What is Your Favorite Word

I was asked today: what is your favorite word? 

It gave me pause. How often does anyone think about their favorite word?  We often hear the infamous James Lipton question of what is your favorite curse word? Personally, I go back and forth between two of them. But to think about non-curse or filler words is interesting. 

Immediately, my dyslexic brain wanted to make the distinction between favorite verbal words vs favorite written words. 

 It’s real. 

My verbal vocabulary incorporates larger words. However, when I attempt to write them, I stump spell check and Grammarly. They shrug and leave me with bright red lines highlighting my page.  

Determined in my pursuit of using words above the fourth-grade level, the guessing game ensues hoping to trigger enough spell check options to find my word. However, if it pops up, I still check it to make sure the right word was chosen. Life experience with email and bosses taught me that at an early age.  Definitely and defiantly doing a task seem to trigger different reactions in bosses.

Anyway, if we go verbal, I tend to enjoy the word — “insinuate.” I like how it works for different moods and occasions. But, then “atrocious” rolls off the tongue and it’s another word where different tones and inflection can be fun.  Ooh, then there is the enthusiastic “Brilliant!”, particularly if it is said with a British accent.  

In writing, on the other hand, as I already pontificated on earlier, when one email can take me half a day, I use what I know or what spell check recognizes and move on.  

And so Dear Reader, I can only say this: on some days the spell check gods were with me, and a smorgasbord of words await you. But more often than not expect the kids’ menu.