Synonym, << SIHN uh nihm, >> is a word that has the same, or nearly the same, meaning as another word. There are many cases when one word will serve the same purpose as another, such as small boy and little boy and smart idea and clever idea. But although two words may be synonymous (used in the same way) in one sense, they may not be synonymous in another sense. For example, dull and stupid may both be used to describe a person. But one does not use the word stupid to describe the dull blade of a knife. Synonyms enrich the language by helping the speaker or writer to use words with precise meanings and associations and to avoid the monotony of repetition.
