Have you ever read a sentence and wondered what it was attempting to say? Ever gotten hung up on a phrase that felt misplaced as a result of the meaning of the phrase didn’t fit the context? When was the final time you spotted a phrase that was unnecessarily repeated throughout a web page, chapter, or e book?

There are two sides to any piece of writing. The first is the message, concept, or story. The other facet is the craft of stringing phrases collectively into sentences and utilizing sentences to construct paragraphs. Adept writing flows smoothy and makes sense. Readers shouldn’t must stop and dissect sentences or get hung up on words which are repetitive or confusing.


Common Phrase-Selection Mistakes

The right phrase can make or break a sentence. That’s why word selection is so critical. If we would like our prose to be wealthy, vibrant, and meaningful, then we have to develop a robust vocabulary. As we write, revise, and proofread, there are many widespread word-alternative errors to be careful for. If we are able to catch these mistakes and repair them, we’ll end up with higher writing:

Repetition: when the same words and phrases are repeated in a brief space, they act like clichés. They change into tiresome and meaningless. Some phrases have to be repeated, particularly articles, prepositions, and conjunctions. If we’re writing a narrative set on a submarine, the phrase submarine (or sub) will get repeated frequently. That’s to be expected. Nevertheless, repetitive descriptive phrases get monotonous. Each woman is fairly, each stride is long, everyone faucets their keyboards. The fix: search for phrases that can be replaced with synonyms and keep away from utilizing the same descriptive words again and again again.

Connotation: with all of the synonyms obtainable, selecting the best one can be a challenge. Each word has a that means but most phrases even have connotations, which skew the meaning in a selected direction. Connotations are implied or emotional meanings that overlap a word’s official meaning. In case your character is going home, there is a much totally different implication than if the character is going to her house. The repair: when selecting synonyms, contemplate the underlying that means and emotional taste of each possibility.

Precision: the perfect word decisions are specific. One word will likely be obscure and non-descript whereas one other will be vivid and descriptive. Take into account the next sentences:

He wrote a poem on a chunk of paper.
He wrote a poem on a sheet of vellum.

The second sentence is extra visual as a result of the word selection (vellum) is more precise. The repair: every time attainable, choose the most exact word available.

Simplicity: readers don’t wish to should run to the dictionary to get through a web page of your writing and so they don’t appreciate the haughtiness that erudite writing evokes. In case you’re writing to a high-brow  viewers, then by all means, be at liberty to preach, but to succeed in a wider viewers, make your language accessible. The fix: examine your textual content for rare and long phrases, and in the event you can substitute them with extra widespread or shorter words, do it.

Musicality: typically, word alternative comes right down to musicality. How does one word sound in your sentence versus one other? If you happen to’re trying to decide on between phrases like bin and container, you would possibly make your decision primarily based on which word sounds higher within the sentence. The repair: learn sentences and paragraphs aloud to see how totally different phrases sound.

Better Words for Better Writing

Whether you agonize over phrase choice when you’re drafting or throughout revisions, there are some incredibly useful tools for making word selection a breeze. Along with utilizing the tools which are at your disposal, consistently working to expand your vocabulary will do wonders for enhancing your language and word-selection abilities:

   1. The thesaurus and the dictionary are your friends. Use them (particularly the thesaurus).
   2. Read voraciously. Nothing will improve your writing and your vocabulary as well as the simple act of reading.
   3. Learn and write poetry. Poems are stuffed with vivacious words. You’ll develop a knack for phrase alternative and develop a bountiful vocabulary when you examine a little bit poetry.
   4. Play phrase games like Scrabble, Scattergories, and Phrases with Associates, which power you to actively use your vocabulary.
   5. Sign up for Phrase of the Day and decide to learning 365 phrases over the subsequent year.

Have you ever gotten annoyed by reading a book that was peppered with dangerous phrase choices? Do you make a acutely aware effort to make use of the best words in your writing? How far will you go to search out the right word for a sentence? Share your thoughts on how good word decisions end in better writing by leaving a comment, and keep writing!