Language is imprecise. English is a rather convoluted language, but even with all of the special exceptions and unnecessary words we have, there are still times when language is imprecise. There are concepts that we can’t quite convey with our language. As a writer, and more particularly a wordsmith, I value precision. I prefer to use the right word for the job, instead of a word that’s somewhat close but not quite what I intend. Unfortunately, there are times when there just isn’t the right word to convey a meaning.
This, I think, is why language gets complicated. People want to try to convey a concept that doesn’t quite exist, or there isn’t quite the exact right way to say it, so people coin new terms or create additional meaning for existing words. Language is constantly evolving, and things have been added to the dictionary in my lifetime that appall me (see: ain’t). It’s in the nature of language to evolve, though, and words continue to take on new meanings, and new words are added to the dictionary every year.
TED Talk: The Opportunity of Adversity
In part, this musing on language was inspired by a TED Talk that I watched last night: Aimee Mullins: The Opportunity of Adversity. Ms. Mullins was born without shinbones, and spent her childhood ‘overcoming’ the adversity that condition imposed. In her talk, Aimee discussed the dictionary definition for disabled, and then a modern update to that definition. The definition of disabled itself contained nothing but negative language, and Aimee’s point was that using a term that only contains negative connotations restricts the people you’re labeling with this term. In her case, she was labeled with positive, powerful words as a child, and she was able to work with her adversity to accomplish amazing things as an adult. In large part, because of the words used to describe her; the power of language.
Implications and Connotations: What Language Means
The thoughts from that TED Talk have been percolating in my mind since I watched it, and today I was working on a project and noticed I was having trouble finding the right word for a concept. I was talking about ‘getting a job.’ It occurred to me that “getting a job” doesn’t really mean what people typically accept it to mean. You can’t just go to the grocery store and get a job, like you’d pick up a jar of peanut butter or some dog food. So “get” clearly wasn’t the right word. What, then, was correct?
I tried “find a job,” but that didn’t seem right, either. Finding a job is only part of the battle. Once you find a job, you must catch the attention of the people hiring for the job, and compete against the other applicants to be selected for the job. This usually involves a plethora of steps between finding a job and being hired for a job, so that clearly wasn’t the right phrase, either.
In the end, I concluded that I couldn’t find a phrase that was exactly right for the process of acquiring a job. But if one of your friends walked up to you today and said: “Hey, I just got a new job,” you’d congratulate your friend and understand exactly what he meant, even though “get” isn’t quite the right word.
People Accept the Flaws Inherent in Language
Both from the TED Talk, and from my own musings about the imprecision of language today, I’ve concluded that people simply accept the flaws inherent in language and find ways to work around them. Think about conversations you have with your friends or the people around you. How often do you say exactly what you mean? In most cases, you probably say something close to what you mean; something that is commonly accepted to mean what you trying to convey, but isn’t quite the right way to say it. And people simply accept that as inherent in the language itself, and generally don’t think twice about the fact that they didn’t say what they meant to say, but that they were still able to convey their intended meaning.
Finding the Right Word Removes Imprecision
Language can be imprecise, but finding the right word removes that imprecision. That’s why I sometimes spend chunks of time pondering a single word choice; not because I don’t know how to say something, but because I’m thinking about the best way to say something. In many cases, any word will do. With the right contextual clues, people can figure out what you’re trying to convey even if you didn’t use the best word for the job.
But using the right word or phrase removes the need to rely on contextual clues, and removes imprecision. With the right word, you never have to worry about whether or not people will understand what you’re trying to say. And by using the right word, every time, writing becomes clearer and more precise. Clear, precise writing is a joy to read, and its message is more powerful for readers, so it’s worth spending a little extra time to find the right word.
And if the right word doesn’t exist, blame it on the imprecision of language.
