Teh Unusual, Obscure, and Preposterous Words Thread

[Alexander I]

Originally posted by Spiffor

It's not the longest at all. It's just a typical example of the German language's ability to combine words into bigger ones.
Potentially, a German word can have thousands and thousands of characters, and can still mean something. Nobody would remember such a word however, unlike the Donaudampfschiffskapitan.

Well, hypothetically, yes.
I've just never seen a longer one.

[Victor Galis]

The most interesting German word I've ever seen used though was: Wasserleicheaspirant.

[Odin]

Originally posted by Brachy-Pride

And if english spelling were reformed to make it phonetic, like italian or spanish spalling, it would be even more efficient.

This is one of the most annoying things about English, the spelling of words hasn't changed since the late Middle Ages, in the mean time English went through a massive vowel shift and "gh" (which originally was the same consonant as the German "ch") became silent, basically we are stuck with Middle English spelling.

[Kuciwalker]

This is one of the most annoying things about English, the spelling of words hasn't changed since the late Middle Ages

No.

[Victor Galis]

Well, words from other languages maintain their spellings, which certainly doesn't help.

[Odin]

Originally posted by Kuciwalker

This is one of the most annoying things about English, the spelling of words hasn't changed since the late Middle Ages

No.

OK, "has changed very little"

Happy?

[joncha]

No.

[Barnabas]

"thought" as far as I know has only three phonemes, but 7 letters

Wouldnt it be better to have a phonetic spelling system in which you can write "thought" as, for example, say... "zot" ?

And also one in which you can read a word you never heard before, but because of the phonetic spelling you are sure of how to pronounce that word with 100% certainty?

[-Jrabbit]

"zot"?

Oh, that's right, the Spanish commerorate a royal lisp in Castillian pronunciation. Not at all idiosyncratic...

[Victor Galis]

Could always return to using a single character for "th."

[joncha]

Ditto for "gh." If only those perfidious frenchmen hadn't stopped us from using them in the first place.

[Deity Dude]

Originally posted by molly bloom
I like bookkeeping.

And lengthwise.

Or Bookkeeper - the answer to the old trivia question.

[Spiffor]

Originally posted by joncha
Ditto for "gh." If only those perfidious frenchmen hadn't stopped us from using them in the first place.

HAH - hah!

[Veritass]

My favorite strange word is steatopygous.

[Dinner]

Originally posted by LordShiva


Welsh things don't count

You think Welsh is bad? Try German since those hermans can string almost anything together to make a giant word.