Recently we read that there are 1,400 new word entries in the Merriam-Webster dictionary. We need them as much as we need inflation. It’s time to go in the opposite direction and subtract words.
Listen to our politicians speak and you will know all about word clutter. Some people call it double-speak but we contend that there is a classic misuse of words. The end result is repetition and obfuscation. Noisy elected people seem to be the worst practitioners, as most listeners are baffled by an assortment of new words, and traditional English, science, math, and biology are corrupted by substituted postulates and words. A common two-syllable word describes the practice.
In subtracting words from the dictionary we don’t intend to start an avalanche. One word at a time, thank you.
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