The Longest Words in the English Language
A while back I had a list of long words posted on here. However, there is great debate on the internet as to what counts as a true English word. So in a laborous effort of googling, I now present you with a list of the words that are considered the longest from several perspectives and why.
This is the longest word that is not disputed as not being a real word by anyone. Although some people like to stretch it further with suffixes and prefixes like pseudoantidisestablishmentarianistically. But seriously, no one has ever needed a word for "in the manner of false opposition to the separation of church and state".
This is the longest word that is in the Oxford English Dictionary. It was coined rather than evolved, hence my quotes, but it has been around long enough that its origins aren't very clear and is widely used by literary geeks everywhere. So it's an honorary real word.
Even though this is commonly regarded as The Longest Word in the English Language, it was coined for the sake of being long. If we're going to consider coined words in published works, then Osseocarnisanguineoviscericartilaginonervomedullary (51 letters) from Thomas Love Peacock's Headlong Hall published in 1815 wins by 17 letters.
A hill in New Zealand with a Maori name that translates to "The summit where Tamatea, the man with the big knees, the climber of mountains, the land-swallower who travelled about, played his nose flute to his loved one".
This is a lung disease that miners can get that is sometimes shortened to "white lung". Yes, it's a real word, but if we're going to start accepting medical and scientific terms into the list of longest English words, then we must also allow this next one in...
This is a really large protein with the formula C1289H2051N343O375S8 and yet, there are arguably even larger scientific words that can be created by slapping hundreds of prefixes and suffixes upon other science terms.
There's a mile between each s.
The longest real word is...
28 letters - AntidisestablishmentarianismThis is the longest word that is not disputed as not being a real word by anyone. Although some people like to stretch it further with suffixes and prefixes like pseudoantidisestablishmentarianistically. But seriously, no one has ever needed a word for "in the manner of false opposition to the separation of church and state".
The longest "real" word is...
29 letters - FloccinaucinihilipilificationThis is the longest word that is in the Oxford English Dictionary. It was coined rather than evolved, hence my quotes, but it has been around long enough that its origins aren't very clear and is widely used by literary geeks everywhere. So it's an honorary real word.
The word everyone thinks is the longest...
34 letters - SupercalifragilisticexpialidociousEven though this is commonly regarded as The Longest Word in the English Language, it was coined for the sake of being long. If we're going to consider coined words in published works, then Osseocarnisanguineoviscericartilaginonervomedullary (51 letters) from Thomas Love Peacock's Headlong Hall published in 1815 wins by 17 letters.
The longest place name is...
85 letters - TaumatawhakatangihangakoauauotamateaturipukakapikimaungahoronukupokaiwhenuakitanatahuA hill in New Zealand with a Maori name that translates to "The summit where Tamatea, the man with the big knees, the climber of mountains, the land-swallower who travelled about, played his nose flute to his loved one".
The medical term everyone thinks is the longest...
45 letters - PneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosisThis is a lung disease that miners can get that is sometimes shortened to "white lung". Yes, it's a real word, but if we're going to start accepting medical and scientific terms into the list of longest English words, then we must also allow this next one in...
An even longer scientific term that arguably is still not the longest...
1913 letters - Methionylglutami nylarginyltyrosy lglutamylserylle ucylphenylalanyl alanylglutaminyl leucyllysylgluta mylarginyllysylg lutamylglycylala nylphenylalanylv alylprolylphenyl alanylvalylthreo nylleucylglycyla spartylprolylgly cylisoleucylglut amylglutaminylse rylleucyllysylis oleucylaspartylt hreonylleucyliso leucylglutamylal anylglycylalanyl aspartylalanylle ucylglutamylleuc ylglycylisoleucy lprolylphenylala nylserylaspartyl prolylleucylalan ylaspartylglycyl prolylthreonylis oleucylglutaminy lasparaginylalan ylthreonylleucyl arginylalanylphe nylalanylalanyla lanylglycylvalyl threonylprolylal anylglutaminylcy steinylphenylala nylglutamylmethi onylleucylalanyl leucylisoleucyla rginylglutaminyl lysylhistidylpro lylthreonylisole ucylprolylisoleu cylglycylleucyll eucylmethionylty rosylalanylaspar aginylleucylvaly lphenylalanylasp araginyllysylgly cylisoleucylaspa rtylglutamylphen ylalanyltyrosyla lanylglutaminylc ysteinylglutamyl lysylvalylglycyl valylaspartylser ylvalylleucylval ylalanylaspartyl valylprolylvalyl glutaminylglutam ylserylalanylpro lylphenylalanyla rginylglutaminyl alanylalanylleuc ylarginylhistidy lasparaginylvaly lalanylprolyliso leucylphenylalan ylisoleucylcyste inylprolylprolyl aspartylalanylas partylaspartylas partylleucylleuc ylarginylglutami nylisoleucylalan ylseryltyrosylgl ycylarginylglycy ltyrosylthreonyl tyrosylleucylleu cylserylarginyla lanylglycylvalyl threonylglycylal anylglutamylaspa raginylarginylal anylalanylleucyl prolylleucylaspa raginylhistidyll eucylvalylalanyl lysylleucyllysyl glutamyltyrosyla sparaginylalanyl alanylprolylprol ylleucylglutamin ylglycylphenylal anylglycylisoleu cylserylalanylpr olylaspartylglut aminylvalyllysyl alanylalanylisol eucylaspartylala nylglycylalanyla lanylglycylalany lisoleucylserylg lycylserylalanyl isoleucylvalylly sylisoleucylisol eucylglutamylglu taminylhistidyla sparaginylisoleu cylglutamylproly lglutamyllysylme thionylleucylala nylalanylleucyll ysylvalylphenyla lanylvalylglutam inylprolylmethio nyllysylalanylal anylthreonylargi nylserineThis is a really large protein with the formula C1289H2051N343O375S8 and yet, there are arguably even larger scientific words that can be created by slapping hundreds of prefixes and suffixes upon other science terms.
The smart ass answer...
6 letters - SmilesThere's a mile between each s.
User Comments: 5
Post by Kiffler on 10 Cado 13:3 - 18.54.63
What about pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis?
Post by eofpi on 10 Cado 13:4 - 4.53.40
It's in there.
Post by beary605 on 10 Cado 14:1 - 14.75.63
Darn, I thought the longest place name was Charchoggamun- never mind, Webster Lake.
C1289H2051N343O375S8
There we go. :P
C1289H2051N343O375S8
There we go. :P
Post by stubbythegreat on 11 Cresco 1:5 - 17.94.3
My friend convinced me that Floccinaucinihilipilification was a synonym for "pwnd"
Post by OmnipotentEntity on 11 Cresco 1:5 - 18.31.30
stubbythegreat said:
My friend convinced me that Floccinaucinihilipilification was a synonym for "pwnd"
It's the act of assessing something as worthless. So I'd say it's related
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