FREE! Click here to Join FunTrivia. Thousands of games, quizzes, and lots more!
Fun Trivia
Home: Questions and Answers Forum
Answers to 100,000 Fascinating Questions
Welcome to FunTrivia's Question & Answer forum!

Search All Questions


Please cite any factual claims with citation links or references from authoritative sources. Editors continuously recheck submissions and claims.

Archived Questions

Goto Qn #


What is the longest adjective?

Question #33287. Asked by chui.
Last updated May 18 2021.

Friar Tuck
Answer has 6 votes
Currently Best Answer
Friar Tuck

Answer has 6 votes.

Currently voted the best answer.
In Thomas Love Peacock's satirical novel Headlong Hall (1816) there appear two high-flown nonce words (one-off coinages) which describe the human body by stringing together adjectives describing its various tissues. The first is based on Greek words, and the second on the Latin equivalents; they are osteosarchaematosplanchnochondroneuromuelous (44 letters) and osseocarnisanguineoviscericartilaginonervomedullary (51 letters), which translate roughly as 'of bone, flesh, blood, organs, gristle, nerve, and marrow'.

Some editions of the Guinness Book of Records mention praetertranssubstantiationalistically (37 letters), used in Mark McShane's Untimely Ripped (1963), and aequeosalinocalcalinoceraceoaluminosocupreovitriolic (52 letters), attributed to Dr Edward Strother (1675-1737).
link http://www.english-for-students.com/Longest-Words.html

Response last updated by CmdrK on May 18 2021.
May 08 2003, 10:36 PM
hummerh3
Answer has 4 votes
hummerh3
21 year member
78 replies

Answer has 4 votes.
I'll take a guess:
propseudocontraneoantidisestablishmentarianalistic. That's 50 letters.

Mar 18 2004, 6:42 PM
free email trivia FREE! Get a new mixed Fun Trivia quiz each day in your email. It's a fun way to start your day!


arrow Your Email Address:

Sign in or Create Free User ID to participate in the discussion

Related FunTrivia Quizzes

play quiz Still The Longest Yard ("The Longest Yard" 2005)
(Longest Yard, The)
play quiz The Longest Day
(Longest Day, The)
play quiz The Longest Ones Are the Best Ones
(Something in Common)

Return to FunTrivia
"Ask FunTrivia" strives to offer the best answers possible to trivia questions. We ask our submitters to thoroughly research questions and provide sources where possible. Feel free to post corrections or additions. This is server B184.