Mark Twain said, “The difference between the right word and the almost right word is the difference between lightning and a lightning bug.” But how do we choose the right word?

Sometimes a word just hits us and we know it’s right. But oftentimes, writers struggle to select the “perfect” word for a situation. What do we do then? Should we play the three cups game and hope for the best? What about eeny meeny miny mo? (You can read some writing and wonder if that isn’t how the writer chose the words he or she used.)

Actually, there is an easy and logical 6-step process to go through when determining which word to use:

1. Determine the Denotation

Denotation is simply the meaning of a word or phrase. The first thing to consider when choosing a word is, “what message or meaning are we wanting to share?” If we wish to inform someone, we “tell” them. If a doctor tells us something, however, we typically use the word “order,” as in “Doctor’s orders.”

2. Consider the Context

Context affects meaning. When writers or speakers use a “normal” word within its context, its normal or inherent meaning is conveyed to the audience.

Context usage can typically be divided into three categories: formal, informal (or “normal”), and out of the ordinary. For instance, when someone dies, the typically used formal sentence would be “He passed away.” An informal use, which most of us use in 90 percent of our conversations, would be “He died.” An out-of-the-ordinary example would be, “He kicked the bucket.” Such out-of-context phrases are used sparingly in writing and speech in order to give the most impact.

Other aspects of context are authority and urgency. Back to the “doctor’s orders” example. In this useage, the word “order” is used within normal context. However, if we say to a friend, “My doctor commanded . . .” then the listener takes special notice of the seriousness of the situation. The word “commanded” is considered a “marked” word, because it is used out of context and therefore evokes a special meaning, which in turn, stimulates an emotional response within the reader.

If a military person says, “My captain commanded me to . . .” the word commanded is used within normal context and therefore doesn’t generate any special notation in the listener’s mind. But if the military man says, “My captain demanded,” that changes things. A robber demands, but when a captain starts making demands instead of commands, the listener pays closer attention because demands is “marked” in this context.

3. Select Some Synonyms

Once you’ve determined the context and the meaning you wish to convey, in order to choose the right word, you need to get a list of words to choose from. You can find what linguists call a “synonymic cluster” by using a thesaurus. Pick the top five or six. In our “order” example, you’ll likely find words such as “order, require, demand, command, tell, direct, etc.”

Other ways to find synonyms are through search engines (Google lists synonymic phrases at the bottom of each search results page), the dictionary, and brainstorming. Try using mind maps.

You may wish to “rank” them in order that they typically appear in normal context. The less typical a word is, the more impact you will create by using it. A word of caution, though — if you pick a word your target audience isn’t familiar with, they will be frustrated instead of fascinated.

4. Eliminate the Erroneous

When scanning your list of synonyms, you’ll quickly see a few words that are obviously wrong for what you’re wanting to say. Scratch those and move to the next step.

5. Pin Down the Parameters

So, we’re wanting to inform someone of something (denotation), and now we need to decide what if any parameters need defining. This is the “underlying meaning” or “reading between the lines” part of communication. When the doctor “demands,” the parameters of this word are “stress the seriousness of the order.”

If you have no specific parameters, then simply use the most typical word. Using out-of-context or non-typical words without having a specific purpose doesn’t create impact. It just makes the writer or speaker look like they’re talking down to the audience by showing off their vocabulary.

6. Pick the Perfect Word

You may have already found your word before you’ve reached this final step, but if not, examine your list of ranked synonyms and go over your meaning, context, and parameters again, then select the best word from your list of choices.

Until next time,

Happy Blogging!

Have you ever found yourself staring at a blank screen or flashing cursor and wondered, “What, oh what, shall I blog about today?” Most bloggers have probably experienced the feeling of dread at dragging yet another amazing blog post from the over-mined recesses of their creative stores.

Blog Blossoms can help. Register using the form on the Free Blog Blossoms site, and every day you’ll receive a free Blog Blossom in your email in-box to help stir those creative juices. You can adapt them at will, re-mix ones you’ve already used, or simply ignore the ones you don’t like.

Sometimes simply reading an idea on what to blog about puts your brain in a creative state, so even if you don’t use a particular Blog Blossom, just helping shift your mind into brainstorming gear can be helpful.

The following are examples of Blog Blossoms:

• SPAM Comment Contest. Invite your readers to submit the best/worst/silliest/most embarrassing/funniest — make up your own category — SPAM comment. Have readers share the comments in your comment area and set a date to vote.
• Parallelism Posts. “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times” by Charles Dickens is an example of a parallelism. For instance, if you write a weight-loss related blog, you could title your post, “It was the worst of diets, it was the best of diets” for a plan that was effective but was hard to stick with.
• A Day in the Life of Me. The number one reason readers regularly return to blogs is because they like the blogger’s personality. Share with your readers what your daily life is like. Take a notebook and jot down topic-related events throughout your day and “report” on your day’s activities the next day.
• Video Tour. If your business has a brick and mortar location, take a video camera and give your blog readers a virtual behind-the-scenes tour. You can also do this for your home office or include video in your “A Day in the Life of Me” posts.
• Create a “Best of” List. If your blog audience consists of aspiring novelists, for example, you might select a “Best of” blog about novel writing topics and share your list on your blog. “Best Blog for Learning How to Create Characters,” “Best List of Writing Tips,” etc. These “Best of” type blog posts can generate a lot of discussion and backlinks to your blog.

WordPress TV is a collection of help and tutorial videos on WordPress for beginners and experts alike. At this “information central” site, you  can browse by category or type keywords into the search box if you have a particular topic in mind you’d like to learn more about.

There is a variety of information at WordPress TV. For example, under the “writing” category, you can learn how to schedule a post for a later date, create an excerpt using the “more” tag, set a post (or blog) to private, use the QuickPost function, create a poll, and other articles.

The categories list at WordPress TV is extensive. A few you may find helpful include Blog Management, Blogging Tools, Media, Plugins, SEO, Themes, and more. You may wish to bookmark this site for future reference.

Until next time,

Happy Blogging!