General Versus Precise Words

First Published: 5th of April, 2021 by Patrick Carpen.

The English language contains words to express almost every thought imaginable. And in cases where the word doesn’t yet exist, someone may make it up or “coin” it. Some words have a broad meaning while others have a more specific meaning. A word which has a broad meaning is called a “general word” while a word which covers a specific meaning is called “precise” word.

When writing or speaking, precise words give your expression sharper and clearer meaning. They make your speech or writing more enjoyable and understandable. A rich vocabulary enables you to use precise words instead of general words. As much as possible, use precise words in place of general words.

Let’s take a look….

Robert said that he would win the race.

In the sentence above, “said,” is a general word. We can replace the word said with one of the following precise words: boasted, shouted, whispered, promised.

In the sentence pairs below, the general word “looked” used in the first sentence is replaced by a more precise word in the second sentence.

1. As our car drove by, we looked at the people sitting on the lawn. As our car drove by, we scanned the people sitting on the lawn.
2. The boy looked through the hole in the fence and saw the baseball game. The boy peeped through the hole in the fence and saw the baseball game.
3. The principal looked at the boy who had broken the window. The principal glared at the boy who had broken the window.
4. In the motion picture, the villain looked at the hero who was his captive. In the motion picture, the villain leered at the hero who was his captive.
5. John looked through the half light of the room to see who was entering. John peered through the half light of the room to see who was coming.
6. Being busy, he merely looked at the news on the front page of the newspaper. Being busy, he merely glanced at the news on the front page of the newspaper.
7. Eagerly and attentively, he looked at each move of the chess game. Eagerly and attentively, he scrutinized each move of the chess game.
8. As if held in a trance, he looked at the scene until I called. As if held in a trance, he gazed at the scene until I called.
9. As I walked through the hallway in my clown costume, my pupils looked at me. As I walked through the hallway in my clown costume, my pupils stared at me.
10. From the high tower, we looked at the scenery around us. From the high tower, we beheld the scenery around us.