Beautiful Words — A Challenge
“To a first approximation,
words mean what they say.
…
AND how they make you feel.”
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Recently,
a ‘by-line’ in the San Francisco Chronicle got my attention. What caught my eye was not the title, but the
author’s name — Nick Hoppe. Frankly, I
had not heard of “Nick” Hoppe, but his last name, “Hoppe,” is a name that had
been important to me for half a century.
Art Hoppe, who turns out to be
Nick’s dad, was a columnist at the Chronicle from 1960 until his death in
2000. The column was called “Our Man
Hoppe” and later “The Innocent Bystander,” at its peak syndicated by over 100
newspapers nationwide. His satirical
column covered local and national politics and included essays, feature columns,
and one-act scenes with an ongoing cast of characters like Private Oliver Drab,
Joe Sikspak, Homer T. Pettibone, and others.
Art Hoppe was my hero. I read his five-day-a-week column starting in the 7th grade and, when I determined that I wanted to be a writer, he was my inspiration. Much of what I have done on convivio-online.net is inspired by him. One in particular is a one-act play I posted on ConVivio in 2011 in which I recreated two characters he featured often over the years — Gabriel and The Landlord — my version is called “Some Explaining To Do” (click here if you’d like to read it).
–> –> –>–> But I digress … all of that explains what attracted me to Nick Hoppe’s column earlier this month called, “Words That Just Feel Good On the Tongue.” His goals were to identify ten words that, according to him, were the ten most beautiful words in the English language and explain why they were beautiful TO HIM. I thought that was an intriguing idea. When I read his column (and his list), I decided that many of his choices were NOT among those I would choose (e.g., his #1 choice was “knucklehead”). BUT, I quickly realized that was his point: that I should identify words that I thought were beautiful and defend what made them important TO ME.
So, I Made a List
I
tried to create a list and a brief defense of each word’s presence on my
list. I decided a word earned the right
to be included with a combination of the sound of the word and its meaning —
the composite of how that word makes me feel.
It was sorta fun, but as with most lists of “favorites,” the challenge
is to decide what must be excluded. Turns
out, I just plain failed to limit my list to ten, as Nick Hoppe had done (so,
sue me). Below is the result:
A. My list of the top-ten most beautiful words in American English (according
to me)
B. My list of the second-ten most beautiful words in American English
C. A list of beautiful words I’ve stumbled across in other languages that SHOULD
be in American English, but we don’t seem to have an equivalent word.
Observation: few one-syllable words made the list. Following the Italian pattern, d’yathink words with multiple pronounced vowels sound more melodious, and generate stronger feelings?
A CHALLENGE —> Since you will inevitably disagree with some of my choices, (I can hear you now: “How could you possibly include THAT word?”), I INVITE YOU to make our own list(s) and defend your choices. If you send me a list (or even just suggest a word or two), I will publish them here, if you like (with or without your name, as you choose).
My Top Ten Most Beautiful Words in American English, and why they are beautiful (listed here alphabetically)
1. Becoming — this word (the title of Michelle Obama’s wonderful book) sets aside the notion that we must end up somewhere “final” in this life. It suggests that we can always be more.
2. Grace — I admire this word with its three meanings: for many, a spiritual condition (“a state of grace”) received as an unearned divine gift; it is also a description of the physical elegance of artistic movement (as in a graceful dancer); but also, as a verb, to confer dignity or honor to a place or event. (“I do not understand the mystery of grace only that it meets us where we are but does not leave us where it found us.” — Anne Lamott )
3. Love — the starting point and sustenance of everything good; either with a specific target or a broad, generalized intent toward all of life. It comes to us free and is re-distributed free.
4. Kindness — the quality of being friendly, generous, considerate, without expecting a reward.
5. Serendipity — occurrence of happy or beneficial events apparently by chance (“Hitting the center of a target you didn’t know you were aiming at.” — Bujold
6. Simplicity — uncomplicated, easy to understand effortlessly, uncluttered.
“Everything should he made as simple as possible, but not simpler.” — Einstein
“Simplicity, simplicity, simplicity.” — H.D Thoreau (essential ingredient of a good life)
7. Storytelling –>–> One of my favorite words.
“Storytelling reveals meaning without committing the error of defining it.” — Hannah Arendt
“Stories are the common currency of humanity” — Tahir Shah (Arabian Nights)
“The human species thinks in metaphors and learns through stories.” — Mary Bateson
“Reality can be beaten with enough imagination.” — Mark Twain
8. Welcome — an invitation bestowed on another person that says: “You belong here. Come in.”
9. Wonderful — inspiring delight, worthy of admiration, stimulating imagination (i.e., wonder)
10. Yosemite (Yohhe’meti) — name of the tribe that occupied what is now the Yosemite Valley, named by the surrounding, more peaceful Miwok tribes (literal translation: “Those who kill”).
