Common Errors in English - Part 1

A/AN

If the word following begins with a vowel sound, the word you want is "an": "Have an apple, Adam." If the word following begins with a consonant, but begins with a vowel sound, you still need "an": "An X­ray will show whether there's a worm in it." It is nonstandard and often considered sloppy speech to utter an "uh" sound in such cases.

When the following word definitely begins with a consonant sound, you need "a": "A snake told me apples enhance mental abilities."

See also "an historic."

A.D.

 

"A.D." does not mean "after death," as many people suppose. "B.C." stands for the English phrase "before Christ," but "A.D." stands confusingly for a Latin phrase: anno domini ("in the year of the Lord"­­the year Jesus was born). If the calendar actually changed with Jesus' death, then what would we do with the years during which he lived? Since Jesus was probably actually born around 6 B.C. or so, the connection of the calendar with him can be misleading.

Many Biblical scholars and historians, and archeologists prefer the less sectarian designations "before the Common Era" (B.C.E.) and "the Common Era" (C.E.).

All of these abbreviations can also be spelled without their periods.

AM/PM

"AM" stands for the Latin phrase "Ante Meridiem"­­which means "before noon"­­and "PM" stands for "Post Meridiem": "after noon." Although digital clocks routinely label noon "12:00 PM" you should avoid this expression not only because it is incorrect, but because many people will imagine you are talking about midnight instead. The same goes for "12:00 AM." Just say or write "noon" or "midnight" when you mean those precise times.

It is now rare to see periods placed after these abbreviations: "A.M.", but in formal writing it is still preferable to capitalize them, though the lower­case "am" and "pm" are now so popular they are not likely to get you into trouble.

Occasionally computer programs encourage you to write "AM" and "PM" without a space before them, but others will misread your data if you omit the space. The nonstandard pattern of omitting the space is spreading rapidly, and should be avoided in formal writing.

ABJECT

"Abject" is always negative, meaning "lowly" or "hopeless." You can't experience "abject joy" unless you're being deliberately paradoxical.

ABLE TO

People are able to do things, but things are not able to be done: you should not say, "the budget shortfall was able to be solved by selling brownies."

ABOUT

"This isn't about you." What a great rebuke! But conservatives sniff at this sort of abstract use of "about," as in "I'm all about good taste" or "successful truffle­making is about temperature control"; so it's better to avoid it in very formal English.

 

ABSORBTION/ABSORPTION

Although it's "absorbed" and "absorbing" the correct spelling of the noun is "absorption."

But note that scientists distinguish between "absorption" as the process of swallowing up or sucking in something and "adsorption" as the process by which something adheres to the surface of something else without being assimilated into it. Even technical writers often confuse these two.

ABSTRUSE/OBTUSE

Most people first encounter "obtuse" in geometry class, where it labels an angle of more than 90 degrees. Imagine what sort of blunt arrowhead that kind of angle would make and you will understand why it also has a figurative meaning of "dull, stupid." But people often mix the word up with "abstruse," which means "difficult to understand."

When you mean to criticize something for being needlessly complex or baffling, the word you need is not "obtuse," but "abstruse."

ACADEMIA

Although some academics are undoubtedly nuts, the usual English­language pronunciation of "academia" does not rhyme with "macadamia." The third syllable is pronounced "deem." Just say "academe" and add "ee­yuh."

However, there's an interesting possibility if you go with "ack­uh­DAME­ee­yuh: although some people will sneer at your lack of sophistication, others will assume you're using the Latin pronunciation and being learned.

ACCEDE/EXCEED

If you drive too fast, you exceed the speed limit. "Accede" is a much rarer word meaning "give in," "agree."

ACCENT MARKS

In what follows, "accent mark" will be used in a loose sense to include all diacritical marks that guide pronunciation. Operating systems and programs differ in how they produce accent marks, but it's worth learning how yours works. Writing them in by hand afterwards looks amateurish.

Words adopted from foreign languages sometimes carry their accent marks with them, as in "fiance" "protege," and "cliche." As words become more at home in English, they tend to shed the marks: "Cafe" is often spelled "cafe." Unfortunately, "resume" seems to be losing its marks one at a time (see under "vita/vitae").

Many computer users have not learned their systems well enough to understand how to produce the desired accent and often insert an

 

apostrophe (curled) or foot mark (straight) after the accented letter instead: "cafe'." This is both ugly and incorrect. The same error is commonly seen on storefront signs.

So far we've used examples containing acute (right­leaning) accent marks. French and Italian (but not Spanish) words often contain grave (left­leaning) accents; in Italian it's a caffe. It is important not to substitute one kind of accent for the other.

