If you write professionally or out of passion, you know the love affair that writers have with words. These elements of speech are to be used carefully, with craft, and with the sensitivity that each word has a nuanced meaning that distinguishes it from other words that mean the same thing. Consider the word, “languishing.” It is defined as an adjective, an appeal for sympathy. Synonyms include lackadaisical, spiritless, limp, enervated, listless, languid, and languorous,  but none of those words really quite mean the same thing as languishing.

This matters to the writer seeking the perfect word for a sentence, and it certainly mattered to the people who crafted the breed standard for the Sussex Spaniel. It is the only breed standard that as of this writing contains the word languishing:  “Eyes – The eyes are hazel in color, fairly large, soft and languishing.” The writers could have said, “The eyes are hazel in color, fairly large, soft and listless, ” or they could have written, “The eyes are hazel in color, fairly large, soft and apathetic,” but none of those words accurately express the “peepers” of a Sussex Spaniel. Some have described a Sussex’s eyes as that of a sad puppy gaze, but that’s not quite right, either. This is a somber and serious expression, and in our view, “languishing” is the right fit.  We don’t know about you, but when we look into these eyes, we don’t see a listless, dull, uninterested or sad expression. We see eyes that ask to be liked.

Mind you, it’s easy to get carried away with personifying a dog’s expression. It’s important to remember that the Sussex Spaniel is a serious hunting dog that plows through heavy underbrush after birds. A heavy, frowning brow helps prevent the dog’s eyes from getting scratched by twigs and branches, while large, hazel eyes that have some haw showing underneath serve to easily wipe out weed seeds that might get into the eye, weeds that would irritate and damage a tighter eye.

Still, we tip our hat to the authors of the Sussex Spaniel standard. They chose exactly the right word that fits the breed’s expression.

Image: DepositPhoto