That tribe called themselves the Ahwahneechee and named “their” valley “Ahwahnee.” The Miwok translation for “Ahwahnee” meant simply “people. Archaeological evidence of the Ahwahnechee and the name date back about 800 years. Early recorded contact with European settlers was about 1850 during the Gold Rush. The name “Yosemite” stuck after being named that by 18th-century European settlers. –> –>My love of this word does not stem from its troubled linguistic history but from our own experience with this beautiful, inspiring valley over our lifetime AND the inspiring sound of the word.
My Second Ten Most Beautiful Words in American English
11. Eloquence — fluent or persuasive speaking or writing. à And I enjoy the sound of this word.
“You must speak straight so that your words may go as sunlight straight into our hearts.” — Cochise
“Eloquence is painted thought.” — Blaise Pascal
12. Ephemeral — lasting for a short time, fleeting. “She liked the way the word sounded in her head. ‘I am ephemeral.’ It made her feel like something passing and precious.” — Pamela Todd
13. Exhilaration — synonyms: elation, euphoria, joy, ecstasy, exultation, rhapsody.
“Exhilaration is that feeling you get just after a great idea hits you and just before you realize what’s wrong with it.“ — Rex Harrison. “We can take some gratification at having come so far in just a few thousand years as language users but it should be a deeper exhilaration to recognize that we have such a distance to go.” – Lewis Thomas
14. Felicity — joy, delight, cheerfulness, ability to express one’s thoughts effectively.
“To strive with difficulties and to conquer them is the highest human felicity.” Samuel Johnson
“There is more felicity on the far side of baldness than young men can possible imagine.” — LP Smith
15. Forbearance — patient self-control, restraint, tolerance.
“Common man’s patience will bring him more happiness than common man’s power.” Amit Kalantri
“Leadership was not an act of bravery but rather forbearance and the strength to move forward with humility in the belief of what is right.” Sortoosh Shahrivar
16. Mellifluous — voice or words sweet or musical, pleasant to hear. “In my dreams, I heard your mellifluous voice. It slowly woke me up from a deep sleep so that I could enjoy the magnificence of life.” — Debasish Mridha
17. Propinquity — proximity à I just like the sound of it better than mere “proximity.”
“Keep characters in propinquity long enough and a story will always develop a plot.” — Keith Miller
18. Quintessential — classic, representing the most perfect example of a quality.
“A quintessential experience is to hike up the John Muir Trail behind the Mist Trail to the top of Vernal Falls and trudge through the snow to the rock from which you can look down at Vernal and up at Nevada Falls — and, if you are not eaten by bears in the dark on the way down, to have a glass of Rombauer Chardonnay in the Ahwahnee dining room with a plate of scallops.” — PapDan
19. Resplendent — attractive and impressive through being richly colorful or sumptuous.
20. Succulent — OK so I just like the Hemingway quote à“As I ate the oysters with their strong taste of the sea and their faint metallic taste that the cold white wine washed away leaving only the sea taste and the succulent texture, and as I drank their cold liquid from each shell and washed it down with the crisp taste of the wine, I lost the empty feeling and began to be happy and to make plans.” — Ernest Hemingway
Ten Words with no English Equivalents, that the English Language Needs
–> –> Some emphasis here on the sound of these words, as well as their meaning.
1. Flaneur (French) — a person at leisure, deliberately aimless, wandering streets, soaking in a city, a neighborhood, or, heck, a forest.
2. Magari (Italian) — “If only”; use this for beautiful experiences that you wish for, longingly.
3. Metanoia (Greek) — the journey of changing one’s mind, heart, self, or way of life.
4. Mudita (Sanskrit) — taking delight in the happiness of others.
5. Namaste (Sanskrit) — traditional Hindi greeting or gesture of respect, (“I bow to the divine in you”) by holding the palms together before the face or chest and bowing. The gesture is called a “Namaskar”; the word used is “Namaste.” àà Gretta contributed this one to the list.
6. Passeggiata (Italian) — a slow, late afternoon or evening stroll, (perhaps associated with gelato). This is a close relative of the French word “Flaneurie,” which is what a Flaneur does.
