1. Literary / high-flown / elevated vocabulary

Poetic words

Albion (Britain)

quoth (said)

steed, courser (horse)

eke (also)

maiden (a young lady)

foe (enemy)

Poetic words are used to:

to create a solemn, lofty, elevated effect;

to create poetic images

Poetic words are:

- no longer current

-archaic in nature

I saw thee weep - the big bright tear

Came o’er that eye of blue;

And then methought it did appear

A violet dropping dew.

(G.Byron)

Archaic words (ancient) = obsolescent words = obsolete words

though , thee, thy, thine

methinks = it seems to me

nay = no

Archaic words vs historic words

archaic words =

- old words for denoting still existing objects

- have synonyms

main = ocean

to deem = to consider

buss = kiss

historic words / material archaisms/historical archaisms =

- denote already non-existing objects

yeoman, hauberk, mace

Archaic words are used to:

- to create an effect of antiquity;

- to provide /realistic/authentic historical background;

- to acquaint the reader with past habits, customs;

- to create/imitate an atmosphere of the historical epoch

archaization is relative - occasional use of archaic words and forms

Bookish words

are used:

- in books

- in oral polished speech (public speeches, official negotiations)

- are mostly loan words (Latin and Greek)

commence = begin

spouse = wife, husband

individual was precipitated = man fell

“To plunge into the refreshing wave and be wrapped round with the liquid element is indeed a most delightful sensation. But health and pleasure may equally consulted in these salutary ablutions; and to many a man countenance can be the blush of the rose restored by an occasional dip in the purifying surge of the ocean.” (J. Austen)

Bookish words are used :

to create the tone of solemnity, sophistication, seriousness, learnedness;

to give speech characteristics: to indicate the social standing of the character, his/her education

- used in colloquial speech /informal situations - may create a comical effect

“Little Red Riding Hood”

Russel Baker “Little Red Riding Hood Revisited”

Once upon a point in time, a small person named Little Red Riding Hood initiated plans for the preparation, delivery and transportation of foodstuffs to her grandmother, a senior citizen residing at a place of residence in a forest of indeterminate dimension.

In the process of implementing this program, her incursion into the forest was in mid-transportation process when it attained interface with an alleged perpetrator. This individual, a wolf, made inquiry as to the whereabouts of Little Red Riding Hood's goal as well as inferring that he was desirous of ascertaining the contents of Little Red Riding Hood's foodstuffs basket.

"Grandma, I have brought you some cruelty free snacks to salute you in your role of wise and nurturing matriarch."

"Grandmother," Little Red said upon entering, "your ocular implements appear to be of an extraordinary order of magnitude today."

"You forget that I am optically challenged.” - said the grandmother.

"In reference to your ears," said Red, "may I note with the deepest respect that far from being petite, their elongation and enlargement appear to qualify you for unparalleled distinction."

Neologisms = newly coined words

browser, e-mail, Netscape Communicator, hacker