Addlepated And Twitterpated.

I heard a word tonight I'd not heard in a very long time.  "Addlepated." LOVE the word.  It is so innocuous yet says what it means.  I remember hearing a similar word in the Disney Film, "Bambi."  When Bambi asked Thumper what was wrong with Flower, Thumper said, "he's twitterpated."  Flower had just fallen in love with a girl skunk. I was confused at the time, because, all through the film, I'd thought Flower was a girl.  (My first introduction, perhaps, into a wider world.)  But, I was never confused by the word!

How charming the words!  Addlepated. (Scrambled.)  Twitterpated!  (Beats the heck out of "school-girl crush.")

We lose words from time to time.  We rediscover them again.  My husband and I spent a bit of time today discussing the usage of lugubrious, loquacious, languid and languishing.  We talked about the merits of each word and how we've noticed otherwise seemingly intelligent people misuse these perfectly expressive words.  These words communicate more than their definitions can.

We need to use the words that clarify our exact intentions, our exact meanings.  We have the tools.  Are we just too lazy, or too stupid to employ them?

Addlepated.  Twitterpated.

I like both.  Haven't seen either one in a while.

A friend of mine recently remarked, "I would be very happy if I never heard the word 'awesome' again."

Yeah, me too.  "Awesome" has lost its meaning.

Yet, "groovy" seems to last forever!

Comment: (forgive me.)  "Groovy" was invented.  Awesome was a word that had a meaning.  Much like any other word that has been abducted and has come to mean something else.  Gee, what can I use as an example?  User?  Gay?  Cool?  Tweet? Phat? (k, the spelling changed.) What do the British say?
"Brilliant!"  (Really?  "Brilliant"?)

I know the English Language continues to evolve.  I love that it does.  I just want to make sure we don't lose the words that actually say something!
We need to be careful not to lose our ability to speak and write clearly and succinctly with the words that communicate. We need to be careful to not "dumb down."

Anybody and everybody can broaden his/her vocabulary. (Do I really need to write "his/her"?  Can't I just assume in this country that "his" means all of us?)

Political correctness has interfered with the elegance of the written word.

Communication is the key.  Let us all endeavor to say what we mean.

(Wait, there is no "try," just do it! - Is that Yoda or Nike?)