Wonderful Words

  “But words are things, and a small drop of ink,         Falling, like dew, upon a thought produces         That which makes thousands, perhaps millions think.”         - Lord George Gordon Byron

As a Bookwanderer I appreciate words, finding them fascinating. I enjoy learning about new, obscure words and attempt to add them into my writing, as well as my conversations.
Words are powerful! Words are amazing! They are here to paint vivid pictures in our minds. To communicate soundly. However, words can be destructive. They can tear people down or build people up. (Jame s 3:5-12) Words truly are fascinating, in my eyes at least. With ONLY four words God spoke light into existence. (Genesis 1:3) How awesome is that?

There are thousands upon thousands of words. Some contain only one letter while others contain more than 25 letters! Several of those words are not as descriptive as others. Take the word walking for example.

Sally was walking through the park.

Does that sentence paint a vivid picture in your mind? Does it stir your curiosity, leaving you wondering what walked even means? If you asked me the two previous questions my answer would be a flat “No.” Now, take the word perambulating and add it to the sentence in place of walking.

Sally was perambulating the park.

How many people know what perambulating means on the top of their heads? Does that word stir your curiosity? I would be curious if that word were written out in a sentence of a book. So, let me satisfy that inquisitive mind of yours.

Perambulate (per-am-byuh-leyt)
Verb
1) to walk through, about, or over; travel through; traverse.

2) to traverse in order to examine or inspect.
3) to walk or travel about; stroll.

Like most words, perambulate originated from Latin. More specifically, it originated from the Latin word perambulatus, past participle of perambulare, which means to walk through.
I challenge you to use this word in a grammatically correct sentence this week. Every so often we will discuss an obscure word, give its origins, and expand our vocabulary. My hope is that you will learn to cherish words, along with their meanings, and begin to use these little known words in everyday conversation.

Sources: https://www.dictionary.com/browse/perambulate
https://www.etymonline.com/word/perambulate
NIV Bible