There are over 150,000 words currently in general use in the English language, but the average person may use only one-tenth of this number. That leaves a large number of specific, descriptive, and colorful words for you to learn and use, setting yourself apart from the crowd, and improving your chances of success at school and at work. Having an expansive vocabulary, and being able to choose exactly the right word to use in any situation, will give you the skills you need to effectively communicate with others.

One of the quickest ways to add new vocabulary is to study synonyms. A synonym (from the Greek words syn, or “with”, and onoma, meaning “name”) is a word that has the same meaning as another word – that is, you can use either word to communicate the same thought. The words car and automobile are synonyms, and depending on context, so is the word vehicle. Context is important: a car can also refer to a segment of a train which, while it also has wheels, is not something that can be independently driven. Synonyms can be nouns (stream, brook, creek) or verbs (to run, to dash, to hurry), but many of the most useful synonyms are descriptive adjectives and adverbs. Here are a few examples of synonyms that you can use to make your conversation more interesting (appealing, entertaining, fascinating):

beautiful: ravishing, exquisite, dazzling, sublime

horrible: abominable, hideous, revolting, detestable

quickly: expeditiously, promptly, hastily, swiftly

large: capacious, voluminous, massive, extensive

difficult: abstruse, exacting, onerous, burdensome

happy: beatific, thrilled, elated, carefree

noisy: boisterous, clamorous, tumultuous, deafening

Here’s a quick quiz to get you started thinking about synonyms. How many of the pairs can you match correctly?

A thesaurus is a reference guide that will give you synonyms for many words; you can buy a cheap (inexpensive, low-cost) paperback copy at any used book store. Use it to look up words as you read through a paragraph or two of the book you’re currently enjoying and mentally replace them with the appropriate (apt, suitable) synonyms. You can also write out the paragraph in its original format and in your synonym-enhanced version, and compare the two. You’ll be amazed (astounded, excited) at the difference a word makes!

Answers: A-3, B-5, C-9, D-7, E-2, F-10, G-8, H-1, I-6, J-4