Longest Words in English: Has someone ever asked you about the longest possible word in English? Is this new to you? Our vocabulary can be improved if we know a few long words in English. Even though it can be a little tricky to remember long words, there are tricks to learn them. Smaller root words when joined together make long words. If you break down the long words into shorter ones & try to understand their meaning, it will be easy for one to remember the entire word.
Longest Words in English
It’s for a reason, that long words exist in English. Sometimes, ancient & modern authors come up with these words or make new words just for fun. Some terms have a medical origin, or are from chemistry or they are a certain type of protein. The longest word in a particular language depends on the rules of word formation of a specific language & the types of words. Other long words exist, but they are rarely used in a sentence.
Most English words longer than about 15-20 letters are scientific, meaningless, or highly specialized & are formed by affixation. Affixation means the process of adding affixes to a base word to give a derivative word—in the word affixation, for instance, –ation is an affix.
List of Longest Words in English
We must admit that when we come across big words, we find it quite amusing. Some of these long words are either created by ancient & modern authors just for fun. Other long words either are terms in chemistry, or have a medical origin or are a certain type of a protein.
Depending upon the rules of word formation in a specific language & the type of words, we have longest words. There are :
- the longest word without vowels
- the longest one-syllable word &
Figuring out which word is the longest out of all isn’t easy. Its not just about counting letters. Should scientific words, obscure, or rarely used words be included?
Certain longest words in English have been given below, along with their meanings for our reference.
Longest Word in the World
There are 52 letters in the longest word in the world. Its a combination of seven words. Even though it may not be a word in the dictionary, but it is known to be the biggest word in English. Given below, is the longest word :
Aequeosalinocalcalinoceraceoaluminosocupreovitriolic
This 52-letter word was coined by Dr. Edward -Strother, It describes the spa waters in Bath, England.
Meaning of the words given below :
Aequeo : being equal
Salino : Contains salt
Calcalino : Contains or related to calcium
Ceraceo : Having a waxy quality
Aluminoso : Contains alumina or aluminium
Cupreo : Relates to copper
Vitriolic : resembles something
Other than the above-mentioned longest word in the world, there are various other long words in English along with their meanings which are given below :
1) Pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis
It is made up of 45 letters. Breathing in of silica dust causes this lung condition. The term & illness is usually abbreviated as silicosis, which is easy to remember.
2) Hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia
It is a 36-letter word. It means the fear of long words, which is an irony.
3) Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious
It is a 34-letter word in English, made popular by the 1964 Disney musical Mary Poppins. It means what we say when we are unsure about what to say.
4) Pseudopseudohypoparathyroidism
It has 35 letters. It means when a moderate instance of hereditary pseudohypoparathyroidism mimics the disorder’s symptoms but is not related to the excessive amounts of calcium & phosphorus present in blood.
5) Floccinaucinihilipilification
It is made up of 29 letters. This word is used as a noun which means the habit of regarding something as unimportant.
6) Spectrophotofluorometrically
Its a 28-letter word. This is used as an adverb which means the measurement of light given off with an instrument, a spectrophotofluorometer.
7) Antidisestablishmentarianism
Its a 28-letter word. It means a political philosophy opposed to the state & church.
8) Psychoneuroendocrinological
This 27-letter word refers to the psychological study of the relationship between behaviour & hormones in humans.
9) Pneumoencephalographically
It has 26 letters. Its actually a technical term. It refers to the antiquated medical practices where there is evacuation of the spinal fluids & air is introduced so that the brain’s structural components get a clearer view.
10) Otorhinolaryngological
This 22-letter word is used as an adjective for something pertaining to otorhinolaryngology. It is the study of conditions dealing with the ear, nose & throat.
11) Incomprehensibilities
Its a 21-letter word which we use in our day-to-day conversation. This word refers to things that are incomprehensible.
12) Strengths
Even though it has only 9 letters, its another long word. It has 8 consonants & only one vowel – the ‘e’ in the middle making it one of the longest monosyllabic words in English.
13) Euouae
It is a 6-letter word made up of vowels. It holds two world records : it is the longest word in the English language that is only made up of vowels & it also has the most consecutive vowels of any word. It is a musical word from the Middle Ages, which means a mnemonic to recall a particular sequence of tones.
14) Methionylthreonylthreonylglutaminyl…
continues after that…..
The longest string of letters used to describe something which isn’t technically a word—means the chemical name for a protein. It consists of 189,819 letters, fills more than 50 pages & takes more than three hours to say.
15) Floccinaucinihilipilification
It has 29 letters, means “the act or habit of assessing something as worthless”.
16) Methylenedioxymethamphetamine
Meaning a synthetic amphetamine used illicitly as it enhances the mood & is hallucinogenic. It has 29 letters.
17) Laryngotracheobronchitis
It has 24 letters. It means the inflammation of the larynx, trachea & bronchi.
18) Hydrochlorofluorocarbon
It has 23 letters. Its a type of gas known as HCFC.
19) Electroencephalographically
It has 27 letters. It means an apparatus that records brain waves—known as an electroencephalograph.
20) Psychoneuroimmunology
It has 21 letters. It means a branch of medicine which deals with the influence of emotional state & nervous system activities on the immune function.
Way Forward
There is technically no limit on how long a word can be. We can improve our vocabulary if we learn few long words. Long words are usually formed by putting together some short words, which then mean something. If we break these long words into shorter ones & try to understand them one by one, we will get its meaning. Most of the words formed are due to affixation. Affixation means the process of adding affixes to a base word to give a derivative word.
There are the longest words without vowels, the longest one-syllable word & other unique long words. The longest words may be recorded by the Oxford English Dictionary or be a part of the Guinness Book of World Records.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which is the longest word in English?
The longest word in English is pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis.
Name one of the longest monosyllabic words in English.
Strengths is another long word even though it has only 9 letters. It has 8 consonants & only one vowel – the ‘e’ in the middle making it one of the longest monosyllabic words in English.
Which is the longest word with only vowels ? It also holds two world records.
The longest word made up of only vowels is euouae. It is a 6-letter word.
Which words has 189,819 letters, fills more than 50 pages & takes more than three hours to say?
Methionylthreonylthreonylglutaminyl…continues after that….. It is the longest string of letters used to describe something which isn’t technically a word—means the chemical name for a protein.
What is the fear of long words known as?
The fear of long words is known as Hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia. It is a 36-letter word.
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