As an author, you know that words have power. Depending on the words you use in your stories, you can inspire, delight, amaze, disgust, and shock in equal measure.
And choosing the right word for the right passage of text can be a Herculean task.
But fear not, my writerly friend. If you’re struggling to select the word that best fits your piece of prose, and that word begins with V, then this is the article for you. Below is a list of 164 words, beginning with the letter V, you can use in different areas of your manuscript. I’ve broken the list down into several easy to use categories.
At the end, you’ll find my top three tips for using V words in your manuscript. You can devour this list all at once, scan it for the perfect word you need, or both. The choice is yours.
Okay. Ready to do a deep dive into all things V words?
Then let’s get this party started with some positive words that start with V.
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Positive Words That Start with V
Here’s a list of positive words starting with V that you can use to describe all the lovely things about your characters:
- Valiant: Brave and courageous
- Valorous: Brave and heroic
- Valuable: Precious and important
- Venerated: Revered and respected
- Venerable: Respected and honored
- Venturous: Bold and daring
- Veracious: Truthful and honest
- Veritable: Genuine and true
- Versatile: Adaptable and flexible
- Vibrant: Energetic and lively
- Victorious: Successful and triumphant
- Vigilant: Watchful and alert
- Vindicable: Justifiable and defendable
- Virile: Manly and strong
- Virtuous: Ethical and moral
- Visionary: Imaginative and creative
- Vital: Essential and full of life
- Vivacious: Lively and spirited
- Vivid: Bright and intense
- Vivifying: Enlivening and refreshing
- Vocal: Expressive and outspoken
- Volitional: Willful and determined
- Voluminous: Large and ample
- Votary: Devoted and faithful
- Vulnerable: Sensitive and open
These positive words that start with V can describe various positive attributes of characters, making them more vivid and engaging for your readers.
Negative V Words
Here’s a list of negative words starting with V, in alphabetical order, you can use to describe challenging aspects of your characters:
- Vacuous: Empty and meaningless
- Vacillating: Indecisive and wavering
- Vagrant: Wandering and homeless
- Vain: Conceited and self-absorbed
- Vandalistic: Destructive and damaging
- Vapid: Dull and uninteresting
- Vehement: Passionate and intense
- Venal: Corrupt and bribable
- Venomous: Poisonous and spiteful
- Vengeful: Revengeful and vindictive
- Verbose: Wordy and long-winded
- Vexed: Troubled and distressed
- Vile: Extremely unpleasant
- Villainous: Wicked and criminal
- Vindictive: Revengeful and spiteful
- Violent: Aggressive and forceful
- Viperish: Malicious and treacherous
- Virulent: Poisonous and harmful
- Vitiated: Spoiled and corrupted
- Vitriolic: Bitter and caustic
- Vituperative: Harshly abusive and scolding
- Vivid: Intensely deep or bright in a negative context
- Vocal: Loud and insistent
- Voracious: Greedy and insatiable
- Vulgar: Crude and offensive
- Vulnerable: Defenseless and weak
These adjectives can add depth to your characters by highlighting their flaws and challenges, making them more dynamic and relatable.
Things That Start with V
Here’s a list of objects starting with V that you can use to name various items in your writing:
- Vacuum: Cleaning device
- Valve: Control device
- Van: Large vehicle
- Varnish: Wood coating
- Vase: Decorative container
- Vault: Secure room
- Vector: Directional quantity
- Vegetable: Edible plant
- Vehicle: Mode of transport
- Velvet: Soft fabric
- Vent: Air outlet
- Ventilator: Breathing device
- Venue: Event location
- Verse: Poetic line
- Vest: Sleeveless garment
- Vial: Small container
- Violin: String instrument
- Vise: Clamping tool
- Vitamin: Dietary supplement
- Vivid: Intensely deep or bright
- Vocal: Expressive and outspoken
- Volcano: Erupting mountain
- Volume: Book or capacity
- Voucher: Payment certificate
- Vow: Solemn promise
- Voyage: Long journey
- Vulture: Scavenging bird
These nouns provide a variety of descriptions you can apply in various contexts to enrich your narrative and add detail to your settings.
Nice Words That Start with V
Here’s a list of nice-sounding words starting with V you can use to add a melodic touch to your descriptions:
- Valiant: Brave and courageous
- Valorous: Brave and heroic
- Valuable: Precious and important
- Vast: Extensive and immense
- Venerate: Respect and honor
- Vernal: Spring-like and fresh
- Veracious: Truthful and honest
- Verdant: Green and lush
- Veritable: Genuine and true
- Verity: Truth and reality
- Versatile: Adaptable and flexible
- Vibrant: Energetic and lively
- Victorious: Successful and triumphant
- Vigilant: Watchful and alert
- Vigorous: Strong and healthy
- Virtuous: Ethical and moral
- Visionary: Imaginative and creative
- Vital: Essential and full of life
- Vivacious: Lively and spirited
- Vivifying: Enlivening and refreshing
- Vivid: Bright and intense
- Vociferous: Loud and insistent
- Volatile: Unpredictable and changeable
- Volitional: Willful and determined
- Voluminous: Large and ample
- Votary: Devoted and faithful
- Votive: Offered in fulfillment of a vow
- Vulnerable: Sensitive and open
- Venturous: Bold and daring
These pleasant-sounding words that start with V can add a beautiful and harmonious quality to your writing, making your prose more engaging and enjoyable for readers.
