Word Nerd

I’m a Word Nerd. I’m sure many so called “writers” are. This diagnosis was confirmed, however, when I received a dictionary and a thesaurus for my birthday, and was thrilled. I think Webster and I would have been good friends. We Word Nerds stick together.

Synonyms and homonyms dance around my head, candidating for the position of print. Adjectives, nouns, subjects and predicates all rearrange themselves a thousand times over in search of the perfect combinations. It’s a flood of sentences, a kingdom of vocabulary, a world waiting to be captured. And one of my favorite parts (especially when I’m “stuck”) is rediscovering definitions, flipping to a word and reading a list of 5 things that depict its essence, most of them similar but all possessing an individual flair or even a hidden surprise.

Today, one such definition brightened my day (Thanks, Webster). I was talking with someone over Thanksgiving who jokingly asked how I put up with David. He’s fairly blunt, and I’m super-sensitive. It would seem, even in my own mind, to be a poor mix. But it works. It’s working better and better. But why is that, I thought this morning as I drove to work. ‘We blend’ was my answer. And Webster backed me up. Check this out:

blend
1. mix ingredients - to mix a substance with another substance so that the two do not readily separate
2. create product by mixing different types
3. make pleasing combination - to combine things or qualities to create a pleasing effect…

‘Blend’ by itself is a decent word, but when you delve deeper into its definition, new meaning rises to the surface and gives it more power. When everyone else sees ‘blend’, you see ‘a mixing of different types, two things that do not readily separate, a pleasing combination.’ But then again, maybe you’re not a Word Nerd.

Maybe I’ll start a regular posting of Word Nerd definitions. I discover them often, and you’ll be forced to humor me. Don’t you love that set up!?