I was talking with my kids the other day and we were discussing words and how much they matter.
You can soothe a person's feelings with a kind word spoken at the right moment. Or you can destroy a relationship by slinging words like weapons.
Overall, we can use one word to put a different slant on a perspective, much like colors you might use in art, words paint pictures.
I was saying to my husband this morning that the "intricacies" of....
and he said, "why don't you just say the "details" of ...
I tried to explain by saying "details" is a blunt word that doesn't describe the little nuances of what I was trying to explain.
He said, "Nuances...now you really sound like a word snob."
It's important to know my husband speaks multiple languages, while I only speak one. So maybe that's the reason I use more descriptive words when I'm speaking English. Plus, I want to paint my pictures with words...not to say I wouldn't want to paint a picture with colors if I was talented enough to do it effectively.
Anyway, what do you think? Is it being a word snob to use a more descriptive word or is it something else entirely?
I'd love to hear your thoughts in the comments below.
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