10 points to whomever can come up with the most vowel-less English words. Y counts as a vowel. All your words must be verifiable through an online dictionary. No abbreviations, acronyms, prefixes, suffixes, or proper-nouns.
GOOD LUCK!
2006-06-29 08:08:05 · 10 answers · asked by © 2007. Sammy Z. 6 in Education & Reference ➔ Words & Wordplay
update: I understand the use of "w" as a vowel, but for this particular question, those few words that use "w" and neither a, e, i, o, u, or y are considred "vowel-less."
2006-06-29 09:27:16 · update #1
I know of at least 11 that are commonly accepted/used, esp. as interjections:
brr, bzz, grr, hmm, mm-hmm, nth, pfft, psst,shh, tsk/ tsktsk(s), zzz
According to your rules "cwm" and "crwth" would be permissible.
But, in fact, "w" IS a vowel in these cases (the first word is pronounced "coom"!), just as it is in English words with the diphthong "ow" (a variant of "ou").
(I also omit any proper names -- like "Ng"-- no telling where you might go with that... and I'm not sure you should count them as "English" anyway.)
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For an entertaining list of many "consonant-only words" (mostly made up) which have actually appeared in literature check out
The Dictionary of Consonant-Only Words by Craig Conly -http://www.oneletterwords.com/consonant/index.html
(He lists 105 words under "T" alone! )
2006-06-29 09:16:48 · answer #1 · answered by bruhaha 7 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Crwth
The Crwth (pronounced [krʊθ] or [kruːθ]) is an instrument which originated in Wales, about 2000 years ago; the end of its popularity began in the mid-1800s.
Crwths were originally developed from the lyre. In the early 14th century, it was given a fingerboard. Advanced crwth players could play about 24 songs.
cwm
A cwm, (pronounced [kuːm]), is a large basin within a mountain that sometimes contains a lake. Cwms usually have steep edges. Synonyms: cirque. Note: J. R. R. Tolkien used the spelling "coomb".
lynx
Rival etymologist factions have argued for centuries whether the letter "y" is a consonant or a vowel; While there are certain clear-cut cases, such as yo-yo or fly, where the role of the "y" is apparent, the word lynx presents a new problem, as the pronunciation of the word affects one's opinion. The battle rages on today, as the consonant and vowel camps continue to fight for the ownership of the "y" in lynx. An etymological lithmus test of the general feeling towards lynx today, shows the vowel camp in front, with the "y" having an "i" sound (=links).
Ng
Ng (pronounced Ing), is a common Chinese family name
nth
Nth, (pronounced enth) is considered a word in the English language. It is normally used as a representation for maximum (to the nth degree). Other uses incluse its realistic mathematical variable. 2^n could be pronounced as "two to the nth power".
psst
A hiss designed to attract the attention of someone covertly.
rhythm
2006-06-29 08:15:53 · answer #2 · answered by humantorch 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
All words in English have vowel sounds. It's impossible to have a syllable in any language that doesn't have a vowel.
2006-06-30 12:39:47 · answer #3 · answered by drshorty 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
cwm -- A steep bowl-shaped hollow on a hill or mountain
nth -- Relating to an unspecified ordinal number
cry, dry, fly, fry, gym, gyp, ply, pry, shy, sky, sly, spy, sty, thy, try, why, and wry
crypt, cyst, dryly, flyby, glycyl, glyph, Gypsy, hymn, jynx, lymph, lynx, myrrh, myth, nymph, psych, pygmy, rhythm, shyly, slyly, spry, spryly, Styx, sync, synth, syzygy, tryst, wryly, and xylyl.
The longest English word that does not contain any of the five traditional vowels is the 12-letter Twyndyllyngs
The longest commonly used English word not containing one of the 5 vowels is the seven-letter rhythms.
2006-06-29 08:13:40 · answer #4 · answered by Viv 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
brr brrr cwms nth pht shh tsks the are over 100 words with no vowels tsks
2016-03-26 22:05:28 · answer #5 · answered by Karen 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
this is a trick...every word has a vowel in it...i looked it up...can i please have 10 pointsp yea the person above me...he said that y is considered a vowel...why r all the words u have consisting of y? huh?
2006-06-29 08:15:45 · answer #6 · answered by Maria 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
1 Crwth
2 cwm
3 Ng
4 nth
5 psst
2006-06-29 08:12:33 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Well, there appear to be Welsh words, but no English ones.
2006-06-29 08:24:00 · answer #8 · answered by Laurie Jennifer 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
cwm, a Welsh word for "valley," http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/cwm
or
CRWTH (a type of stringed instrument) http://dictionary.reference.com/search?r=2&q=CRWTH
2006-06-29 08:19:03 · answer #9 · answered by Lynda S 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
you got me. thats a good one.....
2006-06-29 08:12:43 · answer #10 · answered by Jill 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