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Can't express what you're feeling? Try some of these deep, unique words.
By Susie Grimshaw and Izzy Casey — Written on Sep 23, 2021
Do you ever feel like there's no way to fully express what you want to say? This happens to a lot of us, but it's not because those words don't exist. There's a whole world of rare words with beautiful meanings out there.
If you're feeling speechless, take a look at this list of deep, unique words you can add to your daily vocabulary.
Here are 126 rare words with beautiful meanings:
1. Zephyr
Noun: a calm, gentle breeze.
This word stems from the name Zephyrus, the Greek god of the west wind.
2. Eunoia
Noun: beautiful thinking; healthy mind.
Eunoia is the shortest word in the English language that has each vowel in it.
3. Fika
Noun: a moment to slow down and appreciate the little things in life.
Fika is a Swedish concept that makes it essential to take time to stop and socialize.
4. Philocalist
Noun: lover of beauty; someone who finds beauty in all things.
A philocalist is someone who is able to cherish the little things.
5. Redamancy
Noun: the act of loving someone who loves you back; a love returned in full.
Redamancy is what happens when the feeling is mutual. It's sort of the opposite of unrequited love.
6. Aliferous
adjective: having wings.
If you drink a Red Bull, you will likely become aliferous.
7. Munificence
Noun: the quality of being very generous.
A rich friend who is generous with there money has munificence.
8. Peiskos
Noun: the feeling of enjoying the warmth from a fireplace.
Peiskos is a Norweigian word that describes the pleasures of sitting in front of a glowing fire.
9. Querencia
Noun: a sanctuary where you feel safe.
A querencia is an area in a bullfight arena taken by the bull for a defensive stand.
10. Reverie
Noun: the state of being lost in your own thoughts; a daydream.
A reverie can be broken by a loud obnoxious sound.
11. Beamish
Adjective: bright, cheerful, and optimistic.
Most optimists have a beamish quality about them.
12. Metanoia
Noun: the journey of changing your mind, heart, self, and way of life.
A spiritual awakening is an example of metanoia.
13. Paladin
Noun: a determined advocate or defender of a noble cause.
A paladin is a military leader or medieval prince.
14. Ataraxia
Noun: a state of freedom from emotional disturbance and anxiety; tranquility.
Ataraxia means living without anxiety. Imagine!
15. Snuggery
Noun: a cozy room.
A snuggery is a place full of fluffy pillows, if that's something you like!
16. Lagom
Adjective: not too much and not too little; just the right amount.
Lagom is a Swedish and Norwegian word that means "just the right amount."
17. Selcouth
Adjective: unfamiliar, rare and strange, but marvelous.
Of all the unusual words with beautiful meanings, selcouth might be the rarest. It is used to describe something rare, but beautiful.
So all of the words on this list have a selcouth quality to them.
18. Thalassophile
Noun: lover of the sea.
A Thalassophile is someone who loves to spends their summers at the beach.
19. Raconteur
Noun: a talented storyteller.
If you're hosting a dinner party with a lot of introverts, you should definitely add a raconteur to the guest list.
20. Orphic
Adjective: mysterious and enchanting; beyond ordinary understanding.
An Orphic idea is the Nietzchean idea of eternal recurrence.
21. Appetence
Noun: an eager desire or instinctive inclination; an attraction or natural bond.
Just looking at the big golden McDonald's arch can give you an appetence for a juicy big mac.
22. Nyctophilia
Noun: the love of darkness or the night.
Nyctophilia is a strong preference of night time over the daytime.
23. Quintessential
Adjective: the perfect example or representation of a certain kind of person or thing.
Britney Spears is the quintessential example of a pop star who is under the thumb of someone else's emotional control.
24. Apricity
Noun: the warmth of the sun in winter.
Iowans jump for joy at apricity. The winters in Iowa get so tedious and dreadful, that a little sunlight every now and then makes a huge difference on their mood.
25. Elysian
Adjective: sharing characteristics of heaven/paradise.
A tropical vacation is elysian.
26. Psithurism
Noun: the sound of the wind in the trees.
