The English Language Is Kind of Gross
English is a wonderfully expressive language, but it's not without its flaws, and some of those flaws come in the form of words that are uncomfortable to say, impossible to say on the first try, or just outright unpleasant to even look at. Whether the problem is the way a word sounds or what it makes you picture, these 20 words have more than earned their place on this list.
1. Phlegm
There are words that look exactly how they sound, and then there's phlegm, which appears to have been assembled at random. The "ph," the silent "g," and the trailing "m" simply don't seem to belong together; it's a mess of letters with very little justification. It's hard to decide whether the spelling or the substance itself is more off-putting.
2. Moist
No list of universally disliked words would be complete without moist, the word that makes even the most composed people visibly cringe. There's something about the combination of sounds; the heavy "m," the drawn-out "oi," and the soft finish just don't sit right with most people. The word is perfectly functional, but that hasn't made it any less of a problem.
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3. Maggot
Maggot is just as unpleasant to hear as the thing it describes. The hard "g" in the middle gives it an almost aggressive quality, and you can't really say it without your face doing something involuntary. Even context can't fully save it.
4. Larvae
Even if you didn't know what larvae meant, the word itself would give you a pretty good idea that nothing pleasant is coming. It has a soft, squirming quality that's entirely appropriate for the pale, wriggling things it refers to. Say it out loud and you'll likely feel an immediate, irrational need to check your surroundings.
5. Pus
Short words can pack a disproportionate punch, and pus is proof of that. It's blunt, it's unpleasant, and there's no way to dress it up or soften the landing. At least longer gross words give you a moment to mentally prepare; pus just hits immediately.
6. Mucus
Mucus manages to be both clinical and deeply unappealing at the same time, which is something of an achievement. The way it lingers on a sound that feels almost like "ew" seems entirely appropriate for what it describes. You'd think a medical term would feel more neutral, but this one absolutely does not.
7. Flaccid
Flaccid seems to require a moment of silence after you say it. It's anatomically descriptive in all the most uncomfortable ways, and its pronunciation doesn't help matters. Most people only reach for it when there's truly, truly no alternative. (Even limp would be better, come on.)
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8. Regurgitate
The actual act of regurgitation is unpleasant enough without a word that's equally laborious to say out loud. Regurgitate has too many syllables, a middle section that seems to be trying too hard, and an unfortunate tendency to make people think about exactly what it means mid-sentence. It's a perfectly precise word; it just comes at a cost.
9. Puke
Where regurgitate is long and clinical, puke is short and absolutely to the point. There's no ambiguity here; it announces its meaning in exactly one syllable with maximum impact. It's informal, it's blunt, and it manages to be just as unpleasant as the thing it describes.
10. Smear
Smear has a texture problem: the word itself feels like what it means. The drawn-out vowel and the trailing "r" combine in a way that's quite hard to shake once you've noticed it. It shows up in plenty of perfectly innocent contexts, but it never quite sheds its unpleasant connotations.
11. Irregardless
Irregardless is not a word; the real word is regardless. The "ir-" prefix is redundant and contradicts the "-less" suffix, making it a double negative that technically means the opposite of what the speaker intends. If you're still using this one... ooh, boy.
12. Colonel
Colonel is the English language's most brazen act of spelling deception. You look at it and think it's "col-O-nel," but nope, it's pronounced "KER-nel," so good luck trying to sound out words you don't know. Even if you know how it's pronounced, you might still trip up the next time you see it.
13. Queue
Four out of five letters in queue are completely silent, which raises a reasonable question: why are they there? You could spell it "Q" and lose absolutely nothing in terms of pronunciation. Its only defense is French etymological history, which, frankly, isn't good enough.
14. Edited
Edited looks deceptively simple until you try to say it at speed. The consecutive "d" sounds create a tongue-twisting situation that most people silently dread in formal settings ("Yes, I already edidited it..."). For a word this common and practical, it really shouldn't be this difficult to get out smoothly.
15. Sixths
Sixths is practically a tongue-twister compressed into one syllable, and it's impressive in the worst possible way. Getting from the "x" sound to the "ths" in rapid succession is a small but real linguistic obstacle, especially mid-sentence. Think you're fluent in English? Say "sixths" five times fast, and successfully, first.
16. Rural
Rural seems simple enough until you say it out loud and realize your mouth isn't entirely sure what to do. The back-to-back "r" sounds create a strange loop that makes even confident speakers pause for a fraction of a second. Try saying it 10 times fast and see how quickly it stops sounding like a word at all.
17. Squelch
Squelch is almost too accurate for its own good. It sounds precisely like something wet and soft being compressed underfoot, and that association is basically impossible to disconnect from the word itself. It's useful, it's expressive, and it's also completely disgusting-sounding. Bravo, English.
18. Pulchritude
Pulchritude, believe it or not, means beauty, which makes it one of the great ironies of the English language. It sounds harsh and kind of like putrid, which has the complete opposite meaning. Anyone who reaches for it in casual conversation is either remarkably well-read or deliberately testing everyone around them.
19. Creamy
Creamy walks a very uncomfortable line between a food descriptor and something you'd never want read aloud in a professional setting. It's a perfectly accurate word for textures and consistency, but otherwise, there are probably better-sounding words out there.
20. Placenta
Placenta ends this list on a word that's just somehow deeply uncomfortable for most people to say in polite conversation. It's not the spelling or the pronunciation that's the problem; it's simply the image that probably forms in your mind after you say it.
