Unused words

While listening to a book on my way home from work one day last week, a character in the story mentioned that something had become their lodestone. I puzzled on that word in that context and liked it, and then thought that I was one hundred percent sure that in my eight years of writing these musings, I have never used that word. For the rest of the week I paid attention to see what other words might fall under that same umbrella. The list I compiled included clavicle, pagoda, bamboozled, turbine, camel, hickory, instagram, journeyman, weathercock, and pathos among others. 

I’ve always admired people whose vast vocabulary made the use of unusual but very apt words seem so natural.Those of us of a certain age may remember Word Power, a regular piece in The Reader’s Digest designed to help grow our vocabulary. Or, perhaps you are a fan of the word-a-day app or calendar, something to keep increasing our knowledge of and understanding of the power of words. A cursory google search told me that on average people speak 16,000 words daily, that we may know 50,000 words but commonly use only 2,000.

Then I looked at my list again and wondered how many of those I had never used. Ever. Even in conversation. And, you know what? I ended up back where I started. Lodestone. A thing that is the focus of attention or attraction. Like words. Maybe you’ll enjoy playing a similar game for a week and see what words start to intrigue you, but don’t let me bamboozle you into it.

Marilyn