7. Rocambolesco (Italian) — a person who is daring, adventurous, and incredible — or an experience that can be described with one of those adjectives.
8. Sprezzatura (Italian) — to do something flawlessly, effortlessly, splendidly.
9. Tickety-boo (British) — Something satisfactory and in good order (but not extraordinary); sometimes shortened to “twee.” Some believe it derives from Hindi “ṭhīk hai, bābū,” meaning “it’s alright, sir” — and is therefore a linguistic theft.
10. Tsundoku (Japanese) — the act of buying books, keeping them, and not reading them
Afterthoughts — A few of you sent in your own lists of carefully-selected words as comments on ConVivio. I have taken three of those lists from “Comments” and added them below — they are from
1. Our own famous “Hat Lady”
2. Our guest poet Lauren de Vore
3. Overall wise-word-man Stephen Faletti.
I think you will enjoy their contributions.
Nick Hoppe’s recent column (with his top-ten list) can be found here: https://www.sfchronicle.com/entertainment/article/Words-that-just-feel-good-on-the-tongue-13607480.php?cmpid=gsa-sfgate-result
If you’re interested in knowing more about my earliest writing hero, Art Hoppe, his obituary in the Chronicle from February 3, 2000, paints a good picture. It can be found here: https://www.sfgate.com/news/article/Chronicle-Columnist-Art-Hoppe-Dies-Eloquent-3240505.php
“The Hat Lady‘s” Lists of Favorite Words
Our famous “Hat Lady” offered two lists and a bit of a “defense” for including each word — in some cases identifying a word that needs to be used more often in our public discourse and placing that word within her own personal philosophy. Shortly after her 90th birthday, she says: “I just have one defense of my lists. The words are good. They lend variety to expression, a precision, or shading. These are all things that the English language does well.”
My First List
- Story — Narrative, true or fictitious, designed to interest or muse the hearer of the reader. Everyone has a story to tell, if only one would stop to listen or read.
- Equanimity — Easiness of mind or temper; calmness, composure. Disturbing one’s equanimity these days is easily done. One must reach for it again and again.
- Façade — Face or front of a structure; an outward appearance maintained to conceal a less pleasant disposition. It’s always rewarding to present a sunny demeanor.
- Embrace — to take on or receive an idea gladly; to avail oneself of opportunity; to include. To embrace the concept of respect for all does not appear to be publicly appealing at this time.
- Consequential — the nature of consequence following an effort or result. Consequential implications of one’s actions are mostly ignored these days. What a shame!
- Accommodate — to do a kindness of a favor for friends, family, or even a stranger. How could one not accommodate someone in need, whatever the need might be.
- Meander — to proceed by a winding course; to wander aimlessly. It does one good to meander through fields in Spring. It is also good to let thoughts meander once in a while.
- Curmudgeon — irascible; churlish; sometimes lovable. A little patience with this recently elder person can be fun.
- Thanksgiving (Day) — The act of giving thanks on a special day. There is much joy in assembling loved ones and making preparations for a festive day of thanks.
- Affirm — to state positively as true; assuring that one’s belief and/or loyalty can be accepted without doubt.
My Second List
- Ingenious — showing cleverness; inventiveness; free from reserve; frankly candid.
- Conundrum — Anything which puzzles; not easily resolved. The world itself is a puzzle. Its origin is not known.
- Sublime — Inspiring the mind with some sense of grandness; awe-inspiring.
- Limpid — transparent; crystal clear.
- Insight — a penetrating mental view; sudden grappling with a solution.
- Probity — integrity; up-rightness; honesty.
- Optimist — a person given to looking on the bright side; a belief in goodness.
- Gingerly — with caution or extreme care; mincingly; daintily.
- Imbroglio — a perplexing situation; complicated or difficult to resolve; a laughable mix-up (it’s Italian).
- Fragrance — having a pleasant odor, as in the fragrance of Spring; ripening fruit; homemade bread.
Lauren de Vore’s Words that “roll off the tongue and into the ear most pleasantly.”
On February 28, 2019, Lauren wrote: “These are not necessarily my “favorite” words; those words have all sorts of connotations and associations, making it difficult to judge them solely on the basis of their sound. The ten words offered below (in no particular order) are those that, to my mind, roll off the tongue and into the ear most pleasantly.”
- Amble: slow and easy, it moseys through the mouth and out into the world.
- Cherish: there’s something precious and precise about “cherish”; doesn’t hurt that there’s a rather nice song with this title.
- Bell: the initial “b” is the clapper that strikes the lips and opens up the mouth for a big, round, resonant “ell.”
