The 35 Most Hard-to-Pronounce Words in the English Language

The 35 most hard-to-pronounce words in the English language are usually those that make a person sound a bit pretentious. But in some instances, they’re very smart-sounding words.

Anathema

As one of the more hard-to-pronounce words, this one trips up the tongue regularly. Maybe that’s a good thing since it’s all about someone or something a person doesn’t like.

Anemone

Once you get past a certain point in this hard-to-pronounce word, it gets a little easier to say. But initially, it is a bit tough.

Antarctic

For one reason or another, it’s easy to drop one of those Cs and say something close but not quite the same. It’s a habit that many people have, but it is kind of lazy.

Antidisestablishmentarianism

This is one of those five-dollar words that doesn’t make a lot of sense despite its very real definition. Why not just say you’re pulling state support of a church?

Asterisk

Apart from being a symbol in the English language, the use of two Ss in such close proximity does mess a few people up. It almost sounds like some folks have a lisp when they say this.

Authoritative

It sounds like such an easy word to say, but some folks can’t do it to save themselves. Taking it slow and easy makes this world easier though.

Breakfast

This doesn’t feel as though it qualifies as a hard-to-pronounce word, does it? But some people will put the F before the K, or screw this word up entirely.

Brewery

Again, those double letters held so closely make the tongue skip a beat since ‘Brewery’ usually comes out sounding like ‘Brewry’. It doesn’t look much different, and honestly, it sounds close enough that most people get it.

Cavalry

Somehow that L gets placed in front of the V and the word sounds similar but different. But to a historian, this is probably kind of cringe.

Comfortable

There’s a good reason why a lot of people use the word ‘comfy’ instead since it’s so much easier to say. People lean toward simplicity a lot, sometimes for good reason.

Defibrillator

How many people have called this the ‘heart-paddle thingy’? Come on…be honest.

Deteriorate

There are those pesky Rs again that fall over each other when a lot of people try to say this word quickly. If you’ve learned to enunciate it’s less of a problem, but that feels like a lot of work.

Explicit

Somehow the letter X makes it tough to say some words, doesn’t it? Again, strict enunciation gets rid of a lot of that issue, but it’s still there.

Exponentially

The trouble with this word tends to start at the beginning. If you can get past that, the chances are high that you can pronounce the rest of the word.

February

Febr usually becomes Febu, without the R. This is something that many of us have experienced since childhood, whether we’ve heard it or done it.

Floccinaucinihilipilification

Watch the movie Bad Words if you want to see someone confidently spell this. Otherwise, it’s best to think that this word is left to Spelling Bee competitions and those who specialize in obscure words.

Ignominious

Say this quickly just to make sure you have a problem with it. Saying it slow is cheating, but it should still give you the idea that it’s easy to mispronounce.

Isthmus

If you live on a narrow strip of land you might know this word well. Otherwise, the double Ss are hard to get past.

Library

The double Rs aren’t too bad here, but somehow this word still gets mispronounced. If you’ve ever heard someone say ‘liberry’ or something similar, then you’ll know.

Massachusetts

States with double letters standing right next to each other are kind of hard to say if you’re speaking too quickly. Of course, if you live in Boston or somewhere else you might hear people pronounce their state just fine due to their accent.

Often

Even short words can be hard to pronounce since there’s not much thought put into them, sometimes. This word is one of those that gets thrown out a lot and used in a manner that’s not negative or neglectful but is more of an afterthought.

Onomatopoeia

The longer the word and the more varied the use of vowels and consonants there are, the tougher things get. In poetry, this is a very well-known word, but in other areas, well, some people tend to forget it exists on purpose.

Otorhinolaryngological

Calling your ear, nose, and throat doctor an ENT is so much simpler, isn’t it? Sometimes coming up with something shorter is a means to saving the wear on your tongue.

Phenomenon

This word is used quite often so it’s hard to think of why it’s so tough to say. But at the same time, any word can be difficult if one says it too quickly.

Rural

Oh yes, the double Rs. People who live in the country probably hear this word mispronounced all the time.

Schadenfreude

Some words are pretentious, but this one is a flex that’s not really needed. The need to say something in a different language is the act of someone who’s trying to make a point.

Sesquipedalian

It’s kind of ironic that this word means ‘characterized by the use of long words’. There’s nothing like a difficult word to throw people off their game.

Sixth

That combination of X and TH makes it difficult to say this word now and then. If you already have a lisp, good luck with this.

Specific

The fact that there are two Cs that are close together isn’t a big deal. It’s the fact that one is being used with an S sound, and the other with a K sound.

Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious

If you’ve watched Mary Poppins then you know that singing this word is far easier than speaking it. Still, some people can get through it slowly, with practice.

Suspicious

There’s a reason why some people say sus instead of giving voice to the entire word, and it’s not just because it’s trendy. Well, a good portion is because it’s trendy.

Synecdoche

It’s fair to say that your writing teacher would probably be proud if you remembered how to say this word. Some would no doubt be amazed that you remember it in the first place.

Temperature

This is another word where shortening it appears to work better. Instead of saying temperature, many people go ahead and say temp.

Wednesday

Many people would no doubt agree that a lot of folks pronounce this Wensday, instead of Wednesday, out of habit. It’s something we’ve done since childhood after all.

Worcestershire

This one should come as no surprise since a lot of people can barely get through half of this word without messing up. But it’s fun to try.