Psithurism, the sound of the wind in the trees, is quite possibly the most beautiful sound in nature.
27. Mudita
Noun: delight in the happiness of others.
Mudita is the feeling of happiness that comes when other people are happy.
28. Bimble
Verb: to walk at a leisurely pace.
Nobody in New York City has time to bimble to the subway. Everyone must walk with intention and urgency.
29. Librocubicularist
Noun: a person who reads in bed.
A librocubicularist is someone who reads in bed before falling asleep.
30. Incandescent
Adjective: emitting light; full of emotion, passionate.
The sun is a mass of incandescent gas.
31. Minerva
Noun: a woman of great wisdom.
Minerva is a beautiful word to describe a beautiful woman who is wise beyond her years.
32. Eleutheromania
Noun: a great desire or obsession with freedom.
If you experience eleutheromania, you have an obsession or deep desire for freedom.
33. Lacuna
Noun: a blank space or missing part.
If there's a lacuna in the middle of a novel, you won't be able to read it in its entirety. For example, if some of its pages were intentionally ripped out.
34. Gumusservi
Noun: moonlight shining on water.
Have you ever witnessed the silvery gumusservi at night? It's one of the closest things to magic that you'll ever see.
35. Cosmogyral
Adjective: whirling around the universe.
Dr. Who is a cosmogryal scientist who travels throughout time.
36. Copacetic
Adjective: in excellent order.
Any boss is pleased to hear "everything is copacetic" from their unpaid interns.
37. Elucidate
Verb: to make clear or easy to understand.
To elucidate is to fully express yourself with absolute clarity.
38. Puissant
Adjective: powerful, mighty, potent.
The puissant hall monitor has the ability to send his classmates to detention if they're cutting class.
39. Exculpate
Verb: to clear from fault or guilt.
A judge will hopefully exculpate you if you've been wrongly accused of grand theft auto.
40. Verdant
Adjective: abundant in plants and flowers.
When you're over-exhausted from looking at the computer all day, it's a great idea to walk through the verdant woods.
41. Aeipathy
Noun: an enduring and consuming passion.
Aeipathy sounds like apathy but suggests the opposite.
42. Retrouvaille
Noun: the joy of being reunited with someone again after a long time apart.
Retrouvaille is a French word that means rediscovery. Being reunited with someone you love is an example of that.
43. Cathartic
Adjective: providing psychological relief through the release of strong emotions.
Expressing yourself through drawing, singing, or sculpting can be very cathartic.
45. Lambent
Adjective: softly bright or radiant.
A lambent light flickers softly, rather than being overwhelming to look at.
46. Moonbow
Noun: a rainbow caused by the reflection and refraction of the light of the moon.
A moonbow is the nighttime version of the rainbow.
47. Skosh
Noun: a small amount.
The barista will put a skosh of oat milk in your coffee when you ask for "just a little oat milk."
48. Irenic
Adjective: conducive to peace or moderation.
Your relationship with your siblings often becomes irenic as you get older.
49. Balter
Verb: to dance without skill but with great enjoyment.
You don't need to be an experienced ballerina to have a night out at the club. You can balter as much as you please.
50. Candor
Noun: honest, open, or sincere expression.
If someone speaks with great candor, they are someone to be trusted.
51. Inchoate
Adjective: imperfectly formed or formulated.
A recent start-up is often inchoate if the owners have not thought through the logistics of their company yet.
52. Galvanize
Verb: to motivate action or excitement.
In order to galvanize their children, strict parents will reprimand until the cows come home.
53. Pogonophile
Noun: a person who is fond of beards.
A pogonophile is someone who exclusively dates people with beards.
54. Serendipity
Noun: a string of chance events that lead to a happy outcome.
Serendipity can happen when you run into an old flame at a music festival.
55. Penchant
Noun: a strong habitual liking of something or the tendency to do something.
If you have a penchant for drawing, you should definitely consider taking a few visual art courses in school.
56. Finifugal
Adjective: hating endings; someone who prolongs saying goodbye for as long as possible.
