It’s another day of wacky words to help expand your vocabulary and forget your troubles. We have a few fun words today. The first is Catawampus. This word has various spellings and pronunciations. Some say kittywampus, cattywampus, or caddywampus. The word is an adjective with two different meanings. The first is fierce, savage, or destructive. And the other is askew, awry, or cater-cornered. I still say catty-cornered. The second definition is most often how I hear the word used. The origin of the word is unknown, but many believe it came from the Scottish word “wampish” meaning wriggle, twist, or swerve.
Our next word is a noun from the American West. Foofaraw has two meaning. A great deal of fuss or attention given to a minor matter or it could mean showy frills added unnecessarily. The origin of this word is also unknown but may have been derived from French or Spanish. Then we have Hornswoggle. A verb which means to get the better of someone by cheating, swindling, or deception. A hoax. A con. This word also has an unknown origin. And don’t confuse it with the American Professional Wrestler of the same name.
Do you know any other fun, wacky words? Leave them in the comments. I’ll try to have a few new words each week.
James Pack 