The Ultimate Strong Verbs List Thatll Instantly Supercharge Your Writing

The Ultimate Strong Verbs List Thatll Instantly Supercharge Your Writing 249 Strong Verbs Thatll Spice Up Your Writing Do you ever wonder why a grammatically correct sentence you’ve written just lies there like a dead fish? I sure have. Your sentence might even be full of those adjectives and adverbs your teachers and loved ones so admired in your writing when you were a kid. But still the sentence doesn’t work. Something simple I learned from The Elements of Style years ago changed the way I write and added verve to my prose. The authors of that little bible of style said: â€Å"Write with nouns and verbs, not with adjectives and adverbs.† Even Mark Twain was quoted, regarding adjectives: â€Å"When in doubt, strike it out.† That’s not to say there’s no place for adjectives. I used three in the title and first paragraph of this post alone. The point is that good writing is more about well-chosen nouns and strong verbs than it is about adjectives and adverbs, regardless what you were told as a kid. There’s no quicker win for you and your manuscript than ferreting out and eliminating flabby verbs and replacing them with vibrant ones. How To Know Which Verbs Need Replacing Your first hint is your own discomfort with a sentence. Odds are it features a snooze-inducing verb. As you hone your ferocious self-editing skills, train yourself to exploit opportunities to replace a weak verb for a strong one. At the end of this post I suggest a list of 249 vivid verbs you can experiment with to replace tired ones. Want a copy of the 249-verb list to read, save, or print whenever you wish? Click here. What constitutes a tired verb? Here’s what to look for: 3 Types of Verbs to Beware of in Your Prose 1. State-of-being verbs These are passive as opposed to powerful: Is Am Are Was Were Be Being Been Have Has Had Do Does Did Shall Will Should Would May Might Must Can Could Am I saying these should never appear in your writing? Of course not. You’ll find them in this piece. But when a sentence lies limp, you can bet it contains at least one of these. Determining when a state-of-being verb is the culprit creates a problem- and finding a better, more powerful verb to replace it- is what makes us writers. [Note how I replaced the state-of-being verbs in this paragraph.] Resist the urge to consult a thesaurus for the most exotic verb you can find. I consult such references only for the normal word that carries power but refuses to come to mind. I would suggest even that you consult my list of powerful verbs only after you have exhausted all efforts to come up with one on your own. You want Make your prose to be your own creation, not yours plus Roget or Webster or Jenkins. [See how easy they are to spot and fix?] Examples Impotent: The man was walking on the platform. Powerful: The man strode along the platform. Impotent: Jim is a lover of country living. Powerful: Jim treasures country living. Impotent: There are three things that make me feel the way I do†¦ Powerful: Three things convince me†¦ 2. Verbs that rely on adverbs Powerful verbs are strong enough to stand alone. Examples The fox ran quickly dashed through the forest. She menacingly looked glared at her rival. He secretly listened eavesdropped while they discussed their plans. 3.  Verbs with -ing suffixes Examples Before: He was walking†¦ After: He walked†¦ Before: She was loving the idea of†¦ After: She loved the idea of†¦ Before: The family was starting to gather†¦ After: The family started to gather The Strong Verbs List Absorb Advance Advise Alter Amend Amplify Attack Balloon Bash Batter Beam Beef Blab Blast Bolt Boost Brief Broadcast Brood Burst Bus Bust Capture Catch Charge Chap Chip Clasp Climb Clutch Collide Command Commune Cower Crackle Crash Crave Crush Dangle Dash Demolish Depart Deposit Detect Deviate Devour Direct Discern Discover Dismantle Download Drag Drain Drip Drop Eavesdrop Engage Engulf Enlarge Ensnare Envelop Erase Escort Expand Explode Explore Expose Extend Extract Eyeball Fight Fish Fling Fly Frown Fuse Garble Gaze Glare Gleam Glisten Glitter Gobble Govern Grasp Gravitate Grip Groan Grope Growl Guide Gush Hack Hail Heighten Hobble Hover Hurry Ignite Illuminate Inspect Instruct Intensify Intertwine Impart Jostle Journey Lash Launch Lead Leap Locate Lurch Lurk Magnify Mimic Mint Moan Modify Multiply Muse Mushroom Mystify Notice Notify Obtain Oppress Order Paint Park Peck Peek Peer Perceive Picture Pilot Pinpoint Place Plant Plop Pluck Plunge Poison Pop Position Power Prickle Probe Prune Realize Recite Recoil Refashion Refine Remove Report Retreat Reveal Reverberate Revitalize Revolutionize Revolve Rip Rise Ruin Rush Rust Saunter Scamper Scan Scorch Scrape Scratch Scrawl Seize Serve Shatter Shepherd Shimmer Shine Shock Shrivel Sizzle Skip Skulk Slash Slide Slink Slip Slump Slurp Smash Smite Snag Snarl Sneak Snowball Soar Spam Sparkle Sport Sprinkle Stare Starve Steal Steer Storm Strain Stretch Strip Stroll Struggle Stumble Supercharge Supersize Surge Survey Swell Swipe Swoon Tail Tattle Toddle Transfigure Transform Travel Treat Trim Trip Trudge Tussle Uncover Unearth Untangle Unveil Usher Veil Wail Weave Wind Withdraw Wreck Wrench Wrest Wrestle Wring Yank Zing Zap Click here or below to download the expanded list (now 249 powerful verbs!), along with the three types of verbs to watch for in your writing. Suggest in the comments three (only) vivid verbs that should be added to my list.