A finifugal friend who doesn't like to say goodbye might move away without warning.
57. Resplendent
Adjective: shining brightly
A garden is resplendent with flowers and lush greenery.
58. Burgeon
Verb: to begin to grow rapidly; to flourish.
Typically, people start to burgeon when they move away from home.
59. Curio
Noun: a rare, unusual, or intriguing object.
Sending someone a curio for their birthday is always a fun idea.
60. Gadabout
Noun: a person who moves aimlessly, especially from one social activity to another.
Social butterflies are such gadabouts.
61. Clowder
noun: a cluster of cats.
One of those unique words to describe a group of animals. In this case, it's cats!
62. Acatalepsy
Noun: the idea that it is impossible to truly comprehend anything.
Acatalepsy is an ancient Skeptic doctrine that suggests that human knowledge is never certain.
63. Mizzle
Verb: to rain in fine drops.
Mizzle is another word for drizzle.
64. Seatherny
Noun: the serenity you feel when listening to the birds chirp.
If your bedroom window is next to a tree or two, you will likely experience seatherny in the morning.
65. Onism
Noun: the awareness of how little of the world you will see.
Onism is the self-awareness that you'll never experience the world in its entirety. Everyone is on their own journey.
66. Aesthete
Noun: a person with great sensitivity to the beauty of art and nature.
An aesthete is someone who has a color-coordinated Instagram feed.
67. Brobdingnagian
Adjective: giant.
The Eiffel Tower is brobdingnagian and so was the Titanic.
68. Charmolypi
Noun: a mixed feeling of happiness while being sad.
You may feel charmolypi when graduating from college.
69. Gloaming
Noun: twilight, dusk.
Gloaming happens after the sun sets.
70. Hyperotomachia
Noun: the struggle for love in a dream.
A dream within a dream — only this time you're struggling to find love.
71. Sonder
Verb: to realize that every person is living their own unique life.
To sonder is to realize that every human being is living their own complex life.
72. Pigsney
Noun: a darling.
A pigsney is another way to refer to your sweetheart.
73. Melee
Noun: a confused struggle
A melee is also a disorganized combat or battle.
74. Rectitude
Noun: moral integrity.
The best journalism prioritizes rectitude over popularity.
78. Skookum
Adjective: strong, brave, or impressive.
Superheroes are skookum individuals who use their powers for good.
79. Moira
Noun: a person’s fate or destiny.
A moira is set and stone. There's nothing you can do to change it.
80. Horology
Noun: the art of making timepieces or measuring time.
Horology is the study of measuring time.
81. Quiescent
Adjective: resting in a tranquil manner.
A quiescent person is someone who is still and at ease.
82. Empyrean
Adjective: pertaining to the sky; celestial; formed by pure fire or light.
Empyrean also means relating to heaven or the sky.
83. Clinquant
Adjective: glittering with gold and silver.
Christmas trees often have a clinquant quality about them — when they're covered in tinsel, of course.
84. Saudade
Noun: the longing to be near someone or something that is distant.
People often experience saudade when they're in long-distance relationships.
85. Fernweh
Noun: an ache for distant places; a longing for travel.
Fernweh is German for "wanderlust."
86. Astrophile
Noun: a person who loves stars.
An astrophile knows everything there is to know about astrology.
87. Arcane
Adjective: secret, mysterious, understood by only a few.
If an agreement is arcane, only a few people know the details of that agreement.
88. Alpas
Verb: to break free, to let loose.
Alpas is a Filipino word in Tagalog that means to break free.
89. Halcyon
Noun: a period of time in the past that was happy and peaceful.
Halcyon is another way to say "simpler times."
90. Evanescent
Adjective: soon passing out of sight or existence.
A bubble is evanescent as it floats quickly out of sight.
91. Vellichor
Noun: the strange wistfulness of used bookshops.
Bibliophiles adore bookstores for the vellichor of it all.
92. Rame
Verb: to moan, cry or weep.
To rame is also to sob or shed tears.
93. Vagary
Noun: an unexpected and inexplicable change in a situation or in someone's behavior.
