Word for Word

And here is your allotment of odd and interesting vocabulary.

aplomb                              cachinnate                          shinplaster
gallimaufry                        kickshaw                            spume
bricolage                            toxophilite                          zowie
diffident                             antipathy                             saturnine
comestible                         chivy                                   sclaff
tortuous                             celerity                                balkanize
chicane                              crazy-quilt                           operose
rathskeller                         pell-mell                              aphelion
esurient                              comestible                          quiff
sotto voce                          pandurate                            nidificate
voluble                               clinquant                            cynosure

Words, Words, Words

More interesting-sounding words that I may or may not ever get to use.

(This may be the last instalment, as I've gone through all of the dictionary.com Words of the Day I had saved.)

gonzo                            perstreperous                          pervicacious
verboten                        timorous                                 hirsute
glabrous                         cadge                                     collimate
oneiric                            lodestar                                  cock-a-hoop
truckle                            aphesis                                   pettifogging
riposte                            ugsome                                   galligaskins
slake                               dulcify                                    blatherskite
schatzi                            chirk                                       moiety
toothsome                       razz                                        columbine
sciamachy                       cockalorum                           geomancy
inkhorn                           bonnyclabber                        anagnorisis

Do You Really, Truly, Actually Need That Adverb?

Along my quest of editing The Long and Winding Road into its eventual end product, I've butted heads with many adverbs. Some say to never use them, but they're part of our language for a reason, right? At the same time, I do see them weakening verbs and adjectives from time to time. So, if it's all right to keep them sometimes, and it's all right to nix them sometimes, when do I do what?

I decided to make a sort of flowchart for my own theory on proper adverb use, as a reference during editing.

What do you think? Decent adverb theory? What's your stance on the dreaded modifiers?

A Few More Words

More cool words here.

crepitate                                  senescense                                picayune
zeitgeber                                 cheeseparing                             cerebrate
prognosticate                          billingsgate                                jingoism
fantod                                      kelpie                                       crepuscule
phantasmagoric                       skeigh                                       clepe
novitiate                                  commix                                    tenuity
wroth                                      geit                                           wight
slumgullion                             hardihood                                 lipogram
umbriferous                            whitherward                              klaxon
cathexis                                  oeillade                                      sozzled
skosh                                      welkin                                       comport
wamble                                  hornswoggle                              echt
litigious                                  bosky                                         perspicuous

This Month's Vocabulary

A continuation of my interesting word posts.

pratfall                                          rutilant                                   logy
malversation                                 effulgence                             snood
scrum                                            blighter                                 yawp
edacity                                          fribble                                   scabrous
poetaster                                       bushwa                                 clangor
quillet                                           dreck                                     waif
finagle                                          gibbous                                 doggerel
auspicate                                      serotinal                                 habiliment
peplum                                         anfractuous                            dissilient
orrery                                           fleer                                       pilose
albedo                                          gangle                                    loblolly
bluestocking                                picaro                                     tittup
snollygoster                                  trepan                                    blowzy

Yet Another Compilation of Interesting Words

These posts may not be the most interesting to read (or, too consuming of dictionary-page-flipping time to fully enjoy), but, well, there's still more to the series, and I might as well keep it going.

rectitudinous                                quittance                                  pollywog
elytron                                          xeric                                        droll
gormless                                       haberdashery                           spang
phosphene                                    shilly-shally                             whangdoodle
inveigh                                         preterition                                 melliferous
invective                                       daven                                       quacksalver
nimiety                                          swivet                                      allochthonous
glom                                             gaumless                                  darg
eupeptic                                        impawn                                    pasquinade
imbricate                                       splenetic                                   mordacious
pococurante                                  percipient                                  wuther
abecedarian                                   chuffed                                     lunker
wangle                                          verisimilitude                            wonk
obnubilate                                     hellion                                       codger

He Said, She Said

Speech tags are quite the troublesome creatures. Some people say not to use them at all; some say to only use "say"; some say to use whatever as long as you don't add adverbs.

