Reasons to Not Rely on the Thesaurus

English is a difficult language to learn. One reason is that the root words come from so many different languages. English is a composite language, a sometimes elegant combination of the world's many words. To add to the complexity, there are new words added almost daily. Idioms are created and disbursed with astounding speed. Writers have come to rely on tools like the dictionary and the thesaurus. There are times when they over-rely.

Here is a common phrase: a thorough analysis. It means having taken the necessary time and performed the work needed to go through all the data and understand the whys and wherefores of both the important and the trivial. The usual next step is to write a report explaining the process used and the conclusions reached from the analysis.

Writing a report is committing words to paper (or the digital equivalent). The writer wants to sound informed and authoritative. The report should be concise, organized, and well written. The report is for the benefit of the reader, but it reflects on the writer. Having completed the "thorough analysis" and with tools at hand, the writer is still not prepared. The writer must still compose and edit the report. The writer must select the proper words to convey the intended meaning.

Suppose the phrase, thorough analysis, will be used several times in the report. Repeating the phrase suggests a weak vocabulary, an accusation writers dread. So begins the search for synonyms. The writer knows it is important to understand the parts of speech of the words in the original phrase. Thorough is an adjective and analysis is a noun. The synonyms should match the parts of speech. The following synonyms were found by reviewing Roget's International Thesaurus.

Thorough also means exhaustive, intensive, sweeping, unrestricted, consummate, or complete. Consummate can be pronounced, profound or unequivocal. Intensive can be concentrated or heavy. Complete can be perfect, uncut, or finished.

Analysis also means diagnosis, breakdown, survey, or review. Diagnosis can be interpretation. Survey can be study or treatment. Review can be parade or criticism.

Consider the "thorough" paragraph to be Column A and the "analysis" paragraph to be Column B. In a more perfect world, picking a word from A and another word from B would produce an alternative phrase. The words are, after all, synonyms from a good source. That is not what happens. Consider these combinations: perfect parade, concentrated breakdown, unrestricted interpretation, pronounced criticism, finished diagnosis, uncut treatment. None of these capture the same meaning as the original.

There are some potential replacement phrases for thorough analysis: complete review, intensive study.

Note to all writers: Proceed with caution or go forward with infidelity (analysis/ syn. suspicion/syn. unbelief/ syn. infidenity).

Source
Roget's International Thesaurus, Thomas Y Crowell Company, Third Edition, 1962