- Eiderdown: just sigh into the word and feel it settle softly over you.
- Nosh: voiced directly behind the nose, nosh is a silly word but so much more satisfying than snack.
- Tourmaline: sparkles like crystalline but with more color and depth, just like the gem.
- Dreamy: flows with great mouthfeel, just like soft-serve ice cream but without the calories.
- Palisade: never mind the meaning, I just like the way it glides (glissades?) off the tongue.
- Velvet: I love the way the word sounds the way velvet feels, especially when you savor the “ell.”
- Golden: so rich and warm, if a sound could glow …
Stephen Faletti’s Words
On March 6, 2019, Stephen offered this list:
- AAUGH! — an exclamation used when characters in the Peanuts comic strip scream. When yelled, the characters are typically facing up with their mouths almost as big as their faces.
- AAARRRGGGHHH!!! — a longer exclamation related to AAUGH!
- Asymptote — a straight line such that the distance between some curve and the line approaches zero as the x or y coordinate tends to infinity (in analytic geometry). So the curve continually approaches but never quite touches the line (meets without touching). From the Greek root asymptotos meaning “not falling together.” See the classic curve y=1/x. For extra credit, see the hyperbola x^2-y^2=1.
- Spectacular — beautiful in a dramatic and eye-catching way. Use with the special intonation made famous by Huell Howser in the PBS television series “California’s Gold,” as in spec-TAC-ular. Try it out loud.
- Disgruntled — angry, dissatisfied, or discontented. You can hear the grumbling when you say the word. From an old verb gruntle meaning “to utter little grunts,” with the prefix “dis” used as an amplifier not an opposite (no one is ever gruntled).
- Homoscedasticity — same variance (in statistics). The situation in linear regression analysis where the variance (random noise) around the regression line is the same for all values of the variable x. So the data points in the scatter diagram are all roughly the same distance from the regression line. But who cares? Just enjoy pronouncing this 7-syllable word.
- Heteroscedasticity — different variance (complement to homoscedasticity). An 8-syllable word that has a delightful sing-song intonation.
- Old-School — characteristic or evocative of an earlier or original style, manner, or form. Use with appreciation or reverence, not as a pejorative.
- Emphatic — expressing something forcibly and clearly; showing or giving emphasis. This word sounds like its definition.
- Tort Litigation — I’m breaking the rules of the exercise here by using a phrase instead of a word. But you might enjoy the effect of saying these two words emphatically, out loud, and together as if they comprised a single word. Try it.
My 10 Words – Lewis Bell
Understanding – This is a big one, because it seems that when people reach a point of great authority they lose the ability to understand anything other than their own ego driven desires. The world is full of misunderstanding now. I don’t know if it is more or less than usual, but I only live in what is now. All of it is hard to understand but every day I try to understand and do the right thing.
Satisfaction – My father once told me that, “A satisfied man is a happy man.” He didn’t tell me much because he died when I was 13, but those words have always stuck with me. I agree with him. All you need is all you need. You don’t have to have it all, just what it takes.
Delight – Those perfectly timed moments that bring glee, relish, excitement, thrill, happiness. Babies, puppies and kittens are especially good at it. It keeps you young❣️
Compassion – Caring for your fellow man and setting the good example for those that follow you to do the right thing. Success does not always mean getting. Giving can bring greater wealth. When it is your turn, do not look the other way
Devotion – Belonging to and having someone belong to you builds amazing foundations and creates a steadfastness that can and will last for an eternity.
Laughter – This one tops the list – “Love, Live Laugh” is plastered all over my being. “If you can’t laugh about it, it is not worth doing.” Don’t know who said that, but Milton Berle said, “Laughter is an instant vacation.”
Faith – Not so much in a deity or an organized religion, but more so faith in myself – knowing that I can get the job done, knowing that I have what it takes, an inner strength, a positive sense of being.
Creativity – I thrive on creativity. Most recently I have discovered hidden talent is graphic arts and in music. Making something from nothing but yourself is so powerfully rewarding.
Awareness – Always being acutely aware of where I am and what is going on around me – not because of being afraid, but of being fearful that I will miss out on something in this amazing world in which we live. I can’t tell you how many times I have asked someone, “Did you see that?” And they answer, “No.” And I think, “Your loss!” It doesn’t cost anything to pay attention.
Individualism – I’ve always strived to be self-motivated, self-supporting, and not afraid of being different. I am my own person. I have those that I love and those that I follow, but I am not into group pressures. I like to make up my own mind.
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