The nursery rhyme favorite turns to synonyms to create a rhythm and urgency. Instead of just simply saying he would take down the house with a big gust of air, he added some excitement: “I’ll huff, and I’ll puff, and I’ll blow your house down!”
Different words make stories more stimulating and fun.
When you’re looking for that perfect word to convey your thought, or don’t want to repeat the same word over and over again, where do you go? The thesaurus, of course!
You’ve got Peter Mark Roget to thank for that wonderful book, and we celebrate his creation today!
National Thesaurus Day, on January 18th, honors Roget, the author of Roget’s Thesaurus, who was born on this day in 1779.
In 1840, Roget retired from a successful career in medicine and spent the rest of his life working on Roget’s Thesaurus of English Words and Phrases. The work was the result of decades of collecting lists of words and categorizing them, much like a scientist would collect specimens. In Roget’s case, he collected words.
In fact, it was more than a book of synonyms – it was a complete categorization and organization of each word by meaning.
Thanks to the thesaurus, we can do more than just tell friends we are happy but merry, delighted, and overjoyed! We can do more than have a conversation, but a discussion, a talk, or an exchange!
Whether you are looking for a more accurate word or trying to improve your writing, the thesaurus can be your best friend. In actual fact, expanding your vocabulary increases both written and spoken communication skills, as well as it enhances your creative writing abilities.
I'm a big fan!
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