#Copywriting ALERT! 902 Headline Banging Words, SRSLY

When it comes to copywriting, headlines often make the difference between rock star heroes and wanna-be writer duds. The premise is simple. Compose a great headline and potential readers notice.

Boom! We’ve assembled a list of banging words to use composing ad, blog and article headlines, likely to distinguish professional from amateur copy when well used.

How To Use The List

Search the post using the find on page command in your web browser. The list below is divided into an array of permutations:

• Emotions like “Happy,” “Sad,” “Angry” and “Guilt”
• Expletive punch words such as “Aha,” “Shh,” and “Ick”
• Stimulating headline fodder at the next level of synonym extrapolation: “Beautiful” becomes “Gorgeous” and “Magnificent.” We stem “Epic” to options to the tune of “Titanic” and “Gallant.” “Fake” offers fun synonyms like “Faux” and “Mock.” You get the picture. This resource is meant to be a colorful headline-stemming lateral  thesaurus.

Those Important Short Words Come Alive
Being copywriters in a world of 25 character ad headline restrictions and SEO title tag limitations can be a challenge. To help out, we’ve color-coded by length short-sweet-and-to-the-beat headline writing gems as follows:

• Green = 2 character words
• Red = those elusive 3 character words
• Blue = 4 character words
• Orange = 5 letter words
• Black = longer words, many of which are super duper colorful

Many of these words can be expressed as alternate semantic mechanisms, meaning forms other than presented herein. For instance, “Entertain,” the verb can be used as “Entertaining,” an adjective. “Chaos” might become “Chaotic,” “Risk” can be used as “Risky,” “Excess,” “Excessive”, etc. Be headline-LICIOUS babe 🙂

Present and past tense are liquid as well. “Roar can be “Roared” and “Content”  written as “Contented.” In other words, think of the words below as concepts and have your way manipulating variations. Make “Malicious” “Malice,” “Forge” “Forgery” and so on.

We’re hopeful the list herein provides effervescent writing options to rock out ad copy, blogs and articles. Alrighty then, let’s have at it! Have phat fun and happy headline banging!

Aggressive, violent, assertive, pushy, forceful, belligerent, pugnacious, confrontational, argumentative, fierce

Aha, alert, eek, hmm, shh, ugh, umm, sick, hello, oh my, SRSLY, hey, act, warning, bam, boom, fab, new, hah, man, #FAIL, yay, yep, yes, sure, affirmative, absolutely, indeed, surely, aye, certainly, yeah, yah, ick, rad

Alt, alternative, substitute, replacement, option, possibility

Adorned, gilded, golden, decorated, ornate, colorful, flamboyant

All-star, star-studded, glittering, prestigious, glitzy, stellar, starry, cosmic, swanky, showy, flashy, rockstar

Amuse, tickled, charmed, entertain, fascinating, enthrall, intrigue, beguile, mesmerizing, engross

Angry, mad, rage, frenzy, agitate, temper, ire, bile, vitriol, annoy, aggravated, aggravate, agitated, bitter, hostile, exasperate, ferocity, frustration, frustrate, fury, grouchy, grumpy, crabby, hostile, indignant, irritate, irritated, outrage, vengeance, wrath, revenge, peeved, upset, pissed, miffed, riled, irk, tantrum, testy, cranky, cross, livid, fuming, fume, madness, avenge, fit, ire

Attack, assault, incursion, onslaught, ambush, blitz, mugging, trap

Guilt, remorse, culpable, responsible, blameworthy, liable, accountable

Bad, evil, wicked, dreadful, corrupt, foul, vile, sinful, vulgar, obscene, profane, filthy, course, grimy, dirty, mucky, lewd, soiled, smutty, indecent, terrible, abysmal, awful, icky, gross, disgusting, horrid, revolting, awful, repellent, filthy, ghastly, crude

Beautiful, gorgeous, stunning, spectacular, dazzling, magnificent, lovely, attractive, striking, cute, pretty, scenic, exquisite, pretty, lovely, divine, adorable, exquisite, fine

Bomb, blast, shell, missile, explode, flash, fire, blaze, roar, rumble, zap, ram, bop, hit

Chaos, havoc, mess, disorder, mayhem, anarchy, tumult, fuss, commotion, turmoil, harsh, adverse, cruelty, frantic, frenetic

Cool, hip, trendy, stylish, fad, modish, fashionable, in, chic, voguish, craze

Courage, bravery, pluck, valor, mettle, resolution, hero, gallant

Cruel, mean, nasty, harsh, brutal, callous, malicious, uncaring, unkind, ruthless

Cry, wail, yell, shout, weep, howl, bawl, roar, sob, snivel, sniff, scream

Dangerous, unsafe, hazardous, risky, insecure, menacing, perilous, chancy, treacherous, menacing, threatening, dicey

Delicious, scrumptious, delectable, luscious, appetizing, mouthwatering, tasty, yummy, delish, juicy, sumptuous

Distant, aloof, detached, cold, unsociable, remote, unfriendly

Emotional, emo, provocative, stimulating, challenging, rousing, motivating, stirring, inspiring, feeling, touching, poignant, sentiment, compelling

Energy, vibrant, peppy, active, robust, vivacious, animated, effervescent, animated, vigorous, spirited, dynamic, drive, vim, drive, oomph

Envy, covet, jealousy, resentment, wishful, green, wannabe, want, crave

Epic, noble, heroic, grand, daring, intrepid, audacious, gallant, daring valiant, titanic

