question Would you register an available dictionary dot com? Even if a little obscure?

[sonicanvil]

I found a dictionary word that is available. It is not a widely used word and it is a bit long but is it worth registering?

 

[Bob Hawkes]

I think important to be realistic, as others have said, that odds of selling obscure words to a business are very remote (although not exactly zero I would add).

A word like yours might find markets I would think in something like the professional page for an individual, partnership, niche company or organization that worked in a narrow academically focussed linguistics, academic writing or editing, translation, etc. niche, or more likely to an individual academic who knew the word and liked it for their professional page or blog. Of course the odds that the latter would pay much is low.

It of course could work for travel/translation on a bigger scale, if you could get someone to want it.

I think the main way that a word might suddenly have substantial commercial value is if some talk show, popular writer, comedian, etc. suddenly gave it a platform. Like many decades ago few people knew the word oxymoron. But then a few comedians started coming up with examples of oxymoron terms including ones they used to make fun of things, and suddenly the name came into common use. I think it was late 1980's the transition, I should check.

So get parasynonym on one of the night talk shows and you are set! Actually the right person could make a funny show out of the names companies use and the domain names that are sold. OK I would think it could be funny, but probably a hard sell to producers!

Best wishes for it! Had I seen it, I might have tried it a year, so I think your decision to do so is not unreasonable. It is nice to be able to say you have a dictionary word, too!

Bob
(ps one of my daughters has a grad degree in linguistics , but no she is not looking for a domain name )

 

[Wali Dahot]

I know the feeling; as newbies we arent able to afford premium dictionary words, owning even an obscure word satisfies our inner desire to own one. I too came across a name a while ago and I went ahead and regged it. Its embrocate, its a medical term which means moisten and rub a (diseased or painful) part of the body with lotion. Well I can now say its a parasynonym of Massage !!
On a serious note I agree with all the other posters here. You need to ask yourself who will use my name and for what purpose?

 

[frank-germany]

I registered it just in case. Any thoughts?

thats the best way to find out

 

[boker]

Nope. There are over 140 million .com registered.

Unless one expires or drops what is left are basically obscure words and tenses.

Brad

It's true, but for sure there are a few that could be brandable and because they are dictionary words, tend to be more easy to remember. For example, I have a few, like trepidity, listed at SH with around 70 shortlist, so you could find some. Also ,I've bought some this weekend, like roundure( round form, space or object) equispaced(spaced apart at equal distances) blizzicane (didn't knew about this one, looks like a blend between blizzard and hurricane, a weather system that produces intense rain, wind, and snow, there is a brewing companynamed like this). I can bet I can find a few startups to use them.

 

[cooljub]

Who would you sell it to?

 

[NYJimbo]

I found a dictionary word that is available. It is not a widely used word and it is a bit long but is it worth registering?

NO.

If it's obscure and you checked the history of the domain with like hosterstats and/or nambio and see nothing on it, walk away.

One of the biggest mistakes new domainers do is think that any dictionary word must have value. Unless you do the homework to see what value it has, don't waste time with it.

 

[oldtimer]

How much does it cost to reg a .com - anywhere from some special $.99 sale to maybe $10.00 or so.

That is your capital risk to acquire a name you have an interest in and a full year thereafter to figure out if you spent wisely or took a minimal dollar risk and failed.

The name you acquired seems a bit on the risky end but I believe it is better to buy and try and then
just let the name renewal die.

Keep in mind that not all obscure dictionary words are at the same level, some might have been overlooked by others or perhaps just came up to be available on the drops, but some might be so obscure and awkward that no one wanted to register them in the past 30 years (of course if it's a new word that was just added to the dictionary that might be a different story).

So it might be better to stay away from those obscure dictionary words that have absolutely zero practical use as a domain and get a two word domain instead that you won't have to drop later.

IMO

 

[WatchDogue]

Keep in mind that not all obscure dictionary words are at the same level, some might have been overlooked by others or perhaps just came up to be available on the drops, but some might be so obscure and awkward that no one wanted to register them in the past 30 years (of course if it's a new word that was just added to the dictionary that might be a different story).

So it might be better to stay away from those obscure dictionary words that have absolutely zero practical use as a domain and get a two word domain instead that you won't have to drop later.

IMO

In principle and, in practice, I tend to agree with your position.

However, if a name is just gnawing away at someone and for a few dollars they can buy and try the name, I think it is better to try and fail than never try at all.

The OP decided to give a try to a name that had interested him so I'm glad he bought it and give it an opportunity to become a site or a sale.

