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| KEIRA KNIGHTLEY by Royo (my artistic fake!) (Photo credit: The PIX-JOCKEY (visual fantasist)) |
For these few weeks, I’ve been looking at how writers very often
use ‘very’, which, as you know very well, is very bad.
Okay; that may be very
silly, but we all do it: use ‘very’ to modify verbs or adjectives rather than
search for something stronger to say the same thing better. So, here are a few
examples to make it easier for you to overcome the easy option. Choose with
care; synonyms aren’t always exact matches, so consider context. And bear in
mind that I have my prejudices, and I’m male; hence the (sometimes) jokey
suggestions at the end of each sample.
Very clean – spotless,
scrubbed, spruce, sterile, stainless, immaculate, unsoiled, unsullied, pure,
Mountain Air.
Very rude – vulgar, gross,
crass, coarse, yobbish, disreputable, improper, sordid, ribald, obscene, Mel
Smith.
Very dry – parched, arid,
waterless, desiccated, desert, seared, wrung out, xerophilous, drained,
Sauvignon Blanc.
Very tasty – delicious,
mouth-watering, appetising, rich, palatable, tangy, spicy, Rachel Riley.
Very happy – jubilant, joyful,
beaming, radiant, blessed, blithe, merry, cheery, gratified, Happy (1 of 7
dwarves).
Very weak – feeble,
powerless, vulnerable, delicate, infirm, debilitated, limp, wishy-washy, Nick
Clegg.
Very eager – keen,
zealous, enthusiastic, forward, dedicated, willing, game, receptive, Katy Perry
(as Katy Keene).
Very thin – gaunt, lean,
rangy, wiry, spare, skinny, bony, skeletal, haggard, spindly, scrawny, slender,
Keira Knightley (though, in the picture above, she's anything but! That's the male fantasy for you.)
This is the fifth lot; last batch next week.
