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Big Words
Why do some people like to use big words? Well, it's probably because they think big words say "I'm smart. Don't believe me? Just listen to the big words I say."
It's funny to note, then, that some very small words can garner the respect of one's peers. Like the word "garner." Is anybody impressed with me for using it? If so, it's not for the word's length. After all, the word is only six letters long.
I believe that it's the infrequency of a word's usage that makes it impressive. Here's an example from the other side of the spectrum. The word "interesting" is eleven letters long and has a whopping four syllables. And yet, no one would ever think twice about my using it. That's because everyone uses it. It's an overused pat word.
Bet you're impressed with me for saying "pat." And it's three letters.
It's funny to note, then, that some very small words can garner the respect of one's peers. Like the word "garner." Is anybody impressed with me for using it? If so, it's not for the word's length. After all, the word is only six letters long.
I believe that it's the infrequency of a word's usage that makes it impressive. Here's an example from the other side of the spectrum. The word "interesting" is eleven letters long and has a whopping four syllables. And yet, no one would ever think twice about my using it. That's because everyone uses it. It's an overused pat word.
Bet you're impressed with me for saying "pat." And it's three letters.
Add a Comment
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Comment by Christian Sheckler on March 12, 2008 at 7:04pm -
Hey, David.
Why can't we have our cake and eat it too? Not every article needs to be a masterpiece, but I also don't think our writing needs to suffer as we increase the breadth of our coverage.
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Comment by David on March 12, 2008 at 5:01pm -
Big words, small words, forget diction and go for volume. This new era of journalism is ushering in our, as English/journalism professionals alike, idealistic and seemingly unrealistic nightmare that is the shift from quality to quantity. As Jack Griffin, Meredith CEO stated, we’re no longer editors, we’re content strategists. There’s a title to explain to the family.
Credibility/intelligence is no longer established within a single work, but rather the diversification of a single topic. A well written one-off article is a near liability, whereas an article pitch/interview with feature, column, blog, art (slideshow, video), linkable subtopics etc. can lead to self-branding.
Diction? There’s no longer time for such a luxury.
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Comment by Elizabeth on March 12, 2008 at 4:34pm
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I know what you mean, Christian. I used to work with a group of people that thought being a journalist meant that you had an extensive vocabulary and that you pull out the longest, most obscure word to use in everyday language.
My favorite co-worker was fluent in French and would add French words to his conversation because he could even when no one in the room understood French.
But my all-time favorite situation is when someone is angry at you and wants to make you feel stupid, so they'll start using these big words except they use the wrong word. Nothing makes my little soul smile like calling them out on it.
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Comment by Christian Sheckler on March 12, 2008 at 2:31pm
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Hey, Meghan.
Sounds cool. I will have to check out that thesaurus.
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Comment by Christian Sheckler on March 12, 2008 at 2:27pm
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Hey, Nick.
Thanks for your comments. I love to pick up tidbits of advice from guys like you -- and I hope I can stay in the business long enough to pick up plenty of my own quirks.
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Comment by Meghan E. Murphy on March 12, 2008 at 1:04pm - Le mot juste literally translates as "the exact word." Richard Goodman wrote a brilliant essay called "In Search of the Exact Word," which appears at the beginning of the Oxford American Writer's Thesaurus. I highly recommend both the reference book and the essay to journalists young and old who geek out on words. I think I got it used on Amazon for less than $10 with shipping.
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Comment by Nick Pappas on March 12, 2008 at 10:03am -
Hi, Christian:
The answer to your last question is "not necessarily." (Though someone else might want to make that argument.) If you stick around in this business long enough, you will find editors -- especially, um, people who have been around for a while like me -- who have picked up certain quirks over the years. The word "garner" just happens to be one of mine.
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Comment by Christian Sheckler on March 12, 2008 at 1:26am
- Thanks, Meghan. I don't know what that phrase means, but hey, it looks good!
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Comment by Christian Sheckler on March 12, 2008 at 1:24am
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Thanks for reading me, Nick. Don't worry -- you didn't burst my bubble.
I don't really expect to impress professional journalists with words like "garner." I was mostly referring to casual friends.
And you're right. Most people say "got" in everyday conversation. Are you saying that any word I use in my writing should be common in casual talk?
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Comment by Nick Pappas on March 11, 2008 at 11:36pm
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Hi, Christian:
At the risk of bursting your bubble, I used to have an unwritten rule when I was in the business of orchestrating election night coverage that anyone who used the word "garner" in an election story would be fired. (Yes, I was kidding. Well, sort of.) Still waiting for the day when I'm sitting at a coffee shop the day after an election and I hear a person actually say: "I heard Jim garnered more than 3,000 votes last night." Thanks for the memories.
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