The diaeresis over a letter signifies that it is to be pronounced as a separate syllable: "noel" and "naive" are sometimes spelled with a diaeresis, for instance. The umlaut, which looks identical, modifies the sound of a vowel, as in German Fraulein (girl), where the accent mark changes the "frow" sound of Frau (woman) to "froy." Rock groups like "Blue Oyster Cult" scattered umlauts about nonsensically to create an exotic look.

Spanish words not completely assimilated into English like pinata and nino retain the tilde, which tells you that an "N" is to be pronounced with a "Y" sound after it. In English­language publications accent marks are often discarded, but the acute and grave accents are the ones most often retained.

[Note: the accent marks in this entry may not display properly on all operating systems. Consult the page on accent marks to see them properly.]

ACCEPT/EXCEPT

If you offer me Godiva chocolates I will gladly accept them­­except for the candied violet ones. Just remember that the "X" in "except" excludes things­­they tend to stand out, be different. In contrast, just look at those two cozy "Cs" snuggling up together. Very accepting. And be careful; when typing "except" it often comes out "expect."

ACCESS/GET ACCESS TO

"Access" is one of many nouns that's been turned into a verb in recent years. Conservatives object to phrases like "you can access your account online." Substitute "use," "reach," or "get access to" if you want to please them.

ACCESSORY

There's an "ack" sound at the beginning of this word, though some mispronounce it as if the two "C's" were to be sounded the same as the two "SS's."

ACCIDENTLY/ACCIDENTALLY

You can remember this one by remembering how to spell "accidental." There are quite a few words with ­ally suffixes (like "incidentally") which are not to be confused with words that have "­ly" suffixes (like "independently"). "Incidental" is a word, but "independental" is not.

 

ACCURATE/PRECISE

In ordinary usage, "accurate" and "precise" are often used as rough synonyms, but scientists like to distinguish between them. Someone could say that a snake is over a meter long and be accurate (the snake really does exceed one meter in length), but that is not a precise measurement. To be precise, the measurement would have to be more exact: the snake is 1.23 meters long. The same distinction applies in scientific contexts to the related words "accuracy" and "precision."

ACRONYMS AND APOSTROPHES

One unusual modern use of the apostrophe is in plural acronyms, like "ICBM's" "NGO's" and "CD's". Since this pattern violates the rule that apostrophes are not used before an S indicating a plural, many people object to it. It is also perfectly legitimate to write "CDs," etc. See also "50's." But the use of apostrophes with initialisms like "learn your ABC's and "mind your P's and Q's" is now so universal as to be acceptable in almost any context.

Note that "acronym" was used originally only to label pronounceable abbreviations like "NATO," but is now generally applied to all sorts of initialisms. Be aware that some people consider this extended definition of "acronym" to be an error.

ACROSSED/ACROSS

The chicken may have crossed the road, but did so by walking across it.

ACTIONABLE/DOABLE

"Actionable" is a technical term referring to something that provides grounds for a legal action or lawsuit. People in the business world have begun using it as a fancy synonym for "doable" or "feasible." This is both pretentious and confusing.

ACTUAL FACT/ACTUALLY

"In actual fact" is an unnecessarily complicated way of saying "actually."

AD NAUSEUM/AD NAUSEAM

Seeing how often "ad nauseam" is misspelled makes some people want to throw up.

ADD/AD

"Advertisement" is abbreviated "ad," not "add."

ADAPT/ADOPT

You can adopt a child or a custom or a law; in all of these cases you

 

are making the object of the adoption your own, accepting it. If you adapt something, however, you are changing it.

ADDICTING/ADDICTIVE

Do you find beer nuts "addicting" or "addictive"? "Addicting" is a perfectly legitimate word, but much less common than "addictive," and some people will scowl at you if you use it.

ADMINISTER/MINISTER

You can minister to someone by administering first aid. Note how the "ad" in "administer resembles "aid" in order to remember the correct form of the latter phrase. "Minister" as a verb always requires "to" following it.

ADMINISTRATE/ADMINISTER

Although it is very popular with administrators and others, many people scorn "administrate" as an unnecessary substitute for the more common verb form "administer."

ADULTRY/ADULTERY

"Adultery" is often misspelled "adultry," as if it were something every adult should try. This spelling error is likely to get you snickered at. The term does not refer to all sorts of illicit sex: at least one of the partners involved has to be married for the relationship to be adulterous.

ADVANCE/ADVANCED

When you hear about something in advance, earlier than other people, you get advance notice or information. "Advanced" means "complex, sophisticated" and doesn't necessarily have anything to do with the revealing of secrets.

