What category or part of speech is your word of the year? Does it even matter? Every word can be categorized as a part of speech based on its function. Does this affect our relationship with our words?
My word for 2022 is ALL. This word draws me into deeper surrender with God as he is my all in all and I want to give him my all. All in all ways always.
All is a quiet word. A gentle word. A sense of yielding.
Last year’s word – GO – meant action, movement, energy.
Go is a verb. All is a noun, pronoun, or adverb. I really liked GO and all that I learned from its lively vitality. What a great word category.
I never realized before how the part of speech of my annual word impacts how it feels to my heart. How words play with our mind and our perspectives. I confess that I miss the excitement, zest, and zip that Go brought into my life.
But perhaps my heart is yearning for a different adventure in this season of my life. Less do and more be. Less me and more God. Less action and more stillness. Less accomplishment and more openness to receive, to become, to relinquish.
A time to allow a new word to sink its roots deeper into my soul. Moments to listen to All’s heartbeat allowing my heart to sync to its slower wise rhythm.
Choosing a word of the year is a powerful spiritual practice. One that draws us closer to God if we allow its meaning to shape our soul.
Knowing how the different categories or parts of speech of our words brings us rich insights as it settles into our lives.
Have you noticed how the category or part of speech of your word impacts your relationship with its transformation within you? What lessons did that realization reveal?
I have never considered the part of speech when choosing my WOTY. BUT as I looked back over attitude-of-gratitude (2020), abide (2021) and encouragement (2022) I realize that I choose (or should I say, God chooses) action words.
Love your word, I see the quiet, gentleness in it! I can’t wait to see “all” God has for you with this tiny word friend!
ooo I like the words you used – quiet, gentleness – that gives me new insight. Thanks
Yes, this is the season we’re in, “More be…more God…more stillness…and more openness to receive, to become, to relinquish.”
Yes we are!!
‘Perhaps my heart is yearning for a different adventure in this season of my life. Less do and more be. Less me and more God. Less action and more stillness. Less accomplishment and more openness to receive, to become, to relinquish.’
Yes, this kind of reimagining is necessary and healthy if we’re to continue to grow and morph and change to be more like Him. Sometimes we need to shed the old in order to become the new.
Yes it is letting go and moving onward on this great adventure!
Ideally, I like my one words to be verbs, but my favorites are ones that can be both a verb and a noun. 🙂 I view this year’s word RELEASE this way. I’m still excited about your word ALL. You did so much with GO last year that I can only imagine the interesting journey you and God will have with ALL.
I had never really noticed the difference before in verbs vs nouns so was an interesting insight for me. Great how your word works either way, I love the feature of your word!!
Interesting insight, Jean. I’ve never considered the ramifications of the part of speech of the Word of the Year. In the past my words have included verbs such as TRUST, adjectives such as BEAUTIFUL, and this year a noun, REVERENCE. As it happens, however, REVERENCE can also be a verb. In addition, change the -CE to a T on the end and it becomes an adjective! This word for 2022 may take me in a number of directions!
I never really noticed this before either until I felt a difference between last year and this year’s words, Interesting how you change one letter in your word. Another insight!
My word is peace…ive been fighting tooth and nail not to be forced into the “old” stereotype…but peace is fighting too…and God will see to it that peace is the winner…thank you jean…youre helpin us all get thru….
Peace is a beautiful word and I am sure will bless and guide your year!
I must admit, Jean, that I hadn’t thought of the word for the year in terms of its part of speech before you pointed it out here. Makes perfect sense, though, as to how we interact with the word that chose to travel along with us in the new year.
Breathe is an action word, but if I think of it in the sense of breath, it becomes a noun. Could they be interchangeable as the year progresses? I’m not sure, but I’m going to keep myself open to the possibilities.
Blessings!
IT was a new insight for me too, Martha. Yes yes stay open to how breathe invites you further into meaning,