Use v. utilize (was Re: Simple Verbiage Question)

[Jan Stanley <janron -at- CONCENTRIC -dot- NET>]

>I see a slight difference. To me.."utilize" takes the
>meaning of leveraging existing functionality for
>purposes that might not have been anticipated, while
>"use" is to use the functionality for the purpose it
>was designed.

Just had an off-list chat about this.  Merriam-Webster online has
a usage note about that connotation:

>. UTILIZE may suggest the discovery of a new, profitable, or
practical use for something <an old wooden bucket utilized as a
planter>.

There may be an example of a new use that would convince me
otherwise, but for the time being my sense is that in most cases,
a new use would so *obviously* be a new use that the verb
wouldn't need to call attention to the newness of it.

All depends on the reader's background, of course.  It's possible
that a reader of MW's example wouldn't know that it's not
traditional to use a bucket as a planter -- but would a reader
who didn't know that be likely to have the kind of background
that would make him or her attuned to that subtle distinction
between "used" and "utilized"?

(I'm not trolling, here; just asking.)

Jan
janron -at- concentric -dot- net

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