Why Flabby Is a Fine Adjective for 2020 and Beyond
I first encountered the word flabby used creatively in the Adam Smith, Esq. blog. I read Bruce MacEwen’s law firm commentary mainly for the quality and sparkle of the writing and, at the time, I thought it was a thoughtful use of a word typically confined to, at least in my experience, less-than-taut midsections. Naturally, all efforts to find the post have been unsuccessful, but I’m certain of the origin.
While introducing what I had observed as the all-too-common default use of the word relevant in a piece I wrote for an industry magazine, I warned that “a [flabby] directive” may “cloud a well-articulated vision.” In other words, instead of expressing the hackneyed need to stay relevant, figure out what you really need or want, and communicate that. To be flabby is to be unoriginal at best, unclear at worst.
But an editor plucked it out like a defective would-be product from an assembly line, saying it “just doesn’t work here.” She substituted loose, and I dialed down my zeal.
Should sophisticated readers and writers alike search out this offbeat word to find their next read or source of inspiration?
How do you define a word that is so common, yet so relatively pigeonholed? Here’s what you’ll find…
