Yeah, I get shit occasionally in random places for using bigger words when they actually would take multiple sentences to replace.
But there are a fucking lot of people who use big (or obscure) words purely as a kind of signaling that they’re smart, rather than for communication. And it’s usually really obvious to people who have better vocabularies (or better understanding of the jargon in a specific field) that they don’t know what they’re doing.
If after looking up a word, the rationale for the word choice doesn’t become understandable on at least some level, it’s probably nonsense. (There are some super smart people who just don’t know how to communicate though and think the word’s as simple to everyone else as to them.)
I was absolutely terrible at that. I had really bad homework grades and completion rates exactly because of shit like that.
“You gave me a 500 word question. I can’t make 1500 words out of it. If I’m going to fail anyways fuck turning it in.” (No, no part of that approach was intelligent, but I just couldn’t fill space with obvious trash. My brain would shut down.)
Yeah, I get shit occasionally in random places for using bigger words when they actually would take multiple sentences to replace.
But there are a fucking lot of people who use big (or obscure) words purely as a kind of signaling that they’re smart, rather than for communication. And it’s usually really obvious to people who have better vocabularies (or better understanding of the jargon in a specific field) that they don’t know what they’re doing.
If after looking up a word, the rationale for the word choice doesn’t become understandable on at least some level, it’s probably nonsense. (There are some super smart people who just don’t know how to communicate though and think the word’s as simple to everyone else as to them.)
“Don’t use a five-dollar word when a fifty-cent word will do.” - Mark Twain (attributed?)
Look at you, communicating with a purpose. I’m just trying to make my essay 1500 words
I was absolutely terrible at that. I had really bad homework grades and completion rates exactly because of shit like that.
“You gave me a 500 word question. I can’t make 1500 words out of it. If I’m going to fail anyways fuck turning it in.” (No, no part of that approach was intelligent, but I just couldn’t fill space with obvious trash. My brain would shut down.)