Conversation is flowing, discussion is vibrant, and then . . .

There’s a blip on the communication horizon. The sentence you are speaking will soon hit a snag because the word you had intended to use is now up for debate in the unseen recesses of your brain.

Which word is correct?

You slow your speech’s rate of delivery to buy some additional think-time, but the blip is now before you, and you must choose one word or the other . . .

Can you relate to this conversational dilemma? I’m guessing everyone has encountered this frustrating impasse.

I know I have. And my struggles aren’t only with uncommon, multisyllable words—sometimes I get jumbled choosing between words I know well and use often. Then I get tongue-tied as I try to discern between the word options bouncing about in my brain.

Using the right word at the right time makes for an astute speaker who helps the listener grasp the intended message. In honor of clear and concise communications, I’m introducing a post series called Which Word Wednesday.

In Which Word Wednesday, we’ll explore words, word meanings, and appropriate word usage. I’ll even provide resource links and tips for choosing the right word for the context.

I’m not sure if Which Word will appear every Wednesday—some weeks I may be plumb out of ideas!—but my goal is to have regular installments, and they will, indeed, be posted on Wednesdays. (Fancy that!)

Do you have a regular mental battle over the use a word? Submit your word quandaries and conundrums! You’ll likely see them in future posts. Do you have a humorous language-related tale to tell? Share your conversational mishaps so we can learn—and laugh!—together.

Think of this series as assisting in WordGirl’s mission “to fight the never-ending battle for truth, justice, and use of the right word!” (She’s my hero.)

Watch for the first installment of Which Word—coming soon, to a Wednesday near you.

*Check out the all-new Which Word Wednesday home page!