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ghoti spells fish

And ghoughphtheightteeau spells potato.

The Guinness Book of Records, in its 1992 and subsequent editions, declared the longest real word in the English language to be floccinaucinihilipilification at 29 letters. Defined as ‘the act of estimating (something) as worthless’, its usage has been recorded as far back as 1741. Antidisestablishmentarianism (a 19th century movement in England opposed to the separation of church and state) at 28 letters is one of English’s longest words.

I’m beginning to see why people trying to learn English would complain though. There are over ten ways to pronounce ‘ough’ (cough enough bough though thought through borough hiccough sough jough hough lough – those last few are a bit of a stretch, they’re not exactly in common usage).

Note – Have temporarily acquired a unicycle. Am attempting to master phase one – sitting on the unicycle.

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words that are inherently amusing

galoshes
pants
weasel
spatula
llama
snood
rural
plimsolls

That is all for now.

(Italicised words are suggested additions)

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snakes without planes

The majestic flying snake – alarming, no?

They currently keep themselves to tropical rainforests in South East and Southern Asia. But given the fact they can fly, there’s really nothing keeping them from invading the rest of the world. Apparently they are quite bitey, but not particularly venemous. I’m sure they’ll have minions to help them subdue the population though. As flying snakes they’re probably quite high in the snake hierarchy, and able to order around the lesser ground snakes.

Via Barista.

Unfortunately I’m not adventuring much at the moment – a combination of thesis, recuperating injured finger tendon (so I can’t go climbing) and lack of snow means I’ve been spending weekends around Melbourne. Riding my bike a lot, and doing things, but nothing wildly exciting. Except contemplating forming my giant army of flying snakes.

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i before e except after c

It’s all a lie.

albeit ancient atheism beige being caffeine casein cleidoic codeine conscience counterfeit deficient deficiencies deify deity deign deil disseize dreidel efficient eider eight either feign feint feisty financier foreign forfeit freight geisha glacier gleization gneiss greige greisen heifer heigh-ho height heinous heir heist inveigle kaleidoscope keister leisure leitmotiv monteith neigh neighbor neither obeisance omniscient peignoir phenolphthalein phthalein prescient proficient protein reign reimburse rein reinforce reinstate science seeing seiche seidel seine seismic seize seizin sheik sheila society sovereign specie species sufficient surfeit surveillance teiid their veil vein weight weir weird

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reading pliny the younger

On panthers…
“I am sorry the African panthers you had bought in such quantities did not turn up on the appointed day…”

On Christians…
“I have never been present at an examination of Christians. Consequently, I do not know the nature or the extent of the punishments usually meted out to them, nor the grounds for starting an investigation and how far it should be pressed…

For the moment this is the line I have taken with all persons brought before me on the charge of being Christians. I have asked them in person if they are Christians, and if they admit it, I repeat the question a second and third time, with a warning of the punishment awaiting them. If they persist, I order them to be led away for punishment…

They declared that the sum total of their guilt or error amounted to no more than this: they had met regularly before dawn on a fixed day to chant verses alternately among themselves in honor of Christ as if to a god…

This made me decide it was all the more necessary to extract the truth by torture from two slave-women, whom they call deaconesses. I found nothing but a degenerate sort of cult carried to extravagant lengths…”