Glib

I love words. Often I come across new words and don't have time to look them up, and then when I have the time, I've forgotten the word I heard. Other times I hear a word again for the first time and realize that I don't really know what the word means. This week it was glib. Do you know what it means without looking it up?

According to Merriam-Webster, glib means the following: 1a: marked by ease and informality, 1b: showing little forethought or preparation, 1c: lacking depth and substance; 2: smooth, slippery; 3: marked by ease and fluency in speaking or writing often to the point of being insincere or deceitful.

It is the last bit of the definition that surprised me. Ease and informality don't sound too bad. Don't we want to communicate with others in a easy, carefree sort of way. To an extent, that is the reason for a blog to begin with - an more informal way to communicate without being totally formless (twitter). But the last bit - "to be point of being insincere or deceitful." How easy is it to fall into that hole when you are trying to be easy going. Must all preparation or depth be thrown to the wind? Can a person truly be easy going even if they have prepared, or is that like women who spend hours (literally) on their hair in an effort to make it look like they haven't done anything with their hair. Is planned ease always insincere? Is planned ease in communication really possible?

I'm not sure if this post is glib or not. Just some thoughts and ideas about a fun word (some words are just more fun to say than others).

Oh, as a point of trivia, glib was first used in English in 1584.