The difference between the right word and the almost right word is really a large matter - it's the difference between a lightning bug and the lightning.
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- Choosing the exact word matters greatly; it changes the meaning dramatically.
- In plain terms
- The right word makes a huge difference.
- What can you take from it?
- Precision in language is crucial.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- How does word choice affect perception?
Another view
Sometimes near‑right words are sufficient in casual contexts.
More from Samuel Langhorne Clemens
He [George Washington Cable] has taught me to abhor and detest the Sabbath day and hunt up new and troublesome ways to dishonor it.
Permalink to quote #24 Weather is a literary specialty, and no untrained hand can turn out a good article on it.
Permalink to quote #26 He is now fast rising from affluence to poverty.
Permalink to quote #23
Related quotes
The difference between the right word and the almost right word is really a large matter - it's the difference between a lightning bug and the lightning.
Mark TwainMark Twain quote #25 Ours is a precarious language, as every writer knows, in which the merest shadow line often separates affirmation from negation, sense from nonsense, and one s…
James ThurberJames Thurber quote #79 Metaphors are not to be trifled with. A single metaphor can give birth to love.
Milan KunderaMilan Kundera quote #14