Lane Greene
Lane Greene is the language columnist and Spain correspondent at The Economist. His books include Talk on the Wild Side and Writing with Style.
![a close up of a person wearing a blue shirt.](https://bigthink.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/credit-Jack-Henry-Greene.jpg?w=512&h=512&crop=1)
If you want to write and speak well, use common words, not grandiose ones. Unless you’re Shakespeare, you’re more likely to annoy people.