Making use of the thesaurus
Athesauruscan also be very useful. It will help you to find
an alternative word (synonym) for a word that you have
used too much. Words are shown alphabetically and beside
each will be a list of words that could replace the word you
want to lose. Of course, not all the synonyms will be suitable.
It will depend on the context.
Adding to your vocabulary
Using a thesaurus is an excellent way of adding to your
vocabulary. It is useful to keep a list of words that you
have found so that you can use them again and in this
way increase your knowledge. Here is a list of synonyms
that could be used instead of the overworked adjective
‘nice’:
agreeable, attractive, delicious, delightful, enjoyable,
pleasant, pleasingRoget’s Thesaurus
This is the most famous thesaurus; it has two main sections.
The second part lists words alphabetically and identifies the
parts of speech. After the words are numbers. These refer to
the first part where the synonyms for the different parts of
speech will be given.
Other thesauri
There are many smaller versions including pocket ones and
these can be found in most bookshops.
CHECKING YOUR SPELLING / 65