--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: An average English word is four letters…" description: "\"An average English word is four letters and a half. By hard, honest labor I've dug all the large words out of my vocabulary and shaved it down till the..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/953/mark-twain-22_average_an-average-english-word-is-four-letters_2599266.png" --- # An average English word is four letters and a half. By… ![“An average English word is four letters and a half. By hard, honest labor I've dug all the large words out of my vocabulary and shaved it down till the average is three and a half... I never write metropolis for seven cents, because I can get the same money for city. I never write policeman…” quote by Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/953/mark-twain-22_average_an-average-english-word-is-four-letters_2599266.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/953/mark-twain-22_average_an-average-english-word-is-four-letters_2599266.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/953/mark-twain-22_average_an-average-english-word-is-four-letters_2599266.png) > “An average English word is four letters and a half. By hard, honest labor I've dug all the large words out of my vocabulary and shaved it down till the average is three and a half... I never write metropolis for seven cents, because I can get the same money for city. I never write policeman, because I can get the same price for cop… I never write valetudinarian at all, for not even hunger and wretchedness can humble me to the point where I will do a word like that for seven cents; I wouldn't do it for fifteen.” [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The author reduces word length to maximize earnings, highlighting the absurdity of valuing words by cost rather than meaning. **In simple terms:** Shorter words earn more money. Key Takeaway Value meaning over monetary gain. Themes economics language efficiency artistry humor Mood witty critical Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - writing - editing - publishing - budget constraints Key Concepts word length pricing literary craft Questions to Reflect On - Do you prioritize brevity over depth? - How does market pressure affect your writing? A Different Perspective Focusing on profit can diminish artistic quality. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Cities](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cities/) [Cop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cop/) [Honest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/honest/) [Humble](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humble/) [Hunger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hunger/) [Labor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/labor/) [Language](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/language/) [Policemen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/policemen/) [Vocabulary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vocabulary/) [Words](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/words/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [I never write "metropolis" for seven cents when I can write "city" and get paid the same.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/i-never-write-metropolis-for-seven-cents-when-i-can-write-city-and/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [I never write Metropolis for seven cents because I can get the same price for city. I never write policeman because I can get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/i-never-write-metropolis-for-seven-cents-because-i-can-get-the-same/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [Most personal correspondence of today consists of letters the first half of which are given over to an indexed statement of why the writer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-benchley/most-personal-correspondence-of-today-consists-of-letters-the-first/) [Robert Benchley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-benchley/) > [I used to think that once a writer became a man of letters, if only for a half hour, he was done for. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dylan-thomas/i-used-to-think-that-once-a-writer-became-a-man-of-letters-if-only/) [Dylan Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dylan-thomas/) > [“Comamandering is not a word. It has letters, doesn't it? Sounds like a word to me.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tahereh-mafi/comamandering-is-not-a-word-it-has-letters-doesn-t-it-sounds-like-a/) [Tahereh Mafi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahereh-mafi/) > [L-O-V-E one word, four letters, and can hurt you in one saying.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/l-o-v-e-one-word-four-letters-and-can-hurt-you-in-one-saying/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Or. I hate that word. 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