Word  Choice

Descriptive Words     Action Words     Dead Words     Synonyms for said/asked     Thesaurus

 

Descriptive Words

      Touch        Taste        Sight        Smell        Sound        Speed        Color

          Touch  

  cool           cold         icy          thin           tepid         steamy           fragile
  warm         damp       wet          fleshy       sharp         slippery         tender
  tough         mushy     oily          keen         feathery      prickly          crisp
  silky           gritty       satiny      sandy        smooth      rubbery         hairy
  rough         thick        pulpy      dry           dull            lukewarm       fuzzy
 

 
          Taste  

  tangy         gingery     overripe     burnt       hot             ripe               spoiled
  rotten        fruity        fishy          raw         alkaline       medicinal       bland
  spicy         peppery    oily            buttery    salty           bitter             tasteless
  flat            hearty      mellow       sugary     crisp           sour              bittersweet
 

 
          Sight    

  flash          shabby     frail           elegant         scrolled        dull                tampering
  unruffled    twiggy     split           broken         skinny          heavy            square
  thin           shapely    winged       shapeless      rolled           drab              branching
  scalloped   ruffled      frilled        crimmped     crinkled        cylindrical      messy
  wiriy         calm         flared        oval              rigid             comical         wide
  tubular      hollow      rotund       chubby         pleasant        portly           stout
  swollen     lumpy       clustered    padded         tufted           pendulous     muddy
  jutting       irregular    sunny        angular         fresh            wild              frightened
  fiery         blazing      verdant      lush             clean            scrubbed        proportioned
  fragile       pale          pasty         sickly           small            tiny               packed
  tinid         shy           fearful        tearful          nervous        tiered            miniature
  old           worn        tall              lead             slender         exhausted      terrified
  hardy       strong       healthy       robust          sturdy           lively            hysterical
  orderly     straight     curved        loose           crooked         awkward      triangular
  used         tired         ugly           cheap           sloppy          elderly          rectangular
 

 
          Smell    

  sweet      minty        acidy         sickly            scented         fishy            odorous
  acrid       stagnant     moldy       pungent         burnt            sour             fragrant
  musty     gaseous      damp        aromatic        earthy           mildewed     spoiled
  reeking    heady        spicy         savory          putrid            rancid          tempting
  fresh       sharp         rotten        dank             stench           piney           perfumed
 

 
        Sound    

  crash        thud          bump          thump           hiss              thunder        patter
  bang         smash        explode       roar              scream         screech        inaudible
  shout        whistle       whine         squawk         raucous        bawl            mutter
  rage          blare          rumble       slam             deafening      stomp          earsplitting
  stamp       noise         discord       jangle           disorderly      clash            pandemonium
  clamor      tumult        riot            racket           brawl            bedlam        crackle
  hubbub     blatant       clap            bark             snap             boom           twitter
  melody     hum           piercing      rowdy          rasp              yell              rustle
  sigh          murmur      whisper      whit             holler            peaceful       quiet
 

 
          Speed   
                                   Fast                                                  Slow

                  hurry         run           scamper              creep         crawl         plod
                  skip           dart          scramble              slink          lumber      tiptoe
                  scurry        dash         flee                     saunter      loiter         sneak
 

 

          Color

  celery
  mint
  apple
  lime
  olive

 


 

 snowy
 milky
 marble
 cream
 ivory
 oyster
 pearl
 silvery

 

 gold
 mustard
 buff
 straw
 butter
 buttercup
 lemon
 chartreuse
 citron
 canary

 
 sandy
 almond
 amber
 tawny
 cinnamon
 nutmeg
 chocolate
 coffee
 rust
 
 peacock
 periwinkle
 sapphire
 delft
 turquoise
 aqua
 teal
 

 

 rose
 pink
 salmon
 coral
 raspberry
 strawberry
 tomato
 currant
 crimson
 vermillion
 flame
 mulberry
 fuchsia
 violet
 lavender
 orchid
 mauve
 lilac
 plum
 magenta
 pansy
 eggplant
 persimmon
 topaz
 tangerine
 peach
 apricot

 

 

 
 ashy
 dove
 steel
 platinum
 silver
 

 


 

 
 licorice
 jet
 ebony
 coal
 carbon

 

 


 

 

 

 

Action Words

       Verbs          Adverbs          Prepositions

Verbs

  ache
  babble
  bash
  batter
  beam
  beep
  bicker
  blare
  blind
  blink
  blister
  cackle
  chant
  chat
  chuckle
  chug
  clank
  cluck
  cough
 
 crackle
  creep
  croon
  crow
  crunch
  dance
  dazzle
  dribble
  drift
  drip
  engulf
  entertain
  flail
  flap
  flare
  flicker
  flit
  float
  flop
 
  flow
  fume
  glare
  glide
  glisten
  glitter
  glow
  grind
  groan
  gun
  hiss
  hoot
  invite
  jerk
  jump
  kick
  kiss
  laugh
  leap
  light
  loan
  moan
  mock
  mumble
  munch
  nail
  nick
  patter
  peep
  pile
  plop
  pop
  pounce
  pound
  quack
  rattle
  reflect
  roar
  rumble
  sail
  scold
  shriek
  simmer
  sizzle
  slap
  slosh
  smash
  smoke
  soar
  spark
  spin
  splash
  sprinkle
  sputter
  squash
  streak
  thump
  thunder
  trill
  twinkle
  wail
  wheeze
  whip
  whir
  whisk
  whistle
  wink
  yap
  yell
  zap
  zip
  zoom

 

 

Adverbs
Adverbs answer the questions: How?  When?  Where?  To what extent?


