Another Four-Letter Word

By Annette Rey

Here’s another four-letter word that is over-used. You can improve your writing (and conversation) by giving this word more thought and substituting more colorful words in its place.

The word is nice.

I had a nice day.

He’s a very nice guy.

The weather was really nice.

That is a nice table setting.

Have a nice day!

Nice try!

B-O-R-I-N-G

With that kind of murderous use of nice, do we even know how to use nicely anymore?

The Oxford-English Dictionary defines nice as meaning pleasant, enjoyable, attractive, kind, friendly. Then why not use those words instead when we write and speak? Challenge your mind as you communicate and show others you have better command of the English language than to treat it in such a trite manner.

So:

I had an enjoyable day at the ballpark.

He’s a very friendly person.

The weather was pleasant.

That is an attractive table setting.

Have a wonderful afternoon.

You should be proud!

Do you see how the sentences omitting nice impart a more descriptive picture? You can get deeper into description and display more feeling by the words you choose. Are the flowers in the picture for this post just nice or are they vibrant, scarlet, eye-catching, striking — and if you could smell them, are they pungent, fragrant, perfumed?

Consciously drop nice from your vocabulary.

Give it a try!