Despite the fact that teachers have repeatedly reminded pupils to use a wider range of 'said' words, students often feel uncomfortable about venturing out of their comfort zone and experimenting with more varied vocabulary.
I often told my brighter pupils to experiment. If they don't get it quite right, I'll comment on it and they move on from there.
Do not feel embarrassed if you use the words inappropriately. Learn from the mistake and use it at the right instance.
Here are some wonderful words which can convey the speaker's emotions so much more aptly than just 'said', 'told' or 'ask'.
Scene One
I declared, " I am never going to play with you again! You are a sore loser and a despicable cheat!"
"Mommy! Sister is being bossy again! You see, she is bullying me again!" complained my younger sister, Lisa.
"Why can't the two of you agree on anything? I am sure Lisa did not mean to cheat. Maybe she did not understand the rules?" suggested mother.
"Seems more like she knows it like the back of her hand and loves bending it to her favour," I snorted, rolling my eyes in disgust.
"You are the one who is cheating. How would I know how to change the rules?"retorted Lisa.
"Stop it this instance!" exclaimed mother. "You will both go into your rooms and you are not allowed to speak to anyone for one hour! Anyone breaks the rule and you'll go to bed with no dinner! I mean it!" Mother bellowed.
Look up the meaning of the above underlined words and fill in the following blanks with the most suitable word.
1) "How dare you accuse me of breaking the vase! Did you see me break it?" Ahmad __________________________.
2) "No way! They are performing in Singapore? Wow!" ____________________ Ashley in delight.
3) "I will never speak to strangers ever again!" _________________ Kuraisha.
4) Maggie ______________, " You call that a dress? I wouldn't be surprise if someone thinks you're wearing our table cloth!"
5) The teacher ___________________, " You are not allowed to play with the instruments in the Science laboratory! Some of these chemicals are very toxic and dangerous!"
Scene Two
Still
fuming with anger, I stormed into my room. "Nonsense! Who needs a baby
sister!" I ranted and raved mindlessly for a good half an hour before my
clouded mind started to clear.
From the
corner of my eye, I peeped at the photographs lined on top of the dresser - Sparkling
eyes, chubby cheeks and beaming smiles. " Maybe she really didn't
understand the rules," I conceded finally. Suddenly I felt ashamed of my
unreasonable behaviour. Fancy a twelve-year-old picking on a seven-year-old!
When the
hour was finally up, I crept stealthily to Lisa's room. The door was ajar and I
could barely make out Lisa's voice beyond the door. "Why did Sister say
those things? I am not a cheat! Why can't she be nice to me?" Lisa
lamented in a low, trembling voice.
I pushed the door open and approached Lisa with a heavy heart. After taking a deep breath, I finally blurted, " I'm sorry. It's all my fault." Lisa stared at me, doe-eyed. "Please don't cry!" I pleaded sincerely. When Lisa raced towards me and hugged me like a koala bear, I knew all was forgiven.
1) "So much homework! When will this ever end?" Peter ________________ sorely.
2) After a long battle, the general _____________________, " We have run out of supplies. Tell the men to put down their weapons. We have truly lost this time!"
3) "Yucks!" Tommy _____________________ after he ate a mouthful of dad's cooking, before turning crimson after realizing what he had done.
4) After gulping down a full bottle of brandy and to the horror of his family, Mr Lim ____________________________ like a mad man, " This is not my home! You are not my family...!"
5) "Don't hurt me! I'll give you all my money!" Grandpa ________________ to the robber.
Answers to the above activities:
Scene 1:
1) retorted 2) exclaimed 3) declared 4) snorted 5) bellowed
Scene 2:
1) lamented 2) conceded 3) blurted 4) ranted and raved 5) pleaded
Scene Three
As I stepped into the room, I could hear the squeaking of rubber soles on the disinfected linoleum laminate floors. For some reason or other, the people here spoke in whispers. Occasionally, you could hear someone sobbing and another sniveling in a far corner. I turned into the hallway and saw a familiar face. She looked very pale.
"How is he?" I whispered to her. "The doctors said that he is still very weak," she replied quietly. I nodded and stepped towards the bed.
The accident had left Uncle seriously injured. His face was covered with lacerations and bandages, that the once handsome man was now barely recognizable. " Uncle, how...how... are you?" I stammered, choking back my tears.
He was conscious but the morphine must have settled well into his system and he stared blankly at me with glassy eyes. A tiny tear gathered at the corner of his left eye. My heart felt like I had just leaped from a hovering helicopter and it gagged on my throat, rendering me speechless. Despite his silence, he had acknowledged my presence and hinted that he was aware of my concerns.
Memories of how he had lifted and tossed me around when I was still a child flooded my mind. His roaring laughter and generous hugs were now a fragment of the past. I quickly looked away and attempted to stifle the pressure building up in my eyes.
"Only time can tell how this ordeal is going to end," Jane sighed. "Yes," I agreed, "Only time can tell."
In Scene Three, I've deliberately used some common 'say' words when writing the above passage. This is to highlight to you that it does not necessarily mean that a good piece of writing must be overflowing with bombastic and inflated vocabulary. As long as the words are appropriately used with other suitable and vivid description, even simple words like 'agreed' can bring across the necessary emotions aptly.
I hope this segment of Resources for Writing Outstanding Composition has proved useful to some of you.
Do have the courage to experiment and make mistakes along the way. Only when you try, then you'll be able to learn from the process.
Have fun!
** End of Kicking Up the Notch Part (2) - Resources for Writing Outstanding Compositions **
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