Long and exotic words (like defenestration or sesquipedalian) are often more fascinating than useful. By comparison, this list offers more words that can enrich conversations without sounding ridiculous.
Definition:
a theory or a group of ideas about how something should be done, made, or thought about
Words It Might Replace:
idea, theory, concept
Example:
Astronomy has witnessed numerous groundbreaking and paradigm-shifting discoveries in our understanding of the cosmos. One such shift began in June 1990, when Astronomy revealed initial results from the Cosmic Background Explorer (COBE), recently launched to observe the cosmic microwave background (CMB) radiation left by the Big Bang.
— Alison Klesman, Astronomy (Milwaukee, WI), Aug. 2023