12 words your pre-schooler will find hilarious and learn from

lickety-split A nineteenth century Americanism connoting: "at great speed; rapidly While the imagery this conjures is admittedly comical, it actually has nothing to do with tongues or calisthenics. Rather, a licket is a rag used for wiping in haste, and the split refers to a split-second. ratatouille We adults know it as: "a vegetable stew of Provence, typically consisting of eggplant,zucchini, onions, green peppers, tomatoes, and garlic, served hot or cold" But your child knows better - it's really a talking, cooking rodent. While you may not be able to convince them atherwise, they may be interested to know that the woebegone This middle english term meaning "beset with woe; affected by woe, especially in appearance"goes all the way back to the days when knights were attired in shining armour, and "begon" (Old English begän) meant "to surround. lallygag This nineteenth century Americanism means: "to spend time idly; loaf They'll remember it, and like it, because it sounds like someone gagging on a lollypop. If you're tired of telling your chikd to hurry-up, "Stop lollygagging" might break the skedaddle Another Americanism, which means "to run away huriedly; flee" i unclear in its origin, but may have become popularized during the Civil War, which would have provided plenty of reasons for hasty flight. What is a chikd to do when caught with a hand in the cookie jar? Skedacdle! fuddy duddy Once you've already used old, ornery and stuborn to describe Grandpa, what's left? Beware, though, once you've introduced your child to this term for "a person who is stuffy. old-fashioned, and conservative they're liable to use it against you. monotony. *touille" is French for "to stir" (touillier). No one knows for certain how the rat wound up in there French peasants may not have had a lot of culinary options. words 12. your pre-schooler will find hilarious... and learn from. Some words may sound funny – especially to young kids – but are nevertheless rich in meaning. If you want to engage your child's linguistic curiosity, humor may be the quickest route to the intellect. Your child may get both a kick out of and learn something from. gluteus maximus Admit it.you think it's funny too! But, hey, if you don't teach them this word, they're going to use a crucde substitute. Besides, using clinkcal terminology introduces the concept of scientific language, and opens the door to a conversation about the actual functional purpose of one's bottom: "the broad, thick, outermost muscle of the buttocks, involved in the rotation and extension of the thigh. knotty Legitimate homonyms for words that describe bad behavior are always a catawampus It's just a funny word- we don't really know why. But, we do know doozie This slightly dated term still rolls well off of small tongues, and coukd serve as a good descriptor for "something that is extraordinary or outstanding Though of uncertain origin -- some speculate that it evolved from Duesenburg, a luxury automobile - one thing remains certain: a child's doozie is often a parent's disaster. zedonk The term for the *offspring of a zebra and a donkey" will not only get your child giggling, but also open up opportunities to discuss a host of life science-related issues. For example, it a lion and tiger produce a ligre, why can't a dog and a cat can't produce a "cog"? shenanigan No one knows for sure where this term for "mischief: prankishness" came from, but let's face it - getting your kids to use a 4 syllable word to describe their own bad behavior is a big hit with young kids. Yours might have a little more enthusiasm for that this southern U.S. term for tackling a problem that is "involved, intricate, or difficult" if you explain to them that it's a knotty problem. It also introduces the concept of the silent "K". "askew; awry; or "positioned diagonally"gives rise to discussing fundamentals of geometry. Interest- ingly, wampus describes "a strange or objectionable person good thing! POWERED BY Oictionary.com