Jan 22, 2009
Big words: Know many, use few.
It’s important to remember that enjoying obtuse vocabulary rarely translates into the ability to use it without seeming like a bloviating pontificator.
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This might have discombobulated me, if it were not for the fact that I found it hilarious!
word.
["bloviate" sounds like someone vomiting.]
I have previously noted that your dad sometimes puts in disclaimers when he uses big words:
“Eschatology . . . Can I use that word?”
And other times he makes sure to define them:
http://jamsco.wordpress.com/2008/09/29/completer-piper-definitions/
Some people don’t know what they’re talking about.
Some people don’t tell you all they know.
The latter leave some conversational “headroom.”
(=22)
…he said, grinning coprophagously.
Had to look that one up, but it was worth it. Now I can make the reference I often want to make, but without the profanity.
Real people really use those words?
Yeah, but if you don’t know what eschatology is, it’s not the end of the world…
I have a habit of using big words with uncertainty, then declaring out-loud that I’m not sure if I’m using it right.
You should also be sure to pronounce this big word correctly. Unless you are familiar with another language, stick to english.
I thought you were going to say “flatulent simian”.
me, too, JoeS. me, too.
One of my college classmates made the point (and so graciously) that when people use big words they are better understood because “big words” are more precise in meaning. Well, maybe not always a longer word–sometimes longer, but often just a less common and less generic word can make a difference.
Even if it weren’t true, it’s fun just to hear them pronounced:)
Unfortunately, it usually takes me too long to remember just the right word–especially in speaking…
Can you say that different? I don’t understand.
Just saw your blog for the first time, I now feel almost sheepish at my unnecessary wordiness, thanks for the succinct inspiration.
I think what’s better is a combination of knowing the big words, and being able to use them appropriately at the right time.
This is very coincidental; I just wrote a post about this yesterday because I’m reading James Lipton’s book (Inside Inside) right now and it’s overflowing with more Words You’ve Never Heard than anything I’ve ever read.
big words scare me. i can’t even spell little ones
I’ve seen many wisenheimers here! Abe, you must be a Bill O’Reilly fan.
Ha!!!
The chief mark of our epoch is a profound laziness and fatigue.
It is a good exercise to try for once in a way to express any opinion one holds in words of one syllable.
The long words are not the hard words, it is the short words that are hard. There is much more metaphysical subtlety in the word “damn” than in the word “degeneration.”
—
This is what G.K. Chesterton has to say on the subject.
Love the blog, thought to add this missive to the fray.
I was told in grade school, the proper use of a “big” word is when small words don’t convey the meaning. I was told in college “big” words are too complicated for people to understand.
Today, I speak at a third grade level to college educated adults. I refine my language to convey a simple message.
In return I am successful in my relationships. Inwardly, the tribulation and consternation that pervades me is profound.
The entropy and gravitas of this conundrum should well forewarn all who embark on the path to higher learning, for in time they will too be forced to illusidate meaning with a simple phrase.
See Jane speak. See Dick Listen. Do they understand?