Words Have Power
What is a word?
According to Dictionary.com, a word is “a unit of language, consisting of one or more spoken sounds or their written representation, that functions as a principal carrier of meaning.”
Words have enormous power. As the “principle carriers of meaning,” words can lift us up or crush us. They may be no more than sounds uttered from our mouths, but the intention behind the sounds can pack more joy or pain than the most loving touch or the cruelest physical blow.
Some people use words as subtle weapons to hurt, shame, or manipulate others. These people are verbal abusers and tend to attract people in their lives who are susceptible to their insidious and hurtful use of language.
Verbal abuse can be overtly threatening, frightening, and openly cruel. This kind of verbal abuse involves yelling, cursing, name-calling, bullying, and suggestions of future physical violence. In fact, this verbal battery is often the precursor to physical abuse.
However, many verbal abusers aren’t as direct or threatening. Instead, they twist language and words so the recipient isn’t really sure what’s hit them. They use a subtle form of verbal abuse that infects people over time and slowly erodes their self-esteem, confidence, and trust. This kind of verbal abuse is so convoluted and disconcerting that it’s difficult to call it out and take action. Because it can’t be clearly defined, the recipient may believe she’s imagining it, or even worse, the cause of it. See more…