Can you come up with the particular property that this list of 8-letter words share

Francis, Darryl

English

Digital Commons @ Butler University

WHAT’S SO KEY ABOUT THESE 8-LETTER WORDS?  Darryl Francis Brampton, Cumbria, England darryl.francis@yahoo.co.uk   The main list below contains 80 words and names, mostly taken from familiar reference works (such as Webster’s Second and Third Editions, and the Oxford English Dictionary), although there are some US placenames sourced from the internet. The supplementary list has a further 145 names – these are foreign placenames, foreign surnames, and the like, mainly to be found on the internet – all pretty obscure and unfamiliar. I believe the full set of 225 words and names is probably the (almost) complete set of words and names with a particular property. What is the key property? The property is not shared by words of less than eight letters or more than eight letters.  The Main List – 80 words & names Word / Name Dictionary Definition adroitly W3 In an adroit manner Aldworth Ordnance Survey Gazetteer of Great Britain, 3rd edition, 1992 Place in Berkshire, England anesthyl W3 A mixture of ethyl and methyl chlorides used for the production of local anaesthesia by spraying blintzes W3 Thin rolled pancakes blowiest W3 Windiest bungerly W2 & OED Unworkmanlike, clumsily chumleys W2 Dialect or old form of 'chimneys' clientry W3 Clientele cryolite W3 A mineral consisting of sodium-aluminum fluoride found in Greenland dicotyls W3 Plants with two cotyledons dilatory W3 Tending or having the intent to cause delay enthalpy W3 A thermodynamic quantity  Enyalius W2 A god of war epicotyl W3 A portion of the axis of a plant embryo or seedling filatory OED A machine for forming or spinning threads foxtails W3 Foxes' tails galewort W2 A shrub, also called the 'sweet gale' gealousy OED 15th century form of ‘jealousy’ geolatry OED Worship of the earth Grantley Ordnance Survey Gazetteer of Great Britain, 3rd edition, 1992 Place in North Yorkshire, England Grünwald Times Index Gazetteer, 1965 Place in Austria gunlayer W3 A sailor who aims a ship's guns gunwales W3 Parts of a nautical vessel where topsides and deck meet haylofts W3 Lofts where hay is stored hectorly W2 & OED Of the nature of a hector, blustering, insolent ialousye OED 15th century form of ‘jealousy’ idolatry W3 Worship of a physical object as a god interlay W3 Something placed between a printing plate and its base to make the plate a suitable height for proper impression jarovize W3 To give freshness to keypunch W3 A machine actuated by a keyboard and used to cut holes or notches in punch cards knitwear W3 Knitted clothing kyanites W3 Minerals consisting of an aluminum silicate occurring commonly in blue thin-bladed triclinic crystals and crystalline aggregates lauwines OED Avalanches lawniest Collins Official Scrabble Words, 2015 Most like a lawn laytimes Collins English Dictionary, 12th edition, 2014 Periods of time allowed by a ship-owner to offload cargo legatory OED 15th century form of ‘legatary’, a person to whom a bequest left legotary OED 17th century form of ‘legatary’, a person to whom a bequest left Lenzburg Times Index Gazetteer, 1965 Place in Switzerland liftboys Collins English Dictionary, 12th edition, 2014 Persons who operate lifts lipocyte Collins English Dictionary, 12th A fat-storing cell found in the liver edition, 2014 lopheavy W2 So heavy as to lop or hang down lymphate OED Diluted with water lynchets W3 Ridges or strips of unplowed land forming boundaries between fields lyterian W2 & OED Indicating the end of a disease mawkiest Collins English Dictionary, 12th edition, 2014 Most nauseating naythles Chambers Dictionary, 12th edition, 2011 An archaic word meaning 'notwithstanding' neuralgy W3 Acute paroxysmal pain radiating along the course of one or more nerves Olivarez Wikipedia