What's the Word I'm Looking For?

Jason · Feb 20, 2018

Ever been into a serious writing rhythm and your daily word count fell by the wayside hours ago? You know you're in a groove, and the words just can't seem to spill out of the keyboard fast enough? You're churning and burning, then all of a sudden...

MIND BLANK!!!

There's a word that perfectly fits your construction...
You know the word...
yet your mind is blank...
No dictionary, thesaurus or reference easily spits it out for you...

But it stops you cold, and your production is shot! Your heart screams to get back into the groove, but now the verbal equivalent of an ear worm has wiggled into your brain, and you're stuck because you're trapped by that damn word you know but can't remember for the life of you!

That's what this thread is for...

Post the context of what surrounds your missing word, and the talent of AW members will likely save you before your steam is lost (hopefully).

For starters, here's a dome-scratcher for y'all:

Kristof's head still felt a bit stuffy, but he could tell he was past the worst of it. His aches and pains had subsided, and all he missed was the warmth of his love to return to their humble home. She'd gone a week prior on her annual self-appointed duties of tending to her parents. With her <insert word here>* nearly done, Kristof was counting the days until he could see his love's eyes again.

*I tried "dutiful journey", "intrepid travels", and similar double word terms in here, but none were hitting the mark like I had originally thought. There was a single word for a voyage or travel involving parental or familial obligation, and it was escaping me.

The answer: pilgrimage

What's yours?

Bacchus · Feb 20, 2018

I had a very similar thing just a couple of days ago, the snippet was "He could feel rather than hear the city; it throbbed and <blanked> around him like the pulse of a living thing"

I wanted to put pulsed but wanted to use the pulse of a living thing which would have been silly. As green as green. The thesaurus only threw up things like fluttered and trembled which don't give the right impression.

Changed the order slightly in the end and used "rumbled and throbbed around him" but still not so sure and, as you say, it completely stopped the flow!

Damn words - getting in the way of my writing...

ajaye · Feb 21, 2018

ooh, fun thread

Jason -- all I could think of was filial duty but yes, pilgrimage is a good fit.

Bacchus -- yeah, 'rumbled' doesn't go with pulse for me... 'thrummed and throbbed'? (though the 'thr' repetition might not appeal) or forget a pairing and just go with 'throbbed around him like the pulse of a living thing'? (which I think works fine).

Damn words - getting in the way of my writing...

Enlightened · Feb 21, 2018

Google: "synonym equivalent-word-here"

This helps me find these best-fit words I need, if one eludes me.

If I was to change something of the first example, I'd use gaze into - more in tune with being in love - instead of "see." See and eyes sounds odd to me. Pilgrimage nearly over (instead of done).

morngnstar · Feb 21, 2018

Bacchus said:
I had a very similar thing just a couple of days ago, the snippet was "He could feel rather than hear the city; it throbbed and <blanked> around him like the pulse of a living thing"

I wanted to put pulsed but wanted to use the pulse of a living thing which would have been silly.

Change the structure.

throbbed and pulsed around him like a living thing

That's usually the answer to repeating a word when you can't find a replacement for either. Actually, it's usually the answer even if you can find a replacement. Even if you aren't repeating word for word, you're probably <insert word here> the concept.

There's mine. Who's up?

Jason · Feb 22, 2018

morngnstar said:
...That's usually the answer to repeating a word when you can't find a replacement for either. Actually, it's usually the answer even if you can find a replacement. Even if you aren't repeating word for word, you're probably <insert word here> the concept.

There's mine. Who's up?

The first one that comes to mind when I read through yours is...

regurgitating?

But that's just my 2¢...any other suggestions?

Jan74 · Feb 22, 2018

Love this thread!

This happened to me last night while writing and watching the Women's Hockey game, I went to the thesaurus and tried to plug in other words but got zero nothing. It brought me a halt and was driving me nuts. But finally the word came to me and I could save and go to bed.

My word was paranoia.

Jan74 · Feb 22, 2018

morngnstar said:
Change the structure.

throbbed and pulsed around him like a living thing

That's usually the answer to repeating a word when you can't find a replacement for either. Actually, it's usually the answer even if you can find a replacement. Even if you aren't repeating word for word, you're probably <insert word here> the concept.

There's mine. Who's up?

mudying
diluting
obscuring
befuddling

ok I might be completely off the mark but those are my guesses

Jason · Feb 22, 2018

Kristoff felt the sneeze coming, but it halted in his face painfully. He'd done everything imaginable from staring at the sun to drinking water, and holding his breath. It felt like a <insert word here> in his nose, refusing to be expelled.

ajaye · Feb 23, 2018

Jason said:
Kristoff felt the sneeze coming, but it halted in his face painfully. He'd done everything imaginable from staring at the sun to drinking water, and holding his breath. It felt like a <insert word here> in his nose, refusing to be expelled.

fish hook

Snitchcat · Feb 25, 2018

Bacchus said:
I had a very similar thing just a couple of days ago, the snippet was "He could feel rather than hear the city; it throbbed and <blanked> around him like the pulse of a living thing"

Buzzed
Hummed
Beat

Or as Morngnstar suggested.

morngnstar said:
That's usually the answer to repeating a word when you can't find a replacement for either. Actually, it's usually the answer even if you can find a replacement. Even if you aren't repeating word for word, you're probably <insert word here> the concept.

Describing
Depicting
Implying
Inferring
Suggesting
Elliciting

Jason said:
Kristoff felt the sneeze coming, but it halted in his face painfully. He'd done everything imaginable from staring at the sun to drinking water, and holding his breath. It felt like a <insert word here> in his nose, refusing to be expelled.

Feather
Hook
Drunkard
Dust mote
Grass blade
Tuft of fur
Furball

Marissa D · Feb 25, 2018

morngnstar said:
That's usually the answer to repeating a word when you can't find a replacement for either. Actually, it's usually the answer even if you can find a replacement. Even if you aren't repeating word for word, you're probably <insert word here> the concept.

There's mine. Who's up?

reiterating
restating

What's the Word I'm Looking For?

Jason

Ideas bounce around in my head

Bacchus

ajaye

partial to a gum tree

Enlightened

Always Learning

morngnstar

Jason

Ideas bounce around in my head

Jan74

Jan74

Jason

Ideas bounce around in my head

ajaye

partial to a gum tree

Snitchcat

Dragon-kitty.

Marissa D

Scribe of the girls in the basement