Effective Use Of Synonyms In Public Speaking

There is, perhaps, no stronger tool for the public speaker than a copious vocabulary. The average speaker uses only a very small percentage of the vocabulary available in their language. While this is sufficient for the basic expression of ideas, learning the synonyms for many commonly used words and phrases will enable the student of public speaking to express ideas with greater clarity and emotion and leave a greater, lasting impact on their listening audience.

When expanding the vocabulary it is important that the student of public speaking utilize all of the resources at their disposal. There are a number of different resources that will assist the speaker in finding synonyms. They can consult a thesaurus. They can read through the dictionary. (There are usually a small number of synonyms that accompany an entry in the dictionary, although they represent only a small portion of those available.) They can read novels and textbooks that utilize a wide variety of words. Most importantly, they can and should listen and pay attention to the people speaking around them.

Complete understanding of synonyms comes only with use, because regardless of how close two words are in meaning there are generally small differences between their meaning and nuance that dictate what word should be used in each situation. No two words ever mean exactly the same thing. For example, look at the synonyms below:

Red and Crimson

Pure and Unspotted

Angry and Furious

As a native English speaker the student of public speaking is probably subconsciously aware of the differences between these synonyms. They have heard them used their entire lives. Were they simply to look them up, however, they would believe them to be the same. This is the root of the problem that many foreigners have when attempting to learn English. A foreigner told that stupid means dull may refer to a knife that will not cut as stupid, only to be gently corrected. Comprehending the delicate shades of difference between synonyms can be very difficult for those learning English as a second language, but errors will be quickly noted by a listening audience.

The use of synonyms will help to remove the aura of immaturity from a speaker’s words, replacing juvenile statements with well formulated arguments. As well as making sentences more persuasive, synonyms also serve to make the speaker sound more educated. When giving a presentation in front of a listening audience this perception of knowledge can be as invaluable an asset to delivery as a speaker’s personal appearance, and by properly employing synonyms the student of public speaking will be able to add depth to their presentation and impress upon their audience the significance of the point they are trying to convey.

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