I actually spelled this word correctly from memory today. Yes, I'm a word freak.
You get to read about it from Wikipedia:
Floccinaucinihilipilification (pronounced /ˌflɒksɨˌnɔːsɨˌnaɪ(h)ɪlɨˌpɪlɨfɪˈkeɪʃən/; British English (help·info), American English (help·info); variously floccipaucinihilipilification, with p for n) is the estimation of something as worthless, or the habit of doing so.[1] Sometimes written with hyphens, it is frequently cited as one of the longest words in the English language.Hey, at least I didn't say Pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis.The word is derived from a list of Latin words found in a section of the Eton Latin Grammar.[1] The word is said to have been invented as an erudite joke by a student of Eton College, who found in his textbook four ways of saying "don't care" and combined them:[citation needed]
- flocci facere (from floccus, -i a wisp or piece of wool)
- nauci facere (from naucum, -i a trifle)
- nihili facere (from nihilum, -i nothing; something valueless (lit. "not even a thread" from ni+hilum)) Example being: "nihilism"
- pili facere (from pilus, -i a hair; a bit or a whit; something small and insignificant)
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