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Stop Using Boring Words! Make your English speech more dynamic

Stop Using Boring Words! Make your English speech more dynamic

International English Test Editorial Team·31 Oct 2023·3 min read

Is your English vocabulary limited for your needs? Are you using simple adjectives when speaking English? It’s time to confront the reality: we must step out of our ‘language comfort zone’ and acquire new, more sophisticated words and expressions to ensure our speech doesn’t come across as basic and uninteresting.

Today, we’re taking our English learning to a higher level. We’ll explore how to substitute expressions like ‘very’ + adjective with more precise terms. For instance, instead of ‘very beautiful,’ you can say ‘exquisite.’ This can leave others impressed with your English proficiency.

So, avoid the use of ‘very’ because it’s a bit unrefined. A person isn’t ‘very tired’; they are ‘exhausted.’ Instead of ‘very sad,’ opt for ‘morose.’ Remember, language was created for a particular purpose, gentlemen – to court women – and in that endeavor, being lackadaisical will not suffice.

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“You can easily achieve some quick and effortless victories. Begin by recognizing the everyday vocabulary that frequently appears in your conversations—words you tend to overuse. These are the ones that require your attention. Practice replacing these commonplace ‘generic’ adjectives with more specific ones to convey your intended meaning effectively.

In the context of the speaking sections of exams like IELTS and TOEFL, employing precise adjectives demonstrates to the examiner that you possess a strong command of English vocabulary, ultimately enhancing your score.”

35 ways to avoid the word “very”

Instead of very + adjective, let us try to use the English words marked below in bold:

  • Very afraid => terrified 

  • Very angry => furious

  • Very bad => atrocious 

  • Very beautiful => gorgeous

  • Very big => immense

  • Very clean => spotless 

  • Very clever => brilliant 

  • Very cold => freezing

  • Very dirty => squalid 

  • Very fast => quick 

  • Very good => superb 

  • Very boring => dull 

  • Very happy => jubilant 

  • Very careful => cautious 

  • Very hot => scalding 

  • Very hungry => ravenous 

  • Very large => colossal 

  • Very loved => adored 

  • Very old => ancient 

  • Very busy => swamped

  • Very dangerous => perilous 

  • Very fat => obese

  • Very slow => sluggish 

  • Very rich => wealthy

  • Very interesting => captivating 

  • Very little => tiny 

  • Very loose => slack 

  • Very long => extensive 

  • Very simple => basic

  • Very ugly => hideous 

  • Very wet => soaked 

  • Very special => exceptional 

  • Very tasty => delicious 

  • Very rude => vulgar 

  • Very worried => anxious

Take your time to gradually acquire these words. You don’t need to memorize them all at once. Aim to learn five new words each day and construct brief sentences or phrases using them. Record your voice and listen to it afterward; this method can help you rapidly commit unfamiliar words to memory.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Instead of saying someone is very tired, use the single word exhausted. It carries the same intensity without leaning on very, which sounds unrefined. The same approach replaces very afraid with terrified, very hungry with ravenous, and very busy with swamped, so one precise adjective does the work of two weaker words.
Very plus an adjective often comes across as basic and uninteresting, marking your speech as a bit unrefined. Swapping in a precise word like gorgeous for very beautiful or furious for very angry leaves listeners impressed with your proficiency. In IELTS and TOEFL speaking sections, precise adjectives show the examiner a strong command of vocabulary and can raise your score.
Gorgeous works well in place of very beautiful, and exquisite is another strong choice mentioned for the same idea. These single words sound far more sophisticated than stacking very in front of beautiful. Once you start noticing the generic adjectives you overuse, you can swap them out one by one for more vivid, specific alternatives like these.
The post gives 35 ways to avoid very. Examples include very bad becoming atrocious, very clean becoming spotless, very cold becoming freezing, very large becoming colossal, very dangerous becoming perilous, very interesting becoming captivating, and very ugly becoming hideous. Each pairing replaces the weak very phrase with a single sharper adjective.
Aim to learn five new words each day rather than memorising the whole list at once. Build short sentences or phrases with each one so the meaning sticks. A useful trick is to record your voice using the new words and listen back afterward, which helps commit unfamiliar vocabulary to memory more quickly and naturally.
For very happy, use jubilant, and for very sad, use morose. Both replace a flat very phrase with a single expressive adjective that conveys your exact feeling. Choosing precise emotion words like these makes your spoken English sound more dynamic and helps you move beyond the simple adjectives that make speech feel generic.
International English Test

International English Test Editorial Team

ALTE Associate Member · UK English assessment provider · Est. 2023

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