Long Words That Start with V
Here’s a list of long words starting with V you can use to add a sophisticated touch to your descriptions:
- Valetudinarian: Sickly and weak
- Vaporization: Conversion to vapor
- Vascularization: Formation of vessels
- Vaudevillian: Relating to vaudeville
- Vectograph: Stereoscopic photograph
- Vegetarianism: Practice of eating no meat
- Vernacularize: Make vernacular
- Verisimilitude: Appearance of truth
- Versification: Making into verse
- Versatilities: Flexibilities and adaptability
- Verticality: State of being vertical
- Vesiculation: Formation of vesicles
- Vestibulocochlear: Relating to the vestibule and cochlea
- Vexillology: Study of flags
- Viability: Ability to live or grow
- Vicissitude: Change or variation
- Villainousness: Quality of being villainous
- Vindictive: Vengeful and spiteful
- Violaceous: Violet-colored
- Viridescent: Greenish in color
- Virilization: Development of male characteristics
- Viscometric: Relating to viscosity measurement
- Vitellogenesis: Formation of yolk in eggs
- Viviparous: Giving live birth
- Volatilization: Conversion into vapor
- Voluminosity: Great volume
- Voluntariness: Willingness and intention
- Voraciousness: Greediness and insatiability
- Vulcanization: Hardening of rubber
- Vulnerabilities: Weaknesses and susceptibilities
These long words that start with V can add a sophisticated and impressive quality to your writing, making your prose more engaging and intellectually stimulating for readers.
Short Words That Start with V
Here’s a list of single-syllable words starting with V you can use to add concise and impactful touches to your descriptions:
- Vale: Valley and hollow
- Vane: Blade and fin
- Vent: Air outlet
- Vest: Garment and jacket
- Vet: Animal doctor
- Vice: Sin and fault
- Vie: Compete and contend
- Vim: Energy and vigor
- Vine: Climbing plant
- Vote: Ballot and poll
These concise and impactful words that start with V can add a sharp and effective quality to your writing, making your prose more dynamic and engaging for readers.
Professional Words That Start with V
Here’s a list of words starting with V that convey professional behavior. These words can add a polished and professional tone to your descriptions:
- Valuable: Precious and important
- Venerable: Respected and esteemed
- Versatile: Adaptable and flexible
- Vigilant: Watchful and attentive
- Visionary: Imaginative and creative
- Vocal: Expressive and articulate
- Venerated: Revered and honored
- Versed: Knowledgeable and skilled
- Vivacious: Lively and spirited
- Virtuous: Ethical and moral
These professional words that start with V can add a sophisticated and polished quality to your writing, making your characters’ professional attributes more vivid and engaging for readers.
Tips for Using Words Starting with V
Here are my top three tips for using words that start with V in your fiction writing.
Tip 1: Use Strong Words
A strong word is almost always preferable to a weaker one because it paints a more vivid picture for the reader.
Examples of weak words include:
- Good
- Bad
- Nice
- Thing
- Stuff
- Very
- Big
- Small
- Happy
- Sad
While readers know what these words mean (and they do have their place in certain situations), they aren’t going to set your reader’s imaginations blazing.
So, when choosing strong V words, consider words such as “vivacious,” “vacuous,” and “voluminous” to evoke clearer images for your readers.
Tip 2: Variety is the Spice of Vocabulary
One of my favorite V words is “vertiginous” (or extremely steep) because I love the way it sounds. I might use it once in a manuscript because it’s unusual, because I like it, and because readers appreciate the odd unfamiliar word to spice things up a bit.
But…
I wouldn’t use it repeatedly. The trouble with unfamiliar words is that they stand out, and using them too often creates a feeling of repetition the reader won’t appreciate.
So, vary your word usage for maximum impact.
Tip 3: Make Sure Your Usage is Appropriate
Now, this might just be me (and likely is), but I’ve gone to use a word before, thinking I know exactly what it means, and I’ve been wrong.
Thank all the literary gods for eagle-eyed proofreaders, am I right?
When you use a word, particularly one that isn’t part of your everyday patois, triple check the exact meaning so you know you have it right.
And finally, always remember that story comes first. Before worrying about the perfect word to use, it’s best to focus on:
- Creating engaging characters
- Penning an interesting plot
- Structuring solid settings
A tool like Fictionary helps you turn your draft into an interesting story readers love. So, with the right word choices and a strong narrative foundation, your writing can truly shine.