Escapade, jag, adventure, buzz, jaunt, spree, antic, trip, journey, excursion, tour

Excited, thrilled, delighted, euphoria, jubilation, exhilarate, zest, elated, glee

Fake, mock, bogus, faux, pseudo, artificial, ersatz, counterfeit, forged, phony, sham, forge, false, trick, hoax, spurious, unreal, simulated, quasi

Fear, anxiety, apprehension, dread, fright, hysteria, jumpiness, nervous, panic, tense, terror, worry, alarm, distress, trepidation, unease, disquiet, angst, concern, disquiet, fret, scare, foreboding, mania, jitter, edgy, agitate, nervy, twitchy

Funny, comedy, humorous, hilarious, hysterical, comical, entertaining, uproarious, riotous, amusing, sidesplitting, rib-tickling, droll, wacky, whacky, witty, waggish, droll, humor, wit, farce, fun

Geeky, nerd, dork, dweeb, Poindexter, nimrod, techie

Gem, jewel, diamond, charm, tiara, crown

Good, suitable, fit, apt, right, proper, excellent, superb, great, excellent, outstanding, exceptional, first-rate, admirable, superb, tremendous, terrific, wonderful, stupendous, marvelous, incomparable, magnificent, extraordinary, amazing, banging

Grateful, thanks, appreciation, indebted, beholden, obliged 

Greed, gluttony, voracity, insatiable, excess, rapacity

Happy, joy, enjoy, satisfied, bliss, jolly, cheerful, jovial, content, delight, glad, pleased, delighted, satisfied, quenched, placated, gratified, merry, gay, overjoyed, elated

Hate, animosity, abhorrence, antipathy, aversion, contempt, dislike, derision, deride, disdain, distaste, loath, repugnance, repelled, repulsion, resent, resentment, revolted, aghast, scorn, spite

Hope, optimism, faith, confidence, buoyancy, positivity, belief, trust, certainty

Hostile, unfriendly, harsh, adverse, antagonistic, intimidating, contrary

Huge, massive, immense, gigantic, monumental, colossal, giant, gargantuan, humongous, ginormous, vast, infinite, oversize

Hunger, starve, famine, appetite, wishful, thirst, ravenous, starve, famish

Insult, offensive, rude, insolent, impertinent, wounding, discourteous, slighting, offending, insolent, audacious, inflammatory, incendiary, inciting

Luxurious, posh, deluxe, lush, lavish, plush, opulent, rich, classy, grand, select, superior, extravagant, stylish, expensive, affluent, wealth

No, nah, nay, nix, nil

Pain, hurt, sting, agony, sore, throb, discomfort, wound, injure, burn, ache, cut, scar, scald, scab

Passion, fervor, desire, zeal, ardor, fanatic, enthusiasm

Pleasure, ecstasy, rapture, satiated, euphoric, enraptured, hedonism, decadence

Pointless, vain, futile, useless, inept, pathetic, unusable, worthless, rubbish, hollow

Powerful, dominant, mighty, commanding, major, authoritative, masterful, imposing, firm

Protest, rally, unite, march, gripe, dissent, dispute, mutiny, rebel, complain, yell

Proud, honored, gratified

Rad, radical, drastic, major, extreme, severe, intense

Rock, crush, destroy, decimate, annihilate, demolish, obliterate, thrash, batter, flog, hammer, bang, spank, whip

Sad, heartache, misery, woe, mourning, anguish, despair, depressed, gloom, melancholy, desolate, lament, bereave, torture, agony, deject, down, low, blue, glum, despondent, unhappy, dissatisfied, displeased, disgruntled, discontent, frustrated, upset, grumpy, gloomy, grief, sorrow, pained

Sly, crafty, cunning, shrewd, wily, sneaky, guileful

Smart, artful, ingenious, brilliant, bright, genius, canny, keen, intelligent, scholarly, brainy, educated, learned, studious, cerebral

Spurn, reject, resist, revolt, snub, repel, repulse, deter, resist, rebuff, deride

Stun, daze, shock, jolt, jar, stagger, baffle, haze, shake, jerk, bash, puzzle, bemuse, stump

Stupid, silly, unwise, senseless, ill-advised, imprudent, rash, reckless, heedless, risky, hasty, inane

Success, victory, conquest, triumph, feat, win, coup, accomplishment

Suspicious, wary, watchful, guarded, skeptical, doubtful, mistrust, apprehensive, defensive, vigilant, heedful

Unique (darker), dissimilar, divergent, abnormal, contradictory, unrelated, deviating, opposing, unlike, unrelated, curious, odd, unusual

Unique (positive), singular, distinct, different, distinctive, rare, exclusive, divergent

Urge, impulse, itch, compulsion, crave, want, hankering, green-eyed, yen, desire, longing, inclination, whim, impulse, compulsion

Valuable, treasured, prized, precious, quality

Vomit, nauseous, nausea, puke, spew, hurl, heave, gag, wretch, barf, regurgitate

Additional Three Letter Words

Aim, aim, amp, ape, ban, bum, bye, con, cop, cow, coy, elf, fog, gut, hag, hex, jab, jam, lag, law, let, lie, max, mob, nab, nag, old, opt, own, ply, pox, rag, raw, rip, rot, run, shy, spy, thy, veg, vex, wad, wag, war, yap