My favorite words

Inspired by the Guardian’s piece of words that poets hate, I posted my own list of words, along with my wife’s least favorite word: moist

Apparently, she’s not alone. According to a follow-up piece asking for the reader’s most beloved words, moist received quite a bit of attention in the comments to the Guardian’s post, from both supporters and detractors, enough to get mentioned in the deck of the story.

None of my words received mention, though the words crotch and pustule were included in the list and subsequently added to my own.

As far as words that I might love, that’s a much harder list to generate. Like many people, I tend to remember the bad much better than the good. But I like the word purchase when used to describe the acquisition of leverage. For example, from the manuscript of Unexpectedly, Milo:

“In lifting himself from the cushions of the recliner in order to pivot, Milo could see that his body barely filled the tank top that he was wearing. The twin strips of cotton holding it up were struggling to maintain their purchase on the man’s measly shoulders.”

I'm also a big fan of of the word schadenfreude. I love the word, and I also experience the sentiment quite often. 

But that’s about all that comes to mind at the moment. Perhaps someone who is reading my work will notice my affection for a word to which I am not even aware, and if so, please share it here, along with your own favorite words.