a synonym for strains and glare

[alpacinou]

I want to what words I can use instead of "glare" and "strains" in the sentences below:

Janice looked up at the sky. Wispy clouds softened the sun's glare. She could hear faint strains of music from a house near the shore.

 

[Charlie Bernstein]

Those are good choices. Search no further!

 

[alpacinou]

Those are good choices. Search no further!

Yes they are good but I want to learn some other words that I can use in those sentences.

 

[emsr2d2]

I honestly think you simply need to invest in a really good thesaurus.

 

[jutfrank]

Yes they are good but I want to learn some other words that I can use in those sentences.

I think your approach to vocabulary learning is often a little backwards. You should either:

a) Find a context (like you have here) and then find the words that best fit.
b) Pick a word you want to learn how to control and then find a context that fits around that word.

Another important point, which I'm sure I've mentioned before is this: Different words have different meanings, so when you replace one word with another, you change the meaning. I sometimes get the impression that you're looking for words that you think sound nice, rather than focusing on what they actually mean.

 

[alpacinou]

I honestly think you simply need to invest in a really good thesaurus.

I did check Oxford. These are for glare:

2 the harsh glare of the arc lights
STRONG LIGHT, dazzling light, blaze, dazzle, shine, beam, flare; radiance, brilliance, luminescence, fluorescence.

And these are for strains:

5 {strains} the soothing strains of Brahms's lullaby
SOUND, music; melody, tune, air, song.

I don't find any of them useful. Do you have other suggestions?

 

[alpacinou]

I think your approach to vocabulary learning is often a little backwards. You should either:

a) Find a context (like you have here) and then find the words that best fit.
b) Pick a word you want to learn how to control and then find a context that fits around that word.

Another important point, which I'm sure I've mentioned before is this: Different words have different meanings, so when you replace one word with another, you change the meaning. I sometimes get the impression that you're looking for words that you think sound nice, rather than focusing on what they actually mean.

You are right that I can't find a synonym with the exact same meaning. I was hoping to find words that are close enough.

Thank you for the advice.

 

[jutfrank]

I was hoping to find words that are close enough.

Close enough for what exactly? I fear you may not have understood my advice. As Charlie Bernstein suggests above, you need to be looking for the best word to express what you mean, or the best word to achieve the effect that you want to have on your reader.

I think it might be useful for all of the advisors here if you could describe for us how you typically approach your vocabulary learning. Could you tell us a little about how your questions end up here on the forum? What's your process? What are your goals? How do your sentences come about?

 

[alpacinou]

Close enough for what exactly? I fear you may not have understood my advice. As Charlie Bernstein suggests above, you need to be looking for the best word to express what you mean, or the best word to achieve the effect that you want to have on your reader.

I think it might be useful for all of the advisors here if you could describe for us how you typically approach your vocabulary learning. Could you tell us a little about how your questions end up here on the forum? What's your process? What are your goals? How do your sentences come about?

Actually, I was trying to describe something I observed in real life. Then I googled and used dictionaries to find words (glare and strains). Afterwards, I made that sentence and tried to learn synonyms for those words.

 

[jutfrank]

Actually, I was trying to describe something I observed in real life. Then I googled and used dictionaries to find words (glare and strains).

I see. That's useful to know.

Afterwards, I made that sentence and tried to learn synonyms for those words.

I really don't think you should do this. Instead, try phrasing the whole passage in a totally different way. The different phrasing and way of describing will call for different words to be used, which will help you expand your vocabulary more productively. Remember that the goal of every writer is to find the word that best fits the context. Different context, different meaning; different meaning, different words.

 

[Tdol]

I honestly think you simply need to invest in a really good thesaurus.

Mind you, a thesaurus is a fairly insensitive beast.

 

[jutfrank]

I think a thesaurus could well be dangerous for alpacinoutd. Very generally speaking, I think it isn't a good idea to encourage learners to use thesauruses, as they tend to reinforce the idea of similarity in meaning. One of the major challenges in teaching vocabulary is to encourage learners to become sensitive to differences in use.

 

[emsr2d2]

Perhaps I should amend my suggestion. Alpacinoutd could use a thesaurus to come up with words that are similar to the ones he already knows, then ask us which one we think is more natural/fitting in a particular sentence. I don't think we should be the ones coming up with alternatives when other resources are readily available. The only flaw in that is, of course, we have no way of knowing exactly which meaning he had in mind when writing the sentence.

 

[Tdol]

The difference between a thesaurus and the mot juste is often considerable.