Confession:
I am a grammar nerd. I have a large vocabulary and have been teased by bullies
and friends alike. I read voraciously and I still look up unfamiliar words. I
edit for a side living, and I actually like perusing grammar manuals. Nerdy, see?
I read many
articles online. Yesterday I read a news article that had numerous grammatical
and mechanical errors in it. They distracted me from the content. But, the word
choices were also unoriginal and poor. All in all, it was just a dreadful
article. I longed to contact the editor. I wanted to leave a tactful comment.
But, I knew that I would just be trolled as a “Grammar Nazi.”
I love
language. I love imagery that draws me into a writer’s fictional world. I love
large words, when used for a purpose. The well placed description. The
perfectly chosen word.
When I was a
child, my parents gave me a dictionary that I was expected to use. Didn’t know
what a word meant? They would say, “Look it up.” Not sure how to spell
something? “Here are the first three letters, now look it up.” Didn’t know what
an idiom meant? They were happy to explain. I was surrounded by books from
birth, and trips to the library were like stepping into heaven.
In our
Twitter based world, it makes me sad to see the demise of creative
descriptions. The careless use and abuse of grammar makes it difficult to read
many sources, and don’t even get me started on social media comments and
memes. I’ve heard the younger
generations don’t use imagery. I know some great books are still
Here are just a few of my favorite words.
Convoluted-adjective. Extremely complex and difficult to follow,
especially an argument, story, or sentence. (Boy is that one relevant
today!)
Synchronicity- noun. The simultaneous occurrence
of events which appear significantly related but have no discernible causal
connection. (You know that wonderful phenomenon where it all comes
together, with no apparent explanation? You want to find something and suddenly
you see it everywhere? Several seemingly random events happen and they all lead
you where you need to be? Bliss.)
Serendipity-noun. The occurrence and development
of events by chance in a happy or beneficial way. (It’s similar, I know.
But one can never know too many optimistic words. “I’ve been meaning to talk to
you for days now, and here you are. It’s serendipity!”)
Idiosyncrasy- noun. A mode of behavior or
way of thought peculiar to an individual. Distinctive or peculiar feature or
characteristic of a place or thing. (What a lovely way to say we are all
different and interesting.)
Anachronism-noun. A thing belonging or
appropriate to a period other than that in which it exists, especially on a
thing that is conspicuously old-fashioned. (Okay, it’s probably no great
mystery why I love this word!)
Kindness- noun.
The quality of being friendly, generous, and considerate. (Two syllables,
but one of the biggest, most important words in existence.)
What about you? Are there any words you love to use? Leave them in the
comments below. And have a splendiferous month, dear Reader.
Picture
Attributions:
Action Vance photo Dictionary