 

[Bob Hawkes]

It might be interesting if people shared in this thread any obscure words they hold, and if they have ever sold one. I have a few, one of which is iambic (in .co). I remember the term iambic pentameter from an English class in middle school 55+ years ago and always liked the elegance of how the term iambic sounds. Anyway, decided to pick it up. I am not alone, i guess, as somewhat surprisingly the term is registered in 23 TLDs. I am still waiting for that poetry startup company to come knocking with an offer for it, however! I priced it low BIN hoping some academic, blogger, writer, editor, poet, etc. might like the elegance of the word.
Bob

 

[Brands.International]

Try it and you will see Inpossible to tell wihout knowing the name, which you of course can not disclose here.

 

[DanSanchez]

Define worth registering?

Are you registering to satisfy a personal need or use?
Are you registering to provide value to others that may want to buy the domain?

Both are not mutually exclusive, but they can cancel each other out.

 

[sonicanvil]

I have several dictionary words at this point. Some are more well known than others. Sometimes I registered a domain name too quickly and then question why.

Not too long ago, I registered Bumptiously.com because I used the word in a sentence on social media to describe somebody and their antics. Then I saw that it was available. Kind of silly but you never know.

bump•tious bŭmp′shəs
►

• adj.
  Crudely or loudly assertive; pushy.
• 
  Offensively self-assertive; liable to give or take offense; disposed to quarrel; domineering; forward; pushing.
• adj.
  Self-conceited; forward; pushing.

 

[oldtimer]

I am going to come up with a new phrase for domaining that perhaps we all need to keep in mind:

Your own domains are going to be in competition with each other at renewal time.

Well maybe everyone already knew this, but it just now came to my mind.

basically imagine that you have to renew a bunch of your domains and that you either are trimming your portfolio or that you might be on a limited budget, so now would you choose to renew an obscure and perhaps awkward dictionary domain or would you rather renew a two word domain that has some practical uses and could be of interest to end users.

If your dictionary word is so good that you would choose it over other domains in your portfolio at renewal time then you have made the right decision by getting it, but otherwise why waste the money that could be used to get a two word domain that has better resale and development potentials.

Of course this is just my opinion, others might think differently.

IMO

 

[BrandEntrance.com]

The word/domain is ParaSynonym.com


parasynonym

Noun
(plural parasynonyms)

1. (linguistics) A word or phrase that shares similar meanings with another term in some contexts, but not all; a close synonym.

I see zero searches for this word.

Loads of 1 word domain names are available. Usually the ones that have no real commercial value.

 

[kdu]

Advice above sounds good. At least try if you like it. Haven't sold any, but currently hold these:

Hedonically(com)
Tangibleness(com)

 

[7363824]

Depends On the name. If theres a buyer for it go for it. Or if you want to spend $9 to be able to say you own a single word .com I mean someone owns antidisestablishmentarianism

 

[gilescoley]

Not if it has no commercial use.

 

[sonicanvil]

Every point expressed is valid and worth consideration! Thank you!

 

[sonicanvil]

I registered it just in case. Any thoughts?

 

[urlurl]

if you have to google the meaning... not really worth it

there are thousands of available dictionary words out there unregistered, and for a reason.

 

[Joe N]

Every once in a while I see an interesting one, but I don't think I've ever actually registered a single word .com name. Any that are available are either too obscure (as previously mentioned) or are in an awkward tense that is unlikely to be commercially desirable (e.g. Unfamiliarly, or Negativisitc).

That being said, I did just purchase one on GD closeouts that I thought had a little potential: Underback [com].

I saw another one that was kind of cool, but left it alone: Haberdasheries [com]. Might still be available if anyone likes it.

 

[J Sokol]

Depends On the name. If theres a buyer for it go for it. Or if you want to spend $9 to be able to say you own a single word .com I mean someone owns antidisestablishmentarianism

A funny thing about antidisestablishmentarianism -- it reminded me of being in school and having fun with the word, so when I saw disestablish.com for sale here on NP, I bought it. Being an obscure term, no one has shown any interest in it so far.

 

[sonicanvil]

I'm not a new domainer but that doesn't mean that I'm an active seller however. Most of the domains that I own were registered for a purpose and I have held them for a long time. Now, I know that I will not get to all of them so I am selling those domains.

 

[WatchDogue]

How much does it cost to reg a .com - anywhere from some special $.99 sale to maybe $10.00 or so.

That is your capital risk to acquire a name you have an interest in and a full year thereafter to figure out if you spent wisely or took a minimal dollar risk and failed.

The name you acquired seems a bit on the risky end but I believe it is better to buy and try and then
just let the name renewal die.

 

[Pay.My.id]

Follow your heart and keep going or you will fail again and again.... Or change your approach until your name sold someday. Best of simple practize is listening to all good advice from NP expert or other... Good luck