~~~
Kibble:
verb (used with object), kib-bled, kib-bling
1. to grind or divide into particles or pellets, as coarse-ground meal or prepared dry dog food.
noun
2. grains or pellets resulting from a kibbling process
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I have a childhood memory of a friend telling me that they fed their dog kibble. That would have been fine, except we fed dog food to our dog and I had no idea what kibble was. Was it a dog vegetable? Was it dessert? Was it a super special snack that made her dog stronger and smarter? What?
When she showed me her dog's food, I was relieved to find out that it was, in fact, plain old dog food. But I was also a little annoyed. Why didn't she just say dog food?
~~~
I love words, and I love learning new words, but not in the middle of a gripping story. Have you ever been happily reading along when you tripped on a word? It completely stops the flow, doesn't it?
There is a time and place for complicated words, but we want the readers of our devotionals, articles, and stories to ride the waves of our words in a secure pinnace. Oops! I mean boat, or ship, or even vessel, of course.
The point is, don't say crepuscular when you mean dim.
Simple is often the best way to say what you mean. Do you agree? Or perhaps you concur. At any rate, I hope you don't acquiesce.
Now, if you'll excuse me, our new kittens have knocked over the bin of dog food and there's kibble all over the floor.
~~~
Photos by Laura Ohlman on Unsplash
This one tickled my fancy, Joy. A delight to read. And yes, I agree, sometimes simple is best. Although I never mind stumbling across new words. If they capture my imagination, I find myself wanting to tuck them away to try out myself one day.
ReplyDeleteYes I relate to that, Brenda. For example, now I want to find a way to use crepuscular ... maybe as a rhyming word for muscular. Hmmm ...
DeleteAmen to: "The point is, don't say crepuscular when you mean dim."
ReplyDeleteWhat a delightful post, dear Joy. Thank you for this fun reminder to KISS (Keep it simple, scribes).
Blessings.
Keep It Simple Scribes. That's perfect! Thanks, Wendy.
DeleteYou are so clever! Loved this post!
ReplyDeleteWhy thank you, Tracy. :)
DeleteHi Joy! You did it again. You held me transfixed with you fun intellect. Okay, I'm exaggerating, but how did you come up with a word like, crepuscular? Great post, Joy!
ReplyDeleteHi Alan! Interestingly enough, the word crepuscular was on the online dictionary page as the word of the day when I was looking up kibble! I'd never heard it before, but there you go. Now we both know that it means dim.
DeleteEnjoyed this post from beginning to end, Joy! Great advice to keep it simple and to keep the flow going. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteI thought Kibble was the name of the dog! that was one thing Bobbi enjoyed about me, I was never boring.
ReplyDeleteLoved this, Joy! I mostly concur - though, like Brenda, I don't mind occasionally stumbling over a new and unusual word that I tuck away for possible future use. Also loved Wendy's tweak on the KISS reminder!
ReplyDelete