Just for Fun

Shelter is a basic human need, as essential as food and water. As a result, there are many words to describe the place you live, each with its own history and connotation. Get ready for some home schooling!

Words like "desk" and "chair" are so drab and commonplace that we pay them no mind. Give your vocabulary a makeover with these words for furniture that will have you sounding like a famous interior designer.

The right words are the foundation for understanding a subject. These architectural terms will help you construct a monumental vocabulary!

Rejoice, Star Wars fans! May the 4th is National Star Wars Day! The epic film series launched plenty of words—like Jedi and Wookiee—but it also made use of existing words, giving them a new spin, and a new force, if you will. Our Star Wars lexicon will serve you well in any galaxy. Read the full article here.

Mothers do so many things, which is why a good nap may be the best gift you can give your own mom on Mother's Day. Still, you might want to offer Mom a few words of appreciation, so here's a list of 13 verbs that get to the heart of what mothers do. Read more here: A Motherlode of Vocabulary for Mother's Day

Many common animal names are also verbs. Often their meanings relate closely to an animal's appearance or behavior, but sometimes there’s more to the story. Learn the words on this list and you'll have something to crow about!

Every animal propels itself a little differently, and many of those motions have become words that evoke a particular attitude or characteristic. Learning this list will give you some new lexical moves. Hop to it!

Are you angling for a bigger vocabulary to tell your next fish story? Let this list lure you under the waves, where you'll catch a net full of shiny words from the ocean kingdom. Take the plunge!

Do some bird-related words fly over your head? Don’t wing it — take a quack at this emu-sing list of avian words. You won’t egret it!

Sculpture is likely the most ancient of all arts, possibly going back half a million years to the pre-human era. Whatever style you prefer, this list will help you shape your vocabulary into a work of art.

Turn over a new lexical leaf and branch out with this list of arboreal vocabulary. Learning these words will really spruce up your language!

The art of painting is at least 40,000 years old — there's something fundamentally human about the urge to create pictures of the things we see or imagine. Use this list to brush up on your palette of painterly parlance.

Tax Day, April 15th, is the second most dreaded day of the year — next to Doomsday. The language of taxation runs all over the financial map, describing the wealthy, the disadvantaged, and the tedious process of paying taxes. Here are some words you're likely to hear in relation to this stressful day, which can be — pardon the expression — quite taxing.

From Shakespeare's sonnets to Kendrick Lamar's lyrics, language that is organized around rhythm and rhyme can carry enormous meaning and emotional force. Whether you're into epic odes or freestyle slams, this list gives you the lingo you need to unlock some of the most beautiful works ever written.

If you're into singing, dancing, or acting — or if you like to watch other people perform — you're going to want to learn this dramatic list and get your vocabulary on point.

National Grilled Cheese Day is celebrated on April 12. To show our appreciation for this iconic sandwich, we present a metaphorical "grilled cheese" sandwich — synonyms for grill, as in "question strenuously," plus synonyms for cheesy, as in "tacky." (Tomato soup not included.)

You'd be a fool not to learn these words related to pranks, jokes, and deceit. For more on the history of these words, read The Cunning, Risible Holiday of April Fool's Day.

Whether you've said the wrong thing or tripped in front of a room full of people, we've all experienced awkward moments. These words will come in handy on National Awkward Moments Day because having a strong vocabulary should never be embarrassing. Read more on our blog: Embrace the Clumsy Vocabulary of National Awkward Moments Day

Whether you're an ingenious inventor or you just geek out on gadgets, here are some useful words to describe the process of innovation. Check out the related article from our Department of Word Lists: The Innovative Language of Invention

While these penguin-related words are perhaps not as adorable as the waddling aquatic creatures they describe, they're just as interesting, and you're much more likely to come across them in your daily life. Unless you live in Antarctica, of course. Read more on our blog: Waddle if You Celebrate Penguin Awareness Day

When you’ve painted yourself in a corner, stirred up a hornet’s nest, or put yourself between a rock and a hard place, perhaps the best thing to do is talk about it, and that’s why there are so many expressions for being in a pickle. Whether you're up a creek without a paddle or just want to be prepared for future predicaments, these words will have you covered. For a deeper dive into the barrel, check out: Celebrate National Pickle Day the Wordy Way

Veterans Day is observed on November 11th in the United States as a day to honor all military personnel, whether they served in times of war or peace. The official holiday began in 1919 as Armistice Day, a year after the date that marked the end of World War I. In 1954 President Eisenhower signed a law that changed the name of this national holiday to Veterans Day.

Haunted by the apparition of overused terms like spooky and creepy? Fear not! Learn lesser-known words like eldritch and hallow, and even if you don't have the best costume, you'll have the best vocabulary. Learn about the deep, dark past of these words in the full article: A Big Bag of Halloween Terms

Unlike the obsolete phone chargers and otiose kitchen gadgets you might want to purge from your junk drawer, these words will serve a purpose in your vocabulary.

These punctuation terms are good to know, period. Learn what an apostrophe’s purpose is; find out what a semicolon is for. Are you confused about question marks? Probably not (although you may be mystified by parentheses). This list is sure to make you as excited as an exclamation point!