5 Unique Words

These five words are utterly unique. Try to fit each word into your vocabulary today. Have fun!

the only English word with three Ys
Syzygy [siz-i-jee]
Amazingly, the only English word with three Ys also happens to describe a rare astronomical event involving three heavenly bodies. A syzygy is the alignment of three celestial bodies in a straight line, commonly the Earth, the Sun, and the Moon.

the only common English word to end in -mt
Dreamt [dremt]
The past tense of dream possesses a special quality—the only verb in regular English usage to end with -mt.

the sole term in the English language to begin with tm
Tmesis [tuh-mee-sis]
Tmesis is the insertion of one or more words between the words that make up a compound phrase, as in “what-so-ever” inserted in the middle of “whatever.”

the only word that contains X, Y, and Z
Hydroxyzine [hahy-drok-suh-zeen]
Only one word in all of English has an X, Y, and Z in order. Hydroxyzine is a medication developed in the 1950s that can help calm you down and prevent sneezing.

the only English term pronounced the same if you remove four letters
Queue [kyoo]
Before it meant a line, a queue referred to the tail of a beast in medieval pictures and designs. The unusual spelling owes its origin to French, like many words that look a little odd in English. The duplication of U and E often feels like waiting in line: once you think you are almost there, the queue magically seems to repeat itself.

Nancy Roe
Author