#+verb

音 - yīn - music, sound, tone 音乐 - yīnyuè - music 话音 - huàyīn - tone, voice 声音 - shēngyīn - sound, noise, voice

意 - yì - thought, idea, opinion 意见 - yìjiàn - view, idea, thought, opinion 意义 - yìyì - meaning, significance

竟 - jìng - finally, at last, after all 竟然 - jìngrán - unexpectedly, surprisingly 竟自 - jìngzì - unexpectedly, to one's surprise

镜 - jìng - mirror glass 镜头 - jìngtóu - camera lens 镜片 - jìngpiàn - lens 镜花水月 - jìnghuāshuǐyuè - flowers in a mirror or moon in the water (a very pretty idiom with the meaning of an illusion)

暗 - àn - dark, secret 暗暗 - ànàn - secretly 暗淡 - àndàn - dim, faint, dark 暗察明坊 - ànchámíngfāng - to investigate and understand a situation using various methods

境 - jìng - boundary, area, region 境界 - jìngjiè - boundary, a state 环境 - huánjìng - environment 入境 - rùjìng - to enter a country 出境 - chūjìng - to exit a country

韵 - yùn - rhyme, vowel 韵律 - yùnlǜ - prosody (the metrical rules such as tone patterns, rhyme, and parallelism used in poetry) 韵文 - yùnwén - a literary genre that arranges sentences according to a specific rhythm (e.g. specific types of poems such as Tang poetry, etc) 韵人韵事 - yùnrényùnshì - a charming man enjoys charming interests (an idiom meaning elegant people doing elegant things basically e.g. drinking tea under a moon, painting or playing instruments.)

谙 - ān - versed in, acquainted with 谙练 - ānliàn - skilled, proficient in something 深谙 - shēnān - to know something very well 深谙世故 - shēnānshìgù - having seen much of life, well-versed in life

韶 - sháo - originally this was name of an ancient musical piece, said to have been created during the time of Emperor Shun. Later, it's meaning changed to mean something beautiful. 韶光 - sháoguāng - beautiful 韶华似水 - sháohuásìshuǐ - time/youth passes like flowing water

黯 - àn - dark, sullen, dreary 黯淡 - àndàn - similar to 暗淡, meaning dark and gloomy 黯然失色 - ànránshīsè - to be cast into the shadows/ to be overlooked 黯黑 - ànhēi - pitch dark

喑 - yīn - mute 喑哑 - yīnyǎ - mute 万马齐喑 - wànmǎqíyīn - 10 thousand horses standing mute (an idiom meaning a situation where no one dares to speak up)

歆 - xīn - to like, admire 歆慕 - xīn mù - to admire something 歆羡 - xīn xiàn - same meaning, also means to admire something

Do you ever find yourself over-using the word “said” in your writing? Try using these words/phrases instead:

stated

commented

declared

spoke

responded

voiced

noted

uttered

iterated

explained

remarked

acknowledged

mentioned

announced

shouted

expressed

articulated

exclaimed

proclaimed

whispered

babbled

observed

deadpanned

joked

hinted

informed

coaxed

offered

cried

affirmed

vocalized

laughed

ordered

suggested

admitted

verbalized

indicated

confirmed

apologized

muttered

proposed

chatted

lied

rambled

talked

pointed out

blurted out

chimed in

brought up

wondered aloud

A verb is a word that’s used to describe an action.

Descriptive verbs - (or strong verbs) are single-word actions that add to the tableau in the reader’s mind, giving it a boost of color and energy.

In many cases, an engaging, vivid verb is more concise and telling than a straightforward, overused one.

The man ran quickly toward the smoke, versus 

The man sprinted toward the smoke.

Weak verbs are simply common ones—words that describe the bare minimum of the action. Sometimes that’s the best way to keep your writing clean and direct, but it can also lead to a lack of color, or personality.

Types of Descriptive Verbs

The most powerful verbs evoke imagery and emotion in the action of the verb itself. A dog doesn’t just eat its food—it gobbles it. The glass doesn’t just break—it shatters.

Questions to consider when replacing your verbs:

Verbs of movement: Movement is especially ripe for descriptive words. Movements communicate how your characters feel, what they want, and how they present themselves to the world. Is your character merely walking along from point a to b? Or do they project more attitude with a saunter or perhaps swagger? Are they in a skipping mood? These movement verbs can also denote a sense of place, and urgency: Depending on the terrain, perhaps they plod through mud or stagger over jagged rocks. Suspicious characters might slink away into the darkness, or scamper just out of reach.

Verbs of stillness: In real life, stillness is never entirely devoid of movement, and is equally revealing. A nervous character doesn’t merely sit, they perch on the edge of their seat. A rude character might slouch in their chair. A character who has just received terrible news may slump on the couch.

Verbs for speech and expression: With dialogue attribution, you could write an entire novel using only “said,” without having to resort to more descriptive verbs like “shouted,” “cried,” or “whimpered.” The best answer is a balance: try to keep your language from jarring the reader out of the story, but considering your character’s intent when searching for the right descriptive verb in dialogue also allows you to quickly deliver more information to the reader. When is a laugh so cruel it becomes more of a snicker, or so unguarded it bursts forth as a guffaw? Muttering a word under the breath might be a sign of dissent, while a whimper is one of surrender. Create volume in your dialogue by introducing sound-oriented synonyms, like whispers or shouts.

When to Use Descriptive Verbs

einfallen (Verb, trennbar: ein·fallen) invade, collapse, come to mind

Mir ist gerade eingefallen, dass ich noch Milch kaufen muss.

die Erfahrung (Nomen) experience, expert knowledge

Die Ärzte haben Erfahrung in Menschen zu retten.

die Möglichkeit (Nomen) possibility, chance, option

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