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For the wordcels, aspiring or otherwise:
âIt makes sense: there was, and is, something remarkable about his 1828 dictionary, and the editions that followed in its line (the New and Revised 1847, the Unabridged 1864, the International 1890 and 1900, the New International 1909, the 1913, etc.). You can see why it became clichĂŠ to start a speech with âWebster's defines X as...â: with his dictionary the definition that followed was actually likely to lend gravitas to your remarks, to sound so good, in fact, that it'd beat anything you could come up with on your own.
Take a simple word, like âflash.â In all the dictionaries I've ever known, I would have never looked up that word. I'd've had no reason to -- I already knew what it meant. But go look up "flash" in Webster's (the edition I'm using is the 1913). The first thing you'll notice is that the example sentences don't sound like they came out of a DMV training manual (âthe lights started flashingâ) -- they come from Milton and Shakespeare and Tennyson (âA thought flashed through me, which I clothed in actâ).
You'll find a sense of the word that is somehow more evocative than any you've seen. â2. To convey as by a flash... as, to flash a message along the wires; to flash conviction on the mind.â In the juxtaposition of those two examples -- a message transmitted by wires; a feeling that comes suddenly to mind -- is a beautiful analogy, worth dwelling on, and savoring. Listen to that phrase: âto flash conviction on the mind.â This is in a dictionary, for God's sake.
And, toward the bottom of the entry, as McPhee promised, is a usage note, explaining the fine differences in meaning between words in the penumbra of âflashâ:
â... Flashing differs from exploding or disploding in not being accompanied with a loud report. To glisten, or glister, is to shine with a soft and fitful luster, as eyes suffused with tears, or flowers wet with dew.ââ
Mar 10, 2025
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what words have been inspiring and brightening up the vocab recently babe like say more ;)
Jan 30, 2024
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I think looking up synonyms is a completely valid way to figure out how to express yourself. they can be more than just replacing your thoughts with inserted words, their definitions can be tools of inspiration. thesauruses and dictionaries, physical or online, are great!
intentionally compare what you're trying to express to the definitions. I find this helps clarify and streamline thoughts through deduction, especially when a word isn't quite what you're looking for. you not only naturally gain a better understanding of what you are trying to express, but I often find other paths of interest.
even when I find a word or phrase that resonates, I still continue to search through similar ones, explaining to myself why this specific word fills what others can't. example sentences in dictionaries are a great place for the context of words too!
when writing, or even in conversation, I'll just search "another word for [insert my own word or phrase]".
I think this whole process of searching, reading, and understanding helps those words and phrases stick with you, as you've created like, a whole I Spy process out of it. I also just love rewriting definitions in my own words.
Mar 13, 2025
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Idc if this makes me a cop Words give shape to experience like heat to clay. They make experience coherent and usable. The sincerest part of me believes that when you use a word to its truest function you glimpse the moment of its invention, making you feel something like a lost truth of the past.
Ex: decimate means to reduce something to a tenth of what it was, not to devastate or ruin
Also the best defense to talk fancy and beat the pretentious allegations
Feb 6, 2024
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âLife shrinks or expands in proportion to one's courage.â
â AnaĂŻs Nin
This is uncharacteristically raw and personal, even for me, and pretty heavy! I know many of you have seen me posting through it and I feel safe to talk about it openly now that Iâve safely landed at the start of my new life. Itâs honestly even a little bit embarrassing but I think itâs important to share.
Iâve never publicly mentioned it on here, but I have a husband; as of Friday, weâd have been together for 11 years, and weâve been married for 3 years as of 2/22. I realize now that I wanted to explore what I looked like outside of my relationship with him because I had lost that. This is why PI.FYI has been so meaningful to me as a space to express myself and connect with peopleâto rediscover my voice.
I had been living a lie this entire time, to others but worst of all to myself. Heâs been verbally and emotionally abusive, physically but without touching me, to the point that every day I spent with him I was in danger. Iâve been shrinking myself and walking on eggshells to avoid making him insecure and provoking his casual put-downs and fits of rage, while hanging on for dear life to the threads of good I could see.
Iâve wanted so badly to leave, more than anything, but I felt like there was no way out and that this was just something I would need to endure indefinitelyâbut someone who is so very dear to me helped me see that I have wings to fly, not by acting as my savior but by reminding me of my own power. The emotional safety they built and the gentle care they showed me made me feel like I could open up to them. With their encouragement I was brave enough to tell the truth to my friends, my family, my boss, and they have received me with warm, loving and open arms and rallied to support and protect me. The financial and logistical aspects were the most intimidating to me and itâs going to be tough for a while but Iâm going to be better than okay!
Now Iâm opening up to you. This isnât the only abuse Iâve suffered in my life, and my old therapist told me she believed it was my mission to share my strength and light with others to inspire them and show them that change is possible.
I hope that by sharing this, I can reach even just one person who is going through something similar and show that they are not alone, and they are not weak. People with certain backgrounds may be more vulnerable to abuse, but it can happen to anyone. It thrives in darkness, shame, and isolationâand breaking that silence is the first step toward freedom.
Leaving is the scariest thing I have ever done but I have so many angels around me, and I am endlessly grateful. Thank you for being here with me đ
Mar 16, 2025
My dad teases me about how when I was a little kid, my favorite thing to do when I was on the landline phone with somebodyâbe it a relative or one of my best friendsâwas to breathlessly describe the things that were in my bedroom so that they could have a mental picture of everything I loved and chose to surround myself with, and where I sat at that moment in time. Perfectly Imperfect reminds me of that so thanks for always listening and for sharing with me too đ
Feb 23, 2025
Schedule sent my resignation email for the morning, effective immediately â
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Feb 27, 2025