Quite Interesting Facts
English language facts

Helpful Tools

  • Add to My UKTV
  • Send to a friend
  • Print this page
English language facts

English language facts

  • The longest one-syllable word in the English language is 'screeched.'

  • 'Dreamt' is the only English word that ends in the letters 'mt'.

  • The dot over the letter 'i' is called a tittle.

  • 'Underground' is the only word in the English language that begins and ends with the letters 'und.'

  • The longest word in the English language, according to the Oxford English Dictionary, is 'pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis'. It doesn't mean anything - it was invented in 1935, purely so it could be the longest word in the English language.

  • 'Stewardesses' is the longest English word that is typed with only the left hand.

  • The combination 'ough' can be pronounced in nine different ways; the following sentence contains them all: 'A rough-coated, dough-faced, thoughtful ploughman strode through the streets of Scarborough; after falling into a slough, he coughed and hiccoughed.'

  • The only 15-letter word that can be spelled without repeating a letter is 'uncopyrightable.'

  • The word 'Checkmate' in chess comes from the Persian phrase "Shah Mat," which means "the king is dead."
    •  
     

    Our Programmes

    Dave Stars

    UKTV Essentials

    Sky Channel 111, Virgin TV 126, Freeview 19
    Dave On TV Now

    Dave  All UKTV