Have you ever watched a clumsy man hammering a nail into a box? He hits it first to one side, then to another, perhaps knocking it over completely, so that in the end he only gets half of it into the wood. A skillful carpenter, on the other hand, will drive home the nail with a few firm, deft blows, hitting it each time squarely on the head. So with language; the good craftsman will choose words that drive home his point firmly and exactly, will not satisfy a writer who aims at clean English. He will try always to get the word that is completely right for his purpose. [以上原文勿动]
【译文】:不知你是否看过笨拙的人是怎样把钉子钉进盒子的呢?他先这边敲敲,再那边敲敲,简直要把钉子钉翻了。最后,他也只往木头里钉进半颗。与之不同,娴熟的木匠每敲一下都会正击钉头,驾轻就熟,三下五除二就好了。语言亦是如此。优秀的语言大师会择选能恰到好处表明心声的词汇。一个大体正确的单词,一句松散的短语,一处模棱两可的表达,或是一例含糊不清的形容词,都不会使旨在严谨使用英语的作家满意。他会不停尝试直到发掘出恰逢其意的词来。