![]() Symmetry is aesthetically pleasing – whether in art, music – or in words. Just reading these gives off a sense of synaesthesia, where you can almost picture the very embodiment of the words: what they look like their personalities how they would sound if they spoke to you (or is it just us?) Taffeta would speak in a soft, seductive tone, whispering gently into your ear… before disappearing into thin air before you could make contact. (Is onomatopoeia really an onomatopoeia? According to our staff, yes it is) Will-o’-wisp Meander Lollipop Lullaby Taffeta Sesquipedalian Onomatopoeia ![]() So here are a few examples, and see our reasons above for how each of them can be considered onomatopoeic: (And as an aside, does anyone else get a secret buzz out of spelling ‘onomatopoeia’ correctly?) It gets far more interesting when the onomatopoeia level gets cranked down a little with subtly – to the extent that perhaps only your subconscious can detect those real-life sounds hiding in the words. So what exactly makes a beautiful word? Here’s an entirely whimsical, and slightly psychedelic musing based on our word choices… Onomatopoeia Zugzwang – ‘I love words that concisely express something much more complex’.Urbane – ‘I love how a single letter can change the word urban in my mind: from images of inner city grit to a suave gentleman holding a gin and tonic’.Syzygy – ‘The meaning and lack of vowels in this word makes it interesting’.Sesquipedalian – ‘It's wonderfully autological (describes itself), as it's a word of many syllables’.Its sound reminds me of an amusement arcade machine where you watch the mechanical hand hover over and dip into a pit of prizes.’ Serendipity – ‘It starts slowly, serenely, before its quick rhythmic up and down of ‘di-pit’, which resolves in the comfort and joy of ‘y’. ![]() Scandinavia – ‘A place-name that (to me at least) really conjures a sense of the place: mountains, water, snow, clear air’.Onomatopoeia - ‘It's appropriately pleasingly musical, almost as though the concept of onomatopoeia itself has a sound’.Metamorphosis – ‘I like the sound of the word and the idea of transformation, or reaching the final/ideal form’.Melancholy – ‘It sounds like a haunting beautiful sadness’.Meander – ‘the hard 'ee' meanders elegantly into the soft 'a' ’. ![]() It mimics the act of swaying a baby and also makes me think of libellule in French (dragonfly), which might be my favourite French word.’ Lullaby – ‘It sounds really calm and relaxing and, well, lulling.Lollipop – ‘It rolls around your mouth like a lollipop and the final 'p' has an almost silent, breathless syllable at the end of it’.Caesura – ‘It would make a badass superhero’s name: the sibilance is her rasp, the ae her sensitive side’.Here are just a few, along with our reasons: So with English Language Day on Friday, we thought we’d carry out a mini census of the BL’s favourite words. And in Georgian, they even have a word for it: ჟრუანტელი / z hruanteli, ‘a beautiful word that gives you goosebumps’. ![]() By Elliot Sinclair, Web Editor in the Content and Community Team. ![]()
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