Using Words Effectively 12.2 239
Specific, concrete verbs can be especially effective. The late Representative
Barbara Jordan of Texas, whose language skills one speechwriter describes as
“legendary,” recognized the power of concrete verbs.^4 For example, the first
draft of a passage in her 1992 Democratic National Convention keynote address
stated:
The American dream is not dead. It is injured, it is sick, but it is not dead.Jordan revised the line to read:The American dream is not dead. It is gasping for breath, but it is not
dead.The concrete verb phrase “gasping for breath” brings alive the image Jordan in
tended to create.
If you consult a thesaurus when searching for a specific, concrete word, do
not feel that you have to choose the most obscure or unusual term to vary your
description.
Figure 12.2 In this ladder of abstraction, the words at the top of the ladder
are more abstract. Words become more concrete as you move down the
ladder.
Copyrighted by Pearson Education, Upper Saddle River, NJ
AbstractPit BullDogMammalAnimalConcrete