There are about 470,000 words in Webster’s Third New International Dictionary and the Oxford English Dictionary combined, though it is estimated that only about 170,000 are in common use. And while the average American adult is said to speak a total of between 7,000 and 20,000 words a day, the average number of unique words spoken is only about 1,000, according to the Harvard Advocate. (Here are 32 words people misuse all the time.)
That number is higher in some states than in others, however. To compile a ranking of the states where residents have the biggest vocabulary, 24/7 Tempo reviewed a report by LetterSolver, a site that helps people find commonly used words in word games. They analyzed millions of geotagged English-language tweets, reduced variations on the same word to a single form, and divided all words into samples of 1,000. They determined the number of unique words in their samples and calculated the mean number of unique words for each state.
The West, Midwest, and New England states have among the highest vocabularies in the nation. This tends to somewhat correlate with educational attainment as expressed in attainment of at least a Bachelor’s degree, and with median household income. Among the exceptions is New Mexico, fifth on the list for vocabulary size, but 11th-lowest in educational attainment and sixth-lowest in median household income.
States in the Southeast, with some of the country’s lowest educational attainment rates and median household income levels, tend to have lower vocabularies. Among the exceptions are Maryland and New Jersey, both in the bottom 10 in the ranking, though they have the highest and third-highest median household incomes in the nation, respectively, and New Jersey has the fourth-highest percentage of adults with at least a Bachelor’s degree. (These are the states where the most people have gone to college.)
The state with the broadest vocabulary is Hawaii, where 466 unique words are spoken out of 1,000 words in tweets. According to LetterSolver, Hawaiian and English are both official languages of Hawaii, and it is well-known that being bilingual helps promote cognitive strength. Children who grow up speaking two or more languages tend to outperform their peers in English by age 7.
It should be noted, however, that the site also computed the number of unique words for every 1,000 spoken for individual cities, and by that measure, 16 non-Hawaiian cities exceeded the Aloha State’s overall score. The city with the highest ranking was San Francisco at 477.1, followed by New York City at 476.1.
50. Maryland
> Unique words for every 1,000 spoken: 432.7
> Adults with at least a Bachelor’s degree: 42.5 — 5th highest
> Median household income: $90,203 — the highest
> Population: 6,165,129
49. West Virginia
> Unique words for every 1,000 spoken: 441.6
> Adults with at least a Bachelor’s degree: 24.1 — the lowest
> Median household income: $51,248 — 2nd lowest
> Population: 1,782,959
48. Georgia
> Unique words for every 1,000 spoken: 442.7
> Adults with at least a Bachelor’s degree: 34.6 — 23rd highest
> Median household income: $66,559 — 25th highest
> Population: 10,799,566
46. Louisiana
> Unique words for every 1,000 spoken: 443.9
> Adults with at least a Bachelor’s degree: 26.4 — 4th lowest
> Median household income: $52,087 — 3rd lowest
> Population: 4,624,047
46. Mississippi
> Unique words for every 1,000 spoken: 443.9
> Adults with at least a Bachelor’s degree: 24.8 — 2nd lowest
> Median household income: $48,716 — the lowest
> Population: 2,949,965
45. Delaware
> Unique words for every 1,000 spoken: 444.1
> Adults with at least a Bachelor’s degree: 35.6 — 18th highest
> Median household income: $71,091 — 19th highest
> Population: 1,003,384
44. Wyoming
> Unique words for every 1,000 spoken: 444.3
> Adults with at least a Bachelor’s degree: 29.2 — 10th lowest
> Median household income: $65,204 — 20th lowest
> Population: 578,803
43. Kentucky
> Unique words for every 1,000 spoken: 446.4
> Adults with at least a Bachelor’s degree: 27.0 — 5th lowest
> Median household income: $55,573 — 7th lowest
