland).

There are 2 Q's in EQUIVOQUE, QUINQUINA, ALBUQUERQUE, QUINQUAGESIMA, QUINQUENNIA, QUINQUEREME, QUINQUENNIAL, QUAQUAVERSAL, QUASQUECENTENNIAL, QUINQUAGENARIAN, QUINQUENNIUM, QUINQUESECTION, QUISQUILIOUS, QUISQUOS, SESQUIQUADRATE, and QUINQUEVALENT.

Bruce D. Wilner points out that HABAKKUK (a book of the Bible) could be transliterated HABAQQUQ (with 3 Q's). This transliteration requires qoph to be transliterated Q rather than K; there are two qophs in the word but the first one has a dagesh which effectively doubles the consonant.

There are 5 R's in FERRIPROTOPORPHYRIN (W3), REREFERRER, FERROPROTOPORPHYRIN, and TRANSURETEROURETEROSTOMY.

There are 4 R's in CHIRURGERAR, EXTRACURRICULAR, FURRURER, SURRENDERER, TERRORIZER, TRANSFERRER, REFERRER, ARCHTREASURER, ARMOURBEARER, EXTRATERRATORIAL, EXTRATERRESTRIAL, FORESPURRER, REFRIGERATOR.

There are 9 S's in POSSESSIONLESSNESSES (W3).

There are 8 S's in STRESSLESSNESSES.

There are 7 S's in CLASSLESSNESSES, EXPRESSIONLESSNESSES, POSSESSEDNESSES, POSSESSIVENESSES, RESISTLESSNESSES, SENSELESSNESSES, STRESSLESSNESS, and SUCCESSLESSNESS.

There are 6 T’s in UNTITTLETATTLING (OED).

The rec.puzzle archive shows 6 T's in TETRASUBSTITUTEDEST.

There are 5 T's in TRANSUBSTANTIATIONALIST, TOTIPOTENTIALITY, ANTICONSTITUTIONALIST, ETHYLENEDIAMINETETRAACETATE, THROTTLEBOTTOM [rec.puzz], and YTTROTANTALITE.

There are 9 U's in HUMUHUMUNUKUNUKUAPUAA (a triggerfish - RHUD2).

There are 5 U's in UNTUMULTUOUS and PURUSUSAURUS (fossil Amazonian crocodile).

There are 4 U’s in SUCURUJU (anaconda), SURUCUCU (venomous snake of Guinea), MUUMUUS (loose Hawaiian dresses) [all SOWPODS], and UNUNUNIUM (a name for Elemennt 111) .

There are 3 V's in VIVISECTIVE, OVOVIVIPAROUS, VIVIFICATIVE, VULVOVAGINITIS, OVERVIVID [SOWPODS], OVERCONSERVATIVE, EVVIVA (a shout of applause, OED), and OVERINVOLVED.

There are 3 W's in BOWWOW, POWWOW, WILLIWAW, and SWALLOWWORT.

There are 4 X's in HEXAHYDROXYOXYHEXALEAD (DIC).

There are 3 X's in HEXAHYDROXYCYCLOHEXANE (Random House).

There are 2 X's in XEROX, MAXIXE, PAXWAX, XERXES, EXOTOXIC, EXOTOXIN, EXECUTRIX, SAXITOXIN, XANTHOXYL, AXOAXONAL, EXCITOTOXIN, and XANTHOTOXIN.

There are 7 Y's in GLYCYLGLYCYLGLYCYLGLYCINE, which is in DOC, and a legitimate use of which has been found on the Internet.

There are 5 Y’s in POLYSYNBRACHYDACTYLY (a condition of multiple fused shortened digits - IDMB).

There are 4 Y's in DACRYOCYSTOSYRINGOTOMY (W3), DIMETHYLAMIDOPHENYLDIMETHYLPYRAZOLONE, HYDROXYPYRROLIDINECARBOXYLIC, HYDROXYMETHYLACYLFULVENE, POLYHYDROXYBUTYRATE, HYPERPOLYSYLLABICALLY, KYRYMYRY (OED), and ACROCEPHALOPOLYSYNDACTYLY.

There are 3 Y's in SYZYGY, HYPOGYNY, POLYGYNY, SYNONYMY, POLYONYMY, HYPERNYMY, HYPONYMY, POLYMYTHY, POLYTYPY, XYLOGLYPHY.

There are 6 Z's in ZENZIZENZIZENZIC (OED2).

There are 4 Z's in RAZZMATAZZ (W3), PIZZAZZ, and RAZZLEDAZZLE.