Language | BEAUTIFUL (AND NOT-SO-BEAUTIFUL) ENGLISH WORDS

by Professor Auberon Brinsley-Standish

My (Thai) lady is always asking me what “this” means or “that” and often the words are not very complicated and usually very mundane. To help broaden her pronunciation and her vocabulary, I compiled this list of some of the most beautiful words in English...and gave her a bigger dictionary:

ASPHODEL, FAWN, DAWN, CHALICE, ANEMONE, TRANQUIL, HUSH, GOLDEN, HALCYON, CAMELLIA, THRUSH, CHIMES, MURMURING, LULLABY, LUMINOUS, DAMASK, MELODY, MARIGOLD, ORIOLE, TENDRIL, MYRRH, GOSSAMER, MIST, OLEANDER, ROSEMARY.

Other writers, poets, and critics nominate 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).

The most musical words seem to be those containing the letter 'L.
I think, offhand, of such words as VIOLET, LAKE, LAUGHTER, WILLOW, LOVELY, LUST, LILAC and other such liquid syllables.

According to James Joyce, CUSPIDOR is the most beautiful word in English

A survey conducted in 2004 by the British Council which asked more than 40,000 people around the world to rank the most beautiful words among a list of 70 words found MOTHER first, followed by PASSION, SMILE, LOVE, and ETERNITY.

The ten worst-sounding words in English, according to a poll by the National Association of Teachers of Speech in August, 1946 were: 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 SHINE, GOSSAMER, LULLABY, MEANDERING, MELLIFLUOUS, MURMURING, ONOMATOPOEIA, SHENANDOAH, SUMMER AFTERNOON, and WISTERIA.

Espy also nominates the ten ugliest-sounding words in English, excluding indecent words: FRUCTIFY, KUMQUAT, QUAHOG, CREPUSCULAR, KAKKAK, GARGOYLE, CACOPHONOUS, AASVOGEL, BROBDINGNAGIAN, JUKEBOX.

Send us your favourites!

Posted by Zender at August 19, 2005 11:48 AM

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