> Population: 4,509,394
42. New Jersey
> Unique words for every 1,000 spoken: 448.0
> Adults with at least a Bachelor’s degree: 43.1 — 4th highest
> Median household income: $89,296 — 3rd highest
> Population: 9,267,130
41. Montana
> Unique words for every 1,000 spoken: 449.7
> Adults with at least a Bachelor’s degree: 34.8 — 22nd highest
> Median household income: $63,249 — 16th lowest
> Population: 1,104,271
39. Alabama
> Unique words for every 1,000 spoken: 449.9
> Adults with at least a Bachelor’s degree: 27.4 — 6th lowest
> Median household income: $53,913 — 5th lowest
> Population: 5,039,877
39. Arkansas
> Unique words for every 1,000 spoken: 449.9
> Adults with at least a Bachelor’s degree: 25.3 — 3rd lowest
> Median household income: $52,528 — 4th lowest
> Population: 3,025,891
37. Texas
> Unique words for every 1,000 spoken: 450.8
> Adults with at least a Bachelor’s degree: 33.1 — 24th lowest
> Median household income: $66,963 — 23rd highest
> Population: 29,527,941
37. Missouri
> Unique words for every 1,000 spoken: 450.8
> Adults with at least a Bachelor’s degree: 31.7 — 19th lowest
> Median household income: $61,847 — 11th lowest
> Population: 6,168,187
36. South Dakota
> Unique words for every 1,000 spoken: 451.7
> Adults with at least a Bachelor’s degree: 31.7 — 17th lowest
> Median household income: $66,143 — 22nd lowest
> Population: 895,376
35. North Dakota
> Unique words for every 1,000 spoken: 451.8
> Adults with at least a Bachelor’s degree: 31.7 — 20th lowest
> Median household income: $66,519 — 25th lowest
> Population: 774,948
34. Tennessee
> Unique words for every 1,000 spoken: 452.1
> Adults with at least a Bachelor’s degree: 30.5 — 12th lowest
> Median household income: $59,695 — 10th lowest
> Population: 6,975,218
33. Ohio
> Unique words for every 1,000 spoken: 452.2
> Adults with at least a Bachelor’s degree: 30.7 — 15th lowest
> Median household income: $62,262 — 13th lowest
> Population: 11,780,017
31. Kansas
> Unique words for every 1,000 spoken: 452.7
> Adults with at least a Bachelor’s degree: 35.4 — 19th highest
> Median household income: $64,124 — 18th lowest
> Population: 2,934,582
31. North Carolina
> Unique words for every 1,000 spoken: 452.7
> Adults with at least a Bachelor’s degree: 34.9 — 21st highest
> Median household income: $61,972 — 12th lowest
> Population: 10,551,162
30. Florida
> Unique words for every 1,000 spoken: 453.4
> Adults with at least a Bachelor’s degree: 33.2 — 25th lowest
> Median household income: $63,062 — 15th lowest
> Population: 21,781,128
29. New York
> Unique words for every 1,000 spoken: 454.2
> Adults with at least a Bachelor’s degree: 39.9 — 9th highest
> Median household income: $74,314 — 14th highest
> Population: 19,835,913
28. Michigan
> Unique words for every 1,000 spoken: 454.4
> Adults with at least a Bachelor’s degree: 31.7 — 18th lowest
> Median household income: $63,498 — 17th lowest
> Population: 10,050,811
26. Virginia
> Unique words for every 1,000 spoken: 454.5
> Adults with at least a Bachelor’s degree: 41.8 — 7th highest
> Median household income: $80,963 — 10th highest
> Population: 8,642,274
26. Pennsylvania
> Unique words for every 1,000 spoken: 454.5
> Adults with at least a Bachelor’s degree: 34.5 — 24th highest
> Median household income: $68,957 — 21st highest
> Population: 12,964,056
25. Maine
> Unique words for every 1,000 spoken: 454.6
> Adults with at least a Bachelor’s degree: 36.0 — 17th highest
> Median household income: $64,767 — 19th lowest
> Population: 1,372,247
23. New Hampshire
> Unique words for every 1,000 spoken: 454.8
> Adults with at least a Bachelor’s degree: 40.2 — 8th highest
> Median household income: $88,465 — 4th highest
> Population: 1,388,992
23. Indiana
> Unique words for every 1,000 spoken: 454.8
> Adults with at least a Bachelor’s degree: 28.9 — 9th lowest
> Median household income: $62,743 — 14th lowest
> Population: 6,805,985
22. Nevada
> Unique words for every 1,000 spoken: 454.9
> Adults with at least a Bachelor’s degree: 27.6 — 7th lowest
> Median household income: $66,274 — 23rd lowest