The vagaries of weather are disturbing.
94. Laconic
Adjective: expressing much in a few words.
A laconic text achieves grand meaning in concise, clear sentences.
95. Meraki
Adjective: to do something with soul, passion, or love.
Meraki is used to describe the sensation of putting yourself into something you love.
96. Amorevolous
Adjective: loving.
The young lovers were so amorevolous when around each other.
97. Effervescent
Adjective: vivacious and enthusiastic.
Effervescent people are usually the life of the party.
98. Kalon
Noun: beauty that is more than skin deep.
Kalon is the ideal of physical and moral beauty.
99. Enigma
Noun: a person or thing that is mysterious, puzzling, or difficult to understand.
Someone that's an enigma is also referred to as "untouchable."
100. Crayer
Verb: a former small sailing cargo boat.
A Crayer is a small boat that carries cargo, goods, or other materials from one port to another.
101. Eudaimonia
Noun: the condition of living well.
Eudaimonia is a Greek word that translates to the condition of "good spirit."
102. Kopfkino
Noun: the act of playing through an entire scenario in your mind.
Kopfkino is a German word that translates to "head cinema."
103. Nubivagant
Adjective: to move through the clouds.
Nubivagant aircraft sometimes experience turbulence.
104. Paracosm
Noun: an imaginary world created by a child.
Narnia and Wonderland are examples of paracosms.
105. Forelsket
Noun: the euphoria of first falling in love.
Forelsket is the Norwegian word for falling head over heels in love.
106. Novaturient
Adjective: desiring to seek a powerful change in your life.
Those who are novaturient are ready to make great changes in their lives.
107. Tacenda
Noun: things better left unsaid.
Examples of Tacenda are that what is left unspoken.
108. Soliloquize
Verb: to talk to yourself.
A soliloquy is a theatrical device where a character speaks to him or herself on stage when no one is around.
109. Moxie
Noun: courage, nerve, or determination.
Those who have moxie never back down from a fight.
110. Oriflamme
Noun: a symbol that inspires confidence, devotion, or courage.
A scarlet banner is an example of an oriflamme.
111. Stardust
Noun: a naively romantic quality.
Stardust is the magical quality of romance.
112. Komorebi
Noun: the sunlight that filters through the trees.
Komorebi is a Japanese word that means sunlight filtering through the trees.
113. Solandis
Noun: a delicate flower.
A rose is a rose is a rose is a solandis.
114. Marmoris
Noun: the shining surface of the ocean.
Marmoris is sometimes blinding.
115. Scintilla
Noun: a tiny trace or spark of a specified quality or feeling.
A scintilla of doubt is a hint of doubt.
116. Burble
Verb: to speak in an excited manner.
It is difficult not to burble if you are speaking about one of your greatest passions.
117. Boketto
Verb: the act of gazing into the distance without a thought in your head.
Boketto is a Japanese phenomenon that means to do nothing.
118. Peregrinate
Verb: to travel or wander from place to place.
If you have wanderlust, you probably peregrinate.
119. Ludic
Adjective: full of fun and high spirits.
Kittens are the cutest because they are so ludic.
120. Bashment
Noun: a large party or dance.
A bashment is another word for a dance hall.
121. Benthos
Noun: the flora and fauna on the bottom of a sea or a lake.
You've probably felt benthos on your feet while swimming in the lake.
122. Boffola
Noun: an informal joke that gets a loud or hearty laugh.
The audience cracked into boffola after the comedian's inappropriate joke.
123. Cerulean
Adjective: deep sky blue.
Cerulean is a beautiful blue color.
124. Concinnity
Noun: the skillful and harmonious arrangement or fitting together of the different parts of something.
Concinnity is the idea that harmony is the perfect combination of two different things coming together.
125. Ebullience
noun: the quality of being bubbly, enthusiastic, and exuberant.
Extroverts have a lot of ebullience.
126. Stellify
Verb: to turn into a star.
A word in classic mythology used to describe a person who turned into a star.
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Susie Grimshaw is a writer who covers love and relationship topics.