Word Choice Matters

Formal? Informal? Conversational? What’s your tone?

This picture has nothing to do with this article. I just love it.

1. “Donald J. Trump, presidential candidate, prevaricates frequently.”

2. “Presidential candidate Donald J. Trump lies with every breath he takes and every text he makes.”

3. “The *rump' is a lying sack of shit.”

All three of the previous sentences mean the same thing. One of them is formal, one informal, and one conversational (depending on the audience. It might be an invitation to a brawl in the wrong company.)

Sorry for the example; I seem to have the election on my mind. Let me try again.

1. “Joe Biden, presidential candidate, is old.”
2. “Presidential candidate Joe Biden may be too old to run for any office, let alone President.”
3. “Joe Biden could be on a ventilator in a wheelchair, and I’d still vote for him over that orange maniac.”

Sorry. Still thinking about the election. Here, one sentence states a fact, the next states a possibility, and the third states an opinion. It all depends on word choice.

Let me try one more time.

1. “Five dogs in one household is too many.”
2. “Having dogs in the house…