Words are they really the most powerful things?

Have you ever thought about how powerful words are? I have been doing a lot of that lately. I am a fanatical reader! Love it! Nothing better than a good book for me. As I have been doing this reading I have been thinking about the written or spoken word and the power behind those little squiggles that are on the paper or screen.
Think about it, the meaning that is there, or is it their or is it they're? Words, letters joined to convey a thought but it is more than that, isn't it? They don't just convey thoughts, they affect emotions as well!
When reading about a couple on a moonlit beach with the waves lapping at the shore, one could feel love and happiness inside, or a couple on a moonlit beach with the waves hammering on the rocks below as the wind howls and whips their coats around their legs as they stumble along the cliffs and you get a sense of fear and foreboding. See, words create the feeling.
But what about the spoken word? How does the spoken word affect us? Is it the word that evokes feeling or is the emotion or intent with which the word is delivered? How many times have you said, completely innocently of course, something that someone else interprets as hurtful? How many times have you said things that you felt were valid and someone else feels that they were said with malice? How many times has someone said something to you and you are left wondering what they meant by that comment and find that you get angry, or hurt, or annoyed, because of the way in which it was said.
Yes, words are very powerful. They can cause happiness, laughter, sadness, tears, anger, love, compassion, rage, and a whole lot more. When you think it through, you can see that the words themselves don't contain the power, it is the intent behind them and that is a whole other kettle of fish!