> Population: 3,143,991
21. Illinois
> Unique words for every 1,000 spoken: 455.7
> Adults with at least a Bachelor’s degree: 37.1 — 12th highest
> Median household income: $72,205 — 17th highest
> Population: 12,671,469
20. Connecticut
> Unique words for every 1,000 spoken: 456.2
> Adults with at least a Bachelor’s degree: 42.1 — 6th highest
> Median household income: $83,771 — 8th highest
> Population: 3,605,597
18. Rhode Island
> Unique words for every 1,000 spoken: 456.5
> Adults with at least a Bachelor’s degree: 36.5 — 14th highest
> Median household income: $74,008 — 15th highest
> Population: 1,095,610
18. South Carolina
> Unique words for every 1,000 spoken: 456.5
> Adults with at least a Bachelor’s degree: 31.5 — 16th lowest
> Median household income: $59,318 — 9th lowest
> Population: 5,190,705
17. California
> Unique words for every 1,000 spoken: 456.8
> Adults with at least a Bachelor’s degree: 36.2 — 16th highest
> Median household income: $84,907 — 5th highest
> Population: 39,237,836
15. Idaho
> Unique words for every 1,000 spoken: 456.9
> Adults with at least a Bachelor’s degree: 30.7 — 14th lowest
> Median household income: $66,474 — 24th lowest
> Population: 1,900,923
15. Oklahoma
> Unique words for every 1,000 spoken: 456.9
> Adults with at least a Bachelor’s degree: 27.9 — 8th lowest
> Median household income: $55,826 — 8th lowest
> Population: 3,986,639
14. Alaska
> Unique words for every 1,000 spoken: 457.2
> Adults with at least a Bachelor’s degree: 32.8 — 23rd lowest
> Median household income: $77,845 — 12th highest
> Population: 732,673
13. Washington
> Unique words for every 1,000 spoken: 457.4
> Adults with at least a Bachelor’s degree: 39.0 — 10th highest
> Median household income: $84,247 — 7th highest
> Population: 7,738,692
12. Arizona
> Unique words for every 1,000 spoken: 458.1
> Adults with at least a Bachelor’s degree: 32.4 — 21st lowest
> Median household income: $69,056 — 20th highest
> Population: 7,276,316
11. Colorado
> Unique words for every 1,000 spoken: 458.2
> Adults with at least a Bachelor’s degree: 44.4 — 3rd highest
> Median household income: $82,254 — 9th highest
> Population: 5,812,069
10. Nebraska
> Unique words for every 1,000 spoken: 458.3
> Adults with at least a Bachelor’s degree: 34.4 — 25th highest
> Median household income: $66,817 — 24th highest
> Population: 1,963,692
9. Iowa
> Unique words for every 1,000 spoken: 458.7
> Adults with at least a Bachelor’s degree: 30.5 — 13th lowest
> Median household income: $65,600 — 21st lowest
> Population: 3,193,079
8. Wisconsin
> Unique words for every 1,000 spoken: 459.5
> Adults with at least a Bachelor’s degree: 32.5 — 22nd lowest
> Median household income: $67,125 — 22nd highest
> Population: 5,895,908
7. Minnesota
> Unique words for every 1,000 spoken: 459.7
> Adults with at least a Bachelor’s degree: 38.9 — 11th highest
> Median household income: $77,720 — 13th highest
> Population: 5,707,390
6. Utah
> Unique words for every 1,000 spoken: 459.9
> Adults with at least a Bachelor’s degree: 36.8 — 13th highest
> Median household income: $79,449 — 11th highest
> Population: 3,337,975
5. New Mexico
> Unique words for every 1,000 spoken: 461.4
> Adults with at least a Bachelor’s degree: 30.1 — 11th lowest
> Median household income: $53,992 — 6th lowest
> Population: 2,115,877
4. Oregon
> Unique words for every 1,000 spoken: 462.7
> Adults with at least a Bachelor’s degree: 36.3 — 15th highest
> Median household income: $71,562 — 18th highest
> Population: 4,246,155
3. Vermont
> Unique words for every 1,000 spoken: 463.4
> Adults with at least a Bachelor’s degree: 44.4 — 2nd highest
> Median household income: $72,431 — 16th highest
> Population: 645,570
2. Massachusetts
> Unique words for every 1,000 spoken: 464.9
> Adults with at least a Bachelor’s degree: 46.6 — the highest
> Median household income: $89,645 — 2nd highest
> Population: 6,984,723
1. Hawaii
> Unique words for every 1,000 spoken: 466.0
> Adults with at least a Bachelor’s degree: 35.3 — 20th highest
> Median household income: $84,857 — 6th highest
> Population: 1,441,553