Penultimate

Perhaps, but I also think we do them a disservice if we try to talk over their heads just because we can. Using the words awkwardly does nobody any good, and my guess is a lot of the people who think they can do it right, really can't. Our job is to, first and foremost, report the news clearly and concisely. Needlessly obscure or complicated words and references get in the way. And if penultimate is one of those words, then excise it. But know your audience. The New York Times can get away with writing in a style that the Daily Shopper-Gazette can't. Or shouldn't.

 

In order to make the readers more educated, we should all pick a word out of the dictionary at random and implement it into our stories. I will start...why did I have to pick "flocci­nauci­nihili­pili­fication". There goes the neighborhood.

 

A newspaper story is not a vocabulary test. And it's not like you're deciding between "penultimate" and "tree"

 

Or as the old saying goes, eschew obfuscation.

 

Certainly not. No one should write trying to catch people off-guard and beat them with the broom of highbrow. But sometimes that's the unintended effect. For instance, the word xenophobia. Obviously Greek and, without knowing what it is, confusing as balls. I can certainly imagine people who haven't heard the word, maybe college students, reading this in a paper and thinking, "what the hell?"
But it's still a useful word with specific meaning. Doesn't make it a no-no.

 

It has a very specific and clear meaning. It streamlines your writing by saving two words, and two hyphens. It's not some hybrow French or Latin phrase. It's English. Use it when necessary.

 

Use them correctly and your readers will get it. As in, "Wimbledon is the penultimate Grand Slam tennis fortnight of the year."

 

Once, maybe twice a career.

Got to be clear from the context, though.

 

Stop 100 people in the street and ask them what penultimate means and I'll bet no more than 10 percent of the responses get it right. Don't use it.

 

I agree with Martin Enigmatic.

Penultimate is a perfectly good word. There's nothing "fancy" or "highbrow" about it.

Christ, before you know it some peope will want everything to be a combination of one syllable words and pictures.

 

Then write for the 10% and let the others catch up.

 

When I was with AP I always enjoyed making editing changes in the penultimate graf just so I could write editor notes like, AM-Bus Plunge, 3rd Ld - Writethru, Eds: ADDS detail throughout; DELETES redundant "fiery pit" in fourth graf;CORRECTS spelling of Smith in penultimate graf. Good times.