Words

                                       

             As of January 1st, 2014, The Global Language Monitor estimated there to be 1, 025, 109.8 words in the English language. This does not include slang words or words that are made up from previously established words. They even estimate that there is a new word created every 98 minutes. Even this vast number of ways to describe our thoughts doesn't keep people from using filler words such as "like" and "ummm".  First of all, everyone can agree that language is a tricky thing. If you use the filler words, you will sound like a teenage girl who cannot convey her feelings properly. This way of using words is often made fun of by adults. However, when a person decides to make use of the enormous amount of words in his repertoire, that person can come off as snobbish. Even as I point out diction choices, the filler words are more commonly used and accepted into average life than high end diction. Therefore, we all sound like incoherent people who cannot string a sentence together without adding "like" in it. Truth be told, I am a teenage girl and I probably can't go 10 minutes without using a filler word. It actually makes conversations last so much longer and they help fill awkward silences.  However, this job can also be filled by long words that take 2 minutes to speak. The choice of society to choose to stick with simple words instead of complex diction is indicator of human nature, or it might just be based on previous history. 

Resources: 
"Number of Words in the English Language: 1,025,109.8." The Global Language Monitor. Web. 23 Mar. 2015. <http://www.languagemonitor.com/number-of-words/number-of-words-in-the-english-language-1008879/>.