Out of Curiosity

[Pride]

How often do you use a thesaurus while working on something?

 

[Sapheron]

I used to quite often. These days, I very rarely find myself in need of a word. Sometimes I take a few moments to dredge out a suitable synonym, but I very rarely find myself forced to go for the thesaurus (or synonyms option on MSWord, more often). Then again, I don't think I use that many rare words; I stick to a common reserve for the vast majority of the time.

 

[Pride]

I used to quite often. These days, I very rarely find myself in need of a word. Sometimes I take a few moments to dredge out a suitable synonym, but I very rarely find myself forced to go for the thesaurus (or synonyms option on MSWord, more often). Then again, I don't think I use that many rare words; I stick to a common reserve for the vast majority of the time.

So, do you think recalling words becomes easier as you become more practiced in writing? Or do you think it all depends on the person? Or...?

 

[Interference]

To satisfy your concern, eagerness, inquiring mind, inquiringness, inquisitiveness, interest, interestingness, intrusiveness, investigation, meddlesomeness, meddling, mental acquisitiveness, nosiness, officiousness, prying, questioning, regard, searching, snoopiness, snooping or thirst for knowledge on this issue, I never use a thesaurus.

(well, ok, when I'm going around in circles, knowing the word is in my head somewhere but I just can't bring it to the front, I'll check Roget and see what he suggests. Otherwise, I hate breaking the flow and will often put in an inapropriate wigwam and come back and replace it later at the editing stage, which is when the mot juste usually presents itself.)

 

[dustinzgirl]

/me is a thesaurus

 

[Interference]

So, do you think recalling words becomes easier as you become more practiced in writing? Or do you think it all depends on the person? Or...?

If you have any other skills, you'll know the importance of practice, be it sport or music or horse whispering or remote viewing. Writing is no different. When you read, you will absorb new and fascinating words, when you write you will use them suitably and easily. The thesaurus really only has value in reminding you of words you already know and can use. It can happen that an incomplete appreciation of the word or phrase it offers you might lead to an incorrect or cumbersome usage of the word.

I would also recommend you be wary of the cliched forms they sometimes offer you.

 

[Ursa major]

I sometimes use a thesaurus, if only to help me remember the word that I already know is so much better than the one I've typed, but which is stubbornly refusing to present itself to my conscious mind.

 

[Pride]

To satisfy your concern, eagerness, inquiring mind, inquiringness, inquisitiveness, interest, interestingness, intrusiveness, investigation, meddlesomeness, meddling, mental acquisitiveness, nosiness, officiousness, prying, questioning, regard, searching, snoopiness, snooping or thirst for knowledge on this issue, I never use a thesaurus.

(well, ok, when I'm going around in circles, knowing the word is in my head somewhere but I just can't bring it to the front, I'll check Roget and see what he suggests. Otherwise, I hate breaking the flow and will often put in an inapropriate wigwam and come back and replace it later at the editing stage, which is when the mot juste usually presents itself.)

That's hard to believe considering all of your words are in alphabetical order...

 

[Duchessprozac]

I rarely ever use use a thesaurus these days, although I do find myself double checking the meaning of a word in the dictionary when I want to use a synonym but am not sure if its the right one for the job.

There do come times I do need to find the right word, though, usually when I've exhausted my supply of synonyms in short succession.

 

[Hilarious Joke]

Also rarely, in my creative works. I use the Word thesaurus in my legal essays though. This is probably because when reiterating my argument again and again, or referring to the same issue on multiple occasions it gets tiresome to use the same words every time so I try to mix it up. I have found though that at times if I can't think of a good synonym, there isn't one on thesaurus. Boy that sounds a bit arrogant! That's like saying 'if I don't know a word, it doesn't exist!'. I think it more points to the flawed nature of Word's thesaurus rather than any superior knowledge on my part.

Well that was a long paragraph to not say very much. I liked Inter's first post!

 

[Boneman]

I never use it in my first draft, but find myself using the thesauraus so much in my editing that I will have to give it an acknowledgment when it's published... It's awful how many times I use the same adverb/adjective, and then it's invaluable to make it really look like I'm very erudite...

 

[The Pelagic Argosy]

I frequently jump onto thesaurus.com or dictionary.com. It seems that I can't have a really expansive vocabulary in my old age, without forgetting where I left my keys. ("The tower was really, really...you know...big. In a, like, arrogant sorta way. But a tower can't be arrogant. The people who built it were, I mean. That's where I'm going with this. You know what I mean, right? It was imposing! Dammit.")

Sometimes when I'm writing fantasy, a certain word seems too "modern," and I want to come up with a more archaic-sounding equivalent. Can you use the word "transportation" in a fantasy story? I vote no.

In one of my stories I have a character - a bard - who is constantly breaking into alliteration and rhyme. I couldn't do it without a thesaurus. I rue the day I came up with this idea, btw.

(Seriously...I sat here 10 minutes trying to come up with "archaic." Do I need to be on some sort of medication?)

 

[Boneman]

(Seriously...I sat here 10 minutes trying to come up with "archaic." Do I need to be on some sort of medication?)

Yes! And when you find out which medicine you need, could you let me know, because I need some, too!!

 

[Trebuchet]

I do when I think I've used one word too often. And sometimes when I know there's a better word, but I can't tink of it and don't want to wake up in the middle of the night shouting 'gentrification' or whatever it was.

 

[shadowbox]

While a thesaurus is ever present, I test myself to not use it as often as possible. I would hate to become reliant. I think it is perfectly acceptable, but we should all strive to challenge ourselves as writers.

 

[KESpires]

I don't own one...

 

[Teresa Edgerton]

Like most of the people here, I use it to remind myself of a word I already know but which stubbornly eludes me. I find myself using it more as I get older, and my grasp on the words I know gets more slippery. Still not very often, but I wouldn't be without one. (Actually, I have two, plus a hybrid thesaurus/dictionary thing.) I just like to have as many potential resources on hand as possible.

 

[Boneman]

ny KESpires
I don't own one

Yeah you do, you've got a computer, you must have word...it's on there, lurking.

As I'm writing in American-speak I have set my thesaurus to US, it's jolly helpful sometimes. Sorry, it's danged useful sometimes...

 

[KESpires]

Well, I don't own a thesaurus, not a physical one. I could boot up a website, but I never do. Rarely will I look up a word to see if it means exactly what I think it means. I'm simply comfortable with my vocabulary being at the level it's at. In the cases I look up a word, I've got a dictionary beside me.

It's just a personal preference.

 

[Ursa major]

The trouble with internal dictionaries (mine in particular?) is that they can contain errors.

I'm sure I heard a presenter on the radio use the word "coruscating" as if it meant condemnatory rather than its correct meaning of sparkling (as in wit). His problem, I would guess, is that it does sound as if it should mean what he thought it did. But it doesn't.