National Dictionary Day is the perfect opportunity to learn a few new or, in this case, old words. We’ve come up with a list of 20 interesting words you and the kiddos can practice using in a sentence. Scroll down for the list.

photo: Seoulful Adventures via flickr 

bantling: a young child

billfold: essentially, a wallet. A pocket for keeping bills and checks.

bluestocking: a woman of literary tastes or occupation

bonhomie (bon-o-me): good-heartedness

brownie: a beneficial spirit supposed to haunt old farm houses

canzonet: a short song

cassowary: a large bird resembling an ostrich

draggle: to wet or soil by dragging in the mud

firkin: a small wooden vessel for holding butter

gillyflower: a plant of the mustard family

jerkin: a short coat or jacket, not to be confused with gherkin, a kind of pickle

mavourneen: sweetheart, from the Irish

milliner: a maker of hats, specifically for women, including headdresses and other adornment.

orotund: characterized by fullness, clearness, strength and smoothness

pannikin: a small tin cup

rivulet: a little stream

stinkpot: an earthen jar full of various malodorous (stinky!) compounds, and formerly thrown on an enemy ship

superdreadnought: the most gigantic type of modern battleship (according to Webster’s 1940 edition!)

zyzzle: to sizzle or make a sputtering sound

Looking for more fun and quirky words? Check out our nautical dictionary here and our pirate dictionary here.

What’s your favorite new or old word? Share it with us in a comment below! 

—Amber Guetebier

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