ADVERSE/AVERSE

The word "adverse" turns up most frequently in the phrase "adverse circumstances," meaning difficult circumstances, circumstances which act as an adversary; but people often confuse this word with "averse," a much rarer word, meaning having a strong feeling against, or aversion toward.

ADVICE/ADVISE

"Advice" is the noun, "advise" the verb. When Ann Landers advises people, she gives them advice.

ADVISER/ADVISOR

"Adviser" and "advisor" are equally fine spellings. There is no distinction between them.

 

ADVOCATE FOR/ADVOCATE

When they are acting as advocates for a cause, people often say they are "advocating for"­­say­­traffic safety. This is not as widely accepted as "campaigning for" or "working toward." Saying you are "advocating for the blind" leaves a lot of listeners wondering what it is you advocate for them. If you can substitute "advocate" for "advocate for," you should do so: "I advocate for higher pay for teachers" becomes "I advocate higher pay for teachers."

AESTHETIC/ASCETIC

People often encounter these two words first in college, and may confuse one with the other although they have almost opposite connotations. "Aesthetic" (also spelled "esthetic") has to do with beauty, whereas "ascetic" has to do with avoiding pleasure, including presumably the pleasure of looking at beautiful things.

St. Francis had an ascetic attitude toward life, whereas Oscar Wilde had an esthetic attitude toward life.

AFFECT/EFFECT

There are five distinct words here. When "affect" is accented on the final syllable (a­FECT), it is usually a verb meaning "have an influence on": "The million­dollar donation from the industrialist did not affect my vote against the Clean Air Act."

Occasionally a pretentious person is said to affect an artificial air of sophistication. Speaking with a borrowed French accent or ostentatiously wearing a large diamond ear stud might be an affectation. In this sort of context, "affect" means "to make a display of or deliberately cultivate."

Another unusual meaning is indicated when the word is accented on the first syllable (AFF­ect), meaning "emotion." In this case the word is used mostly by psychiatrists and social scientists­­ people who normally know how to spell it.

The real problem arises when people confuse the first spelling with the second: "effect." This too can be two different words. The more common one is a noun: "When I left the stove on, the effect was that the house filled with smoke." When you affect a situation, you have an effect on it.

The less common is a verb meaning "to create": "I'm trying to effect a change in the way we purchase widgets." No wonder people are confused. Note especially that the proper expression is not "take affect" but "take effect"­­become effective. Hey, nobody ever said English was logical: just memorize it and get on with your life.

The stuff in your purse? Your personal effects.

 

AFFLUENCE/EFFLUENCE

Wealth brings affluence; sewage is effluence.

AFRICAN AMERICAN

AFRICAN AMERICAN

There have been several polite terms used in the US to refer to persons of African descent: "colored," "negro," "Black," "Afro­American," and "African American." "Colored" is definitely dated, though "people of color" is now widely used with a broader meaning, including anyone with non­European ancestry, sometimes even when their skin is not discernibly darker than that of a typical European. A few contemporary writers like to defy convention by referring to themselves as "negro." "Black," formerly a proudly assertive label claimed by young radicals in the 1960s, is now seen by some people as a racist insult. Some people insist on capitalizing "Black," but others prefer "black." The safest and most common neutral term is "African American," but Americans sometimes misuse it to label people of African descent living in other countries or even actual Africans. To qualify as an "African American" you have to be an American.

Although it is traditional to hyphenate "African­American," "Irish­American," "Cuban­American," etc., there is a recent trend toward omitting the hyphen, possibly in reaction to the belittling phrase "hyphenated Americans." However, some styles still call for the hyphen when the phrase is used adjectivally, so that you might be an African American who enjoys African­American writers. Omitting the hyphen may puzzle some readers, but it's not likely to offend anyone.

AFTERALL/AFTER ALL

"After all" is always two words.

AFTERWARDS/AFTERWORDS

Like "towards," "forwards," and "homewards," "afterwards" ends with ­wards.

"Afterwords," are sometimes the explanatory essays at the ends of books, or speeches uttered at the end of plays or other works. They are made up of words.

AGNOSTIC/ATHEIST

Both agnostics and atheists are regularly criticized as illogical by people who don't understand the meaning of these terms. An agnostic is a person who believes that the existence of a god or gods cannot be proven or known. Agnosticism is a statement about the limits of human knowledge. It is an error to suppose that agnostics perpetually hesitate between faith and doubt: they are confident they cannot know the ultimate truth. Similarly, atheists believe there are no gods. Atheists need not be able to disprove the existence of gods to be consistent just

 

as believers do not need to be able to prove that gods do exist in order to be regarded as religious. Both attitudes have to do with beliefs, not knowledge.

