Thursday, May 26, 2005

Kerfuffle

My daughter and I were listening to "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix" today in the car and I was struck again by the beauty and complete expressiveness of the word "kerfuffle." What a great word!

According to Websters, kerfuffle is Scottish Gaelic in origin and was originally spelled with a "c." See Weird Words for an explanation as to the switch to "k." (I LOVE the word "kerplunk" as well, even though it rhymes with the worst word in English, in my opinion,--"chunk")

In general, words and expressions for chaos/chaotic situations are great. I love "aflutter" and "up in arms," and "topsy-turvey" among others.