Do you use your word Johnlambert?
I like to use my full vocabulary, but I seem to meet with a lot of resistance when I do so I tend to stick to a comfort-zone. (Comfort-zone isn't one I'm proud of.)
I try not to be proud of knowing the meaning of any word. The pride I get from the language I have comes from times when I've used it.
This week has by no means been typical but I've expressed my condolences to a friend whose eldest brother died quite suddenly of Leukaemia whilst seemingly having been in his prime and I've been trying to help a colleague at work improve her English.
I'm proud of the effort I've made, but I'm more embarrassed that I couldn't do better to be honest. It's not as if I've had the hardest of lives, and yet I still haven't mastered my native tongue.
I hope I'm not boring anyone with all that.