+

Cookies on the Business Insider India website

Business Insider India has updated its Privacy and Cookie policy. We use cookies to ensure that we give you the better experience on our website. If you continue without changing your settings, we\'ll assume that you are happy to receive all cookies on the Business Insider India website. However, you can change your cookie setting at any time by clicking on our Cookie Policy at any time. You can also see our Privacy Policy.

Close
HomeQuizzoneWhatsappShare Flash Reads
 

These are the 10 most confusing words in the English language

Sep 22, 2017, 20:41 IST

Flickr/Kate Brady

When you don't know the meaning of a word, there's one obvious place to turn: the dictionary.

Advertisement

Naturally, some words tend to confuse people more than others, as evidenced by Merriam-Webster's list of the 10 most looked-up words in its online dictionary.

So what are the most sought-after definitions in the English language? Probably not what you expect. You won't find hyper-obscure scientific terms, for example, because not enough people know them to bother looking them up.

Rather, the most looked-up words are ones that are "middle of the road linguistically" - common enough to perpetually perplex readers, as Merriam-Webster lexicographer Kory Stamper told Business Insider.

Here are the 10 most looked-up words and their definitions:

You are subscribed to notifications!
Looks like you've blocked notifications!
Next Article