How to answer single-word-request when a single word exists, but a multi-word phrasing is preferable?

Question

I know the SWR topic gets a lot of debate here, but given that the things exist, I am asking for a best practice in a particular set of cases.

Quintilian said something like "the goal of communication should not be merely to be understood, but to make it impossible to be misunderstood." More recently, Randall Munroe in his new book has taught us that sometimes the best thing to say is "techtonic plate" but other times "the big slowly moving flat rock that we live on" is better.

Suppose someone comes here to ask "What is a single word for 'using big words when small ones will do'?" I know that sesquipedalian is a perfectly reasonable answer. But I also know that if the OP uses this word in the context she describes, she will sound arrogant, pompous, pretentious, or worse. She is also likely to not be understood by her audience, and violate Quintilian's advice.

I offer as one example this question. There are two good answers, and each deserves the up-votes it has. But a comment by @Necreaux to one answer is an excellent summation:

While perspicacious is good, it is a word that may not be understand [sic] by many and could sound pretentious. Depending on the audience it might not be a viable option.

My own belief is that the four-word phrasing in the question is far better than any one word could ever be. Should I add this as an answer, with this explanation?

Answer 1

I've always thought a brief, more-than-one-word phrase ought to be an acceptable answer for a single word request, particularly when the suggestion is, say, a phrasal verb, a multiword expression (MWE), or an established phrase, idiom, or maxim.

Besides, what counts as a single word, anyway? Is ice cream a single word? What about hors d'oeuvres? (I'd venture that, deep down, most "single word requests" are probably really asking for a single lexical item. But I digress.)

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I don't think it would be a bad thing to reference another person's answer, but, as you say, it's best to avoid a negative spin when doing do. In other words, instead of saying:

Don't use sesquipedalian – you'll sound like a pompous ass.

try a page from Necreaux's book:

While sesquipedalian is a fine answer, you might want to keep something more readily understood in your hip pocket.

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As for referencing the wording used by an O.P. (e.g., What is a word for someone who is a good judge of character?), I wouldn't leave "Good judge of character" as an answer. Sure, the phrase is familiar and therefore viable and deserving of a comment; however, in the case of a single-word-request, I think an answer should offer some alternative to the O.P.'s original wording.

Answer 2

Sometimes people ask single-word-requests because they expect there's some easy-to-understand, fairly common word that they just don't know yet or have forgotten. Other times they really need a single word. It's super important, for some reason. Sadly, the SWR questions usually don't provide much context or limit the scope of possible answers. Finally, SWR questions are often only tagged as such, and the question doesn't even explicitly state that it's limited to single-word answers.

With that in mind, I'd say you should answer the question with a phrase if a phrase works best. Explain your reasons for discarding other answers if that helps make it clearer.

Answer 3

If a single word exists, but a phrase is better, then say that in your answer.

Include the single word to satisfy the explicit request for one, and then say that even though that word exists, there's a phrase that's better in certain circumstances. It would help to outline those circumstances.