|
The following are actual statements found on auto-insurance forms where drivers attempted to summarize the details of an accident in the fewest words possible.
- Coming home I drove into the wrong house and collided with a tree I do not have.
- The other car collided with mine without giving warning of its intentions.
- I collided with a stationary truck coming the other way.
- A pedestrian hit me and went under my car.
- The guy was all over the road. I had to swerve a number of times before I hit him.
- I had been driving for 40 years when I fell asleep at the wheel and had an accident.
- I was on my way to the doctor with rear end trouble when my universal joint gave way causing me to have an accident.
- The telephone pole was approaching. I was attempting to swerve out of its way when it struck the front end.
- To avoid hitting the bumper of the car in front, I struck the pedestrian.
- My car was legally parked as it backed into the other vehicle.
- An invisible car came out of nowhere, struck my car and vanished.
- I was sure the old fellow would never make it to the other side of the road when I struck him.
- The pedestrian had no idea which direction to run, so I ran over him.
- The indirect cause of the accident was a little guy in a small car with a big mouth.
- I was thrown from my car as it left the road. I was later found in a ditch by some stray cows.
Each of us should use only words and phrases that are appropriate, fit, suitable, and proper. The appropriateness of language is determined by the subject being discussed, the place where talk is taking place, and the identity and relationship of the speaker and the listener.
All of us are responsible for employing different levels of usage depending on whether we are speaking or writing, upon our audience or readers, and upon the kind of occasion involved.
A word or phrase that was correct or of suitable usage a decade ago may now be outmoded. An expression appropriate in one section of the country may be unclear and therefore ineffective in another locality. Technical expressions used before a specialized group of listeners may be inappropriate in general conversation.
The main point is that we should be aware of which words are appropriate when we are trying to express ourselves in any situation. Above all, we need to know the correct meanings of words so we don’t use them in confusing ways.
|
