The Dictionary of Uncomfortable Words: What to Avoid Saying in Polite (or Any) Conversation

By Andrew Witham and Brian Snyder

Book Overview

Realizing a dictionary was necessary to alert the public, they created The Dictionary of Uncomfortable Words. Each word is followed by a brief explanation of why it makes people uneasy when spoken, such as:
- Abhor: Looks innocuous enough on paper but utterly filthy when spoken aloud.
- Bull: In most circles, this word is merely a prefix. We prefer the term man-cow."
- Congeal: Just because gooey becomes crusty doesn't mean we want to hear about it.
- Crotch: This word is disturbing even when referring to trees.
- Dingleberry: This is one fruit you don't want to eat.
- Half-cocked: Sounds like a circumcision that went too far.
- Horehound: A drunk with too much money in his pocket on Saturday night."

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1684423597
• ISBN13: 9781684423590
• Release Date: September 2004
• Publisher: Cumberland House Publishing
• Length: 135 Pages
• Weight: 0.33 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.3" x 5.0" x 8.0"

Customer Reviews

I agree!

From "Homo Erectus" to "Poop Deck", and "Penal" to "Uranus", this book pretty much covers the entire vocabulary of comedy, and is almost a primer for the budding comedian. Slip one or two of these words into a conversation, and you're funny no matter who's in the room. This book is like humor in a bottle, and the authors should be commended for putting together a lexicon of comedy that should have been done a long time ago. Grade: A+ (Agreed!)

THE FUNNIEST BOOK EVER?

I have been racking my brain to try and come up with a book that is funnier than The Dictionary of Uncomfortable Words, but I think that this one may take the Grand Prize for Comedy. I have NEVER read a book that made me laugh out loud on every single page, but this book actually managed to pull it off. The only reason I picked this thing up in the bookstore is because of the neon green Sour Apple Jolly Rancher color of the cover, but once I opened it up, I was hooked. My friends and I have always joked about words like "clean-and-jerk" or "kumquat" or "masticate" but these guys managed to put in just about every word that ever made us laugh. The words are hilarious, the art is great (it all looks like some kind of 1950's dictionary) and the definitions are just about the funniest thing I have ever read. If you have a sense of humor, this one is for you. As far as I'm concerned, The Dictionary of Uncomfortable Words is destined to become the next Worst-Case Scenario Handbook, and I hope that these guys not only make bank on this book, but get enough suggestions for new words on their website to publish a second one soon. Grade: A+