Town in Hidalgo county, Texas ovalwise W2 In the characteristic manner of an oval ozarkite W2 & OED A mineral, also called 'thomsonite' Palmview Wikipedia Town in Hidalgo county, Texas penality W3 Liability to punishment pentylic W2 & OED Relating to the pentyl radical in chemistry, C5H11 playtime W3 Time for playing plowgate W3 A unit of land area once used in Scotland and northern England Polzeath Ordnance Survey Gazetteer of Great Britain, 3rd edition, 1992 A place in Cornwall, England quakynge OED Early form of ‘quaking’, appearing in several quotes – eg the 1555 quote at the verb ‘quake’ reculyng OED Early form of ‘recoiling’, appearing in two quotes – eg the 1566 quote at the adjective ‘recoiling’ scolytid W3 A beetle sodality W3 Brotherhood, community steamily W3 In a steamy manner Stickney Random House Dictionary, 1965 A town in Cook county, Illinois taleysim Webster’s New Collegiate Dictionary, 8th edition (1973) & 9th edition (1983) A shawl worn by Jewish men during morning prayers tankwise W2 In the characteristic manner of a tank tensibly W3 In a tensible manner triazole W3 Any of various compounds C2H3N3 containing a ring composed of two carbon atoms and three nitrogen atoms twangler W2 & OED One who twangles, or twangs twangles W3 Twanging sounds twankies OED Plural of 'twanky', a variant form of 'twankay', a variety of green tea unbirdly W2 & OED Unlike a bird unclergy W2 & OED To deprive a person of their status as member of the clergy uneasily W3 In an uneasy manner unfairly W3 Unjustly unflashy OED Not flashy unsagely OED Not sagely valorize W3 To determine or set the price of wankiest W3 Weakest, feeblest waterlog W3 To saturate with water whetrock W3 A natural or artificial stone for whetting edge tools wrentail W2 An artificial fly used for trout fishing    The Supplementary List – 145 names Alexinus  Andzulis  Aulopyge  Beowulph  Bertilow  Bouwerij  Budzisko  Cetinsky  Chelstow  Chertkow  Chwostek  Clergoux  Cloherty  Cumiskey  Dovyalis  Dzukians  Epitaxol  EuroHawk  Expolita  Eyrivank  Fakhoury  Gantzler  Genryaku  Goldbury  Gwapotel  Gyaltsen  Halestyn  Heatwork  Hubworld  Hureczko  Hyloecus  Hypenula  Intkawes  Jentzsch  Jewtopia  Juazeiro  Kamfiruz  Kartezio  Katheryn  Kathryne  Kathoeys  Katygord  Katzerin  Kazeruni  Kenyusha  Kerugoya  Khoudary  Kiamusze  Kierzbun  Kozusice  Krizovec  Kunshady  Kurowice  Kushaney  Kwarteng  Lexaurin  Libertow  Liestany  Limeyrat  Lucmierz  Lyhundra  Lyngstad  Lysivane  Lysovice  Malyshev  Marlieux  Matherly  Mazeptil  Melathys  Melpathy  Mephytal  Niekurza  Njarthey  Oleyuria  Ovarhely  Pfinztal  Pilocyte  Platinex  Playdium  Plentzia  Ploetzia  Podjuchy  Polytech  Recknitz  Rozbitek  Rudnicky  Rzucidlo  Schmeltz  Schotkey  Seaholtz  Sotileza  Stainley  Sukowice  Sulechów  Sulfazin  Sulowiec  Sylivena  Sylviane  Syntelia  Syntelic  Szentgal  Szinfalu  Targowek  Tariflox  Telschow  Terxanli  Theryola  Thorwald  Trazodil  Trycheln  Trzebnik  Tsjechow  Unieslaw  Unzicker  Urzelina  Vermilya  Verxijan  Veysanli  Vilareyo  Virazole  Viroflay  Walhstod  Walstein  Walthose  Weitkamp  Wirtland  Wohlfart  Wolfarth  Wunschel  Yaquimel  Yerukhan  Yesilova  Yetimlar  Yumesaki  Zahourek  Zastinje  Zavodski  Zdralovi  Zeitlarn  Zekistan  Zerjavin  Zharkent  Ziskovec  Zupanije  Zurkaneh    Solution to WHAT’S SO KEY ABOUT THESE 8-LETTER WORDS?  Each of the words and names can be spelled out using each of the 2-9 keys of a standard telephone keypad. As only eight of the keys have corresponding letters, the property is only possessed by 8-letter words.   

What\u27s So Key About These 8-Letter Words?

https://digitalcommons.butler.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=5730&amp;context=wordways

What\u27s So Key About These 8-Letter Words?

Abstract

Similar works

Full text

Available Versions

Digital Commons @ Butler University