Many beautiful words are beautiful because they sound appealing and then some of them are attractive to us because of their meaning. Ugly words are exactly the opposite. Some are ugly because they grate against the ears and many are unattractive because of their social connotations. With the help of my roommates, here are lists I compiled on words from both ends of the spectrum.

Beautiful words

1. hallelujah
2. waterfall
3. chartreuse
4. glinting
5. gurgle
6. penultimate
7. the right word (The difference between the right word and the almost right word is the difference between lightning and a lightning bug – Mark Twain).
8. luminosity
9. glide
10. gilded
11. majesty
12. denouement
13. love
14. live
15. veritable
16. swaying
17. swish
18. zest
19. juxtaposition
20. harmony
21. cacophony

Ugly Words

1. fart
2. zit
3. moist
4. hashtag
5. lack
6. venial
7. ratchet
8. retard(ed)
9. twerk (as in the dance move)
10. any curse word (my personal opinion)
11. bummer (sounds too much like butt, according to my roommate)
12. crack
13. diss
14. fail
15. hack
16. fat
17. the wrong word
18. bloat
19. vomit

There are so many others  as the languages of the world are several and as each language have a multitude of words.

What words are beautiful or ugly to you?

I remember sardines soaked in mustard while my sister read A Great and Terribly Beauty out loud.

I remember the imaginary horses in front of our van that I would drive with my dad.

I remember my sister moving into her own apartment and leaving me the shower and an extra fifteen minutes to sleep in each morning.

I remember my first crush. His name was Kyle.

I remember the moment I heard of my niece’s birth. I played “Isn’t She Lovely” by Stevie Wonder on the stereo.

I remember the game of Scrabble I received for Christmas one year.

I remember the certificate I received when I graduated from speech therapy. I brought it in to my second grade class for show and tell.

I remember the sting of the rocks at the end of my fall of the slide on my 6th birthday.

I remember falling asleep on the hammock, only to be woken up by a crabb apple falling on my stomach.

I remember the ambulance ride after breaking my leg. I was cold, even though I was covered with two blankets.

I remember falling asleep in a museum and strangers asking if I was okay.

I remember the rain turning into wet snow that never seemed sure if it liked its solid state.