Language By Linda Stowe
Language use has been a long-time interest for me. I like to see how words are used and will notice a fresh turn of phrase as quickly as a worn-out cliché. Sometimes if I hear something that catches my attention, I will lay claim to it for use later on. Years ago, I heard someone say “not unlike” which although it sounds a bit pretentious, I found it memorable and use it routinely. For instance, in the sentence, “A macaw is not unlike a parrot,” one could just as easily have said a macaw is like a parrot. But I think using the phrase” not unlike” gives the sentence nuance and, in fact, is more correct because although macaws are in the parrot family, they are not like the others. That may be nitpicking, but with an estimated 150,000+ commonly used words in the English language, who’s going to complain about this? At least I didn’t say irregardless.
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Polly here. I love words, too. It is all because our words touch people. And other’s words touch us. They are our connection with the world around us. With that, I try to always take care in how I use them. But sometimes, I miss the mark. Which is not unlike missing the boat. But missing the mark means that I was aiming, at least. Missing the boat simply means that I was late. Oh, those beautiful words.
How do you feel about words?
Language By Linda Stowe
