paracosmos means the realm of imagination; an imaginary world. It carries an Arena rating of 1700, earned across 84 head-to-head judged battles.
Among words judged in Lexicurio's Arena, paracosmos ranks #277 of 17,124 for Most Sublime Words, #1,673 of 17,140 for Most Whimsical Words, #1,926 of 17,126 for Most Satisfying to Say, #3,869 of 17,130 for Most Beautiful Words.
Why “paracosmos” is a great word
PARACOSMOS — [Noun] A detailed, sustained imaginary world, often created in childhood or as a creative endeavor. From the English prefix para- (meaning 'beside, beyond, altered') + cosmos (from Greek kosmos, meaning 'world, universe'). Unlike "fantasy" (a broad genre or a fanciful notion) or "daydream" (a fleeting and passive reverie), a paracosmos is a parallel, meticulously wrought dominion with its own unshakable laws. It is the map of a continent drawn on notebook paper, its rivers flowing from memories of summer rain; the dynastic lineage of a family of speaking stones, documented in a private cipher; the specific, unchanging scent of the air in a country accessible only by climbing through the back of a wardrobe—a quiet rebuttal to the tyranny of a single, accepted reality.
Etymology
From para- + cosmos.
noun
- The realm of imagination; an imaginary world.e.g.“Day dreaming and fantasies which are flights into the paracosmos, are an antithesis of creativity which is the most intense land of action.” — 1961, The American Journal of Psychiatry, volume 117, page 96:
Definitions & examples from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).
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