"Agnostic" is often used metaphorically of any refusal to make a judgment, usually on the basis of a lack of evidence; people can be agnostic about acupuncture, for instance, if they believe there is not enough evidence one way or another to decide its effectiveness.

AGREEANCE/AGREEMENT

When you agree with someone you are in agreement.

AHOLD/HOLD

In standard English you just "get hold" of something or somebody.

AIN'T

"Ain't" has a long and vital history as a substitute for "isn't," "aren't" and so on. It was originally formed from a contraction of "am not" and is still commonly used in that sense. Even though it has been universally condemned as the classic "mistake" in English, everyone uses it occasionally as part of a joking phrase or to convey a down­to­earth quality. But if you always use it instead of the more "proper" contractions you're sure to be branded as uneducated.

AISLE/ISLE

An aisle is a narrow passageway, especially in a church or store; an isle is an island. Propose to the person you're stranded on a desert isle with and maybe you'll march down the aisle together after you're rescued.

ALL BE IT/ALBEIT

"Albeit" is a single word meaning "although": "Rani's recipe called for a tablespoon of saffron, which made it very tasty, albeit rather expensive." It should not be broken up into three separate words as "all be it," just as "although" is not broken up into "all though."

ALL

Put this word where it belongs in the sentence. In negative statements, don't write "All the pictures didn't show her dimples" when you mean "The pictures didn't all show her dimples."

ALL AND ALL/ALL IN ALL

"The dog got into the fried chicken, we forgot the sunscreen, and the kids started whining at the end, but all in all the picnic was a success." "All in all" is a traditional phrase which can mean "all things considered," "after all," or "nevertheless." People unfamiliar with the traditional wording often change it to "all and all," but this is nonstandard.

ALL FOR NOT/ALL FOR NAUGHT

"Naught" means "nothing," and the phrase "all for naught" means "all for nothing." This is often misspelled "all for not" and occasionally "all for knot."

ALL GOES WELL/AUGURS WELL

Some folks who don't understand the word "augur" (to foretell based on omens) try to make sense of the common phrase "augurs well" by mangling it into "all goes well." "Augurs well" is synonymous with "bodes well."

ALL OF THE SUDDEN/ALL OF A SUDDEN

An unexpected event happens not "all of the sudden" but "all of a sudden."

ALL READY/ALREADY

"All ready" is a phrase meaning "completely prepared," as in "As soon as I put my coat on, I'll be all ready." "Already," however, is an adverb used to describe something that has happened before a certain time, as in "What do you mean you'd rather stay home? I've already got my coat on."

ALLEGED, ALLEGEDLY

Seeking to avoid prejudging the facts in a crime and protect the rights of the accused, reporters sometimes over­use "alleged" and "allegedly." If it is clear that someone has been robbed at gunpoint, it's not necessary to describe it as an alleged robbery nor the victim as an alleged victim. This practice insultingly casts doubt on the honesty of the victim and protects no one. An accused perpetrator is one whose guilt is not yet established, so it is redundant to speak of an "alleged accused." If the perpetrator has not yet been identified, it's pointless to speak of the search for an "alleged perpetrator."

ALLITERATE/ILLITERATE

Pairs of words which begin with the same sound are said to alliterate, like "wild and wooly." Those who can't read are illiterate.

ALLS/ALL

"Alls I know is . . ." may result from anticipating the "S" in "is," but the standard expression is "All I know is. . . ."

ALLUDE/ELUDE

You can allude (refer) to your daughter's membership in the honor society when boasting about her, but a criminal tries to elude (escape)

 

captivity. There is no such word as "illude."

ALLUDE/REFER

To allude to something is to refer to it indirectly, by suggestion. If you are being direct and unambiguous, you refer to the subject rather than alluding to it.

ALLUSION/ILLUSION

An allusion is a reference, something you allude to: "Her allusion to flowers reminded me that Valentine's Day was coming." In that English paper, don't write "literary illusions" when you mean "allusions." A mirage, hallucination, or a magic trick is an illusion. (Doesn't being fooled just make you ill?)

ALLUSIVE/ELUSIVE/ILLUSIVE

When a lawyer alludes to his client's poor mother, he is being allusive. When the mole keeps eluding the traps you've set in the garden, it's being elusive. We also speak of matters that are difficult to understand, identify, or remember as elusive. Illusions can be illusive, but we more often