A Cure For The Common Word

A Cure For The Common Word book will remedy Your Tired Vocabulary with 3,000 + Vibrant Alternatives to the Most Overused Words.

A Cure For The Common Word

By expanding your repertoire of words, when you write and speak you will be able to use the most precise word for your meaning, not just the fi rst word that comes to mind. And by using these more precise words, you will be able to communicate exactly what you mean and will do so in a quick and concise manner.

How to Use A Cure For The Common Word Book

This book includes one hundred of the most commonly overused words in the English language, based on research from several sources. Because these common words can often be vague, limiting, or confusing in a sentence, we’ll show you how choosing specifi c alternatives to these common words helps you to more precisely convey your intended meaning.

Before we describe the elements of this book, let’s take a brief look at the defi nitions of a few terms used throughout the book:

Connotation—the associated or secondary meaning of a word or an expression in addition to its explicit or primary meaning.

Defi nition—a statement of the meaning of a word, phrase, or term, as in a dictionary entry.

Impression—a strong effect produced on the intellect, feelings, conscience, etc.

Meaning—what is intended to be, or actually is, expressed or indicated.

Nuance—a subtle difference or distinction in expression, meaning, response, etc.

Each of these refers to going beyond the defi nition of a word, to the subtleties of what you mean—or what is perceived.

Now a guide to help you with the symptoms of and cures for the common words in this book.

A number of elements are associated with each of the one hundred common words in this book. The following descriptions will help you gain the most use of the alternatives offered in this book.

On each left-hand page, you’ll see:

  • The common word. Be alert because of the one hundred common words, a few are the same word in spelling but not in defi nition. You’re not seeing double.
  • The common word’s part of speech.
  • A brief defi nition or defi nitions of the common word. Some common words are given only one defi nition, but other common words can be defi ned more than one way, all similar in nature.
  • Seven alternatives to the common word. The meanings of these will all appear on the right-hand page.
  • A more thorough list of alternatives for the common word. Though this list may not include all synonyms, we’ve listed the most relevant and/or powerful alternatives. A traditional thesaurus—in print or online—may list more words in all their forms, including their parts of speech.
  • And for fun, a famous quote. The quote gives an example in which one of the alternatives was just the right word—the precise cure for what the speaker wanted to say

On each right-hand page, you’ll find:

  • The diagnosis. Each of the common words has some symptoms that need a cure. The diagnosis of the problem will be vague, limiting, or confusing.
  • A sentence using the common word. Think of this as our “patient.” Here’s where you’ll see how the common word may not convey clearly what you want to say (vague), doesn’t say enough of what you’d like to convey (limiting), or could have different meanings (confusing).
  • The sentence’s meaning. Here are the “symptoms” of the common word—what the sentence means as written and how using the common word may keep us from understanding what’s truly meant.
  • Expanded alternatives and meanings. These “remedies” to our diagnosis are just a few of the many options you can choose from to highlight a primary point you want to make or a meaning you want to imply. Note that these alternative meanings and explanations are not defi nitions. Some alternatives are very similar and offer only slight nuances—subtle connotations or implications that evoke slightly different feelings or perceptions of what’s meant. Others show how changing the word can dramatically change the actual meaning of the sentence. So look for key words to differentiate the implications of using each alternative.
  • A second quote. Another fun, inspirational, or witty quote illustrates how choosing one of the alternative words gives a sentence—or sentiment—power and precise meaning.