I'm still a little conflicted on this point myself. I would do a study of books I read to see what techniques they use, but... I've never actually noticed. I don't know whether that means it's the right way of doing it or it just doesn't matter to me as a reader, though.

Although I do admit I have somewhat of a stance. I don't remember what story it was, but some time ago I decided to never use the word "said." Not by replacing speech tags with more sideways attributes, but by using "growled," "muttered," and so on. That did not go well. I agree with the idea that these sorts of tags should be used sparingly, and only if the tone of the speaker isn't obvious in the words themselves. Sometimes I have to debate between using such speech tags or using italics, exclamation points, etc. in the quote. I'm still not sure how to resolve those.

I don't like the idea of never using speech tags, though. I do try to avoid them sometimes, when I'd rather break up some dialogue ("I don't know." He leaned back, his head thumping against the wall. "I've just about had it, myself."), but I don't think this needs to be a golden rule. It's nice to have "beats" like that, as I've heard them called, but sometimes it leads to noting every time someone rearranges his legs or something, and it's just a lot of words without meaning. I'd rather throw a few "say"s in there than put out such boring beats all of the time.

How about you? Do you take much notice of speech tags in your reading or writing?

Just Look Here

It comes to my attention during revision that I overuse quite a few words. Ignoring articles and conjunctions, which shouldn't be an issue if I don't keep repeating the same sentence structure, the worst offenders are "just" and "look."

"Just" is tricky—it sort of adds a vague limit to the sentence, and it's hard to get rid of without getting an uncomfortable twinge. The best trick seems to be unanimously deleting them in editing without paying attention to the context and then adding it back in if I notice it missing. "Quite" and "a bit" are in the same boat.

"Look" gets overused because it's more vague than some other verbs. If I try to plug in synonyms, it doesn't always work for me. It doesn't help that I use it as a verb and a noun all of the time.

This isn't exactly a comprehensive list. It's hard to figure out how much each kind of word should be used. The "glue" that's necessary for correct usage of the English language in general can't be skipped, but exactly how "invisible" is each word? "Said" can be used often and is indeed recommended more than its relatives, but is it the only non-copula verb of its type? How invisible is "look"? "Just"? Others?

More Words To Use and Love

Since the first post didn't quite cover all of my pretty words, I've decided to make a second. The list still isn't comprehensive, but here's more of it.

pelagic                                   versicolor                                    exordium
simper                                    fulgurant                                    violescent
velleity                                   assoil                                          couthie
fabulist                                   parturient                                    hypnopompic
vigorish                                 splendiferous                               kibitzer
ramose                                   quid                                            brabble
rollick                                    troth                                            intemerate
spleenful                                balsamaceous                             word-hoard
celadon                                  erinaceous                                  plotz
Tartuffery                              mulligrubs                                  wellaway
sententious                             cruciverbalist                              jackanapes
austral                                    adiaphorous                                atavistic
tardigrade                               apopemptic                                irrefrangible
draggle                                   fastigiate                                     lollapalooza

Words to Use and Love

While my main love is for the stories and sometimes the characters, I have to appreciate the words themselves. Here are a few of my favourites (usually just because of the sound of them), although I haven't always had the chance to squeeze them in naturally.

I was going to provide the definitions in this post, but that might be a little long. As it is, I'm only posting a small portion of my saved words.

spangled                                     brown study                                  apoplectic
etiolated                                      fomite                                           larrup
bespatter                                     torrefy                                           divulse
boffin                                         catawampus                                  ravelment
wowser                                      erubescent                                     cunctation
skylark                                       mantic                                           agnate
asseverate                                   hoary                                            chockablock
impecunious                               aureate                                          abstergent
nidus                                          melismatic                                    mumpsimus
foofaraw                                    overslaugh                                    sumpsimus
lucubration                                nervure                                          aliquant
coffle                                         skirr                                               hypethral
malapert                                     bosh                                              deflagrate
incondite                                    hew                                               orectic

So, what are your thoughts? Have any words of your own that have never quite fit in a scene, or are a little too rare for the common reader (and often spellcheck)?