                    Adverbs ending in - ly                                    Adverbs not ending in - ly

  actually
  appallingly
  barely
  carefully
  certainly
  easily
  extremely
  finally
  friendly
  fully
  generally
  gradually
  highly
  horribly
  hurriedly
  intricately
  nearly
  painstakingly
  probably
  quickly
  quietly
  rapidly
  slowly
  smoothly
  sorrowfully
  strangely
  suddenly
  surprisingly
  totally
  already
  away
  far
  fast
  here
  inside
  just
  more
  most
  nearby
  not
  now
  often
  out
  over
  quite
  rather
  so
  sometimes
  soon
  then
  there
  today
  together
  tomorrow
  too
  very
  well
  yesterday

 

Prepositions

  aboard
  about
  above
  across
  after
  against
  along
  among
  around
  at
  before
  behind
  below
  beneath
  beside
  between
  beyond
  by
  concerning
  down
  during
  except
  for
  from
  in
  inside
  into
  like
  near
  of
  off
  on
  onto
  out
  outside
  over
  past
  since
  through
  throughout
 
  to
  toward
  under
  underneath
  until
  up
  upon
  with
  within
  without
 

 

 

Don't use these Dead Words    

  a lot
  bad
  cool
  fine
  fine
  get
  got
  good
  like
  lots
  many
  nice
  really
  so
  stuff
  thing
  very
  well
  you
  yours
 

Use these words instead of very (one of the dead words).

 
  bitterly
  chiefly
  especially
  exceedingly
  imeasurable
  infinitely
  intensely
  mightily
  powerfully
  richly
  shockingly
  severely
  surely
  truly
  unusually

Use these words instead of get (one of the dead words).

  accomplished
  achieve
  acquire
  act
  annoy
  approach
  arrive
  ask
  assassinate
  attain
  bag
  be
  become
  begat
  borrow
  bribe
  bring
  build
  buy
  capture
  catch
  collect
  come
  comprehend
  conceive
  contract
  convince
  cook
  do
  drive
  dunk
  earn
  eat
  escape
  establish
  fetch
  find
  fix
  follow
  gain
  generate
  give
  go
  grab
  grasp
  hand
  help
  hire
  hit
  hook
  induce
  influence
  inform
  inherit
  kill
  learn
  live
  locate
  make
  manage
  master
  murder
  obtain
  overcome
  perceive
  persuade
  prepare
  procure
  produce
  profit
  purchase
  pursue
  put
  puzzle
  salvage
  score
  secure
  see
  seize
  serve
  shoot
  slip
  snare
  snatch
  steal
  strike
  succeed
  support
  survive
  raise
  reach
  reap
  receive
  regain
  remember
  remove
  rent
  retrieve
  ring
  run
  take
  thrill
  trap
  understand

 

Synonyms for said and asked

  accused
  acknowledged
  added
  admitted
  advised
  agreed
  announced
  answered
  apologized
  argued
  asked
  babbled
  badgered
  barked
  began
  begged
  bickered
  boasted
  bragged
  called
  cautioned
  challenged
  chattered
  cheered
  chuckled
  claimed
  coaxed
  commented
  complained
  complimented
  complained
  complimented
  concluded
  confessed
  confided
  continued
  cried
  decided
  declared
  demanded
  denied
  described
  directed
  disagreed
  elaborated
  emphasized
  exclaimed
  explained
  exploded
  feared
  fibbed
  filled in
  finished
  fired
  fretted
  fumed
  fussed
  gasped
  giggled
  gloated
  grinned
  grunted
  held
  hinted
  hissed
  howled
  implied
  inquired
  insisted
  interrupted
  joked
  kidded
  laughed
  lectured
  lied
  mentioned
  meowed
  mewed
  mimicked
  moaned
  mocked
  mumbled
  murmured
  muttered
  nagged
  objected
  observed
  ordered
  panted
  persisted
  persuaded
  pleaded
  pointed out
  pouted
  praised
  predicted
  pretended
  proclaimed
  prodded
  promised
  prompted
  purposed
  quarreled
  questioned
  quibbled
  quizzed
  ranted
  reassured
  recalled
  remarked
  remembered
  reminded
  repeated
  replied
  reported
  requested
  responded
  revealed
  roared
  ruled
  sassed
  scolded
  screamed
  screeched
  shouted
  shrieked
  sighed
  snapped
  sneered
 sobbed
  specified
  sputtered
  squawked
  squeaked
  squealed
  stammered
  stated
  sstormed
  stressed
  stuttered
  suggested
 taunted
  thought
  threatened
  tweeted
  urged
  uttered
  vowed
  wailed
  warned
  yawned
  yelled


 
Synonyms  for
  Asked

  demanded
  interrogated
  inquired
  investigated
  invited
  guessed
  probed
  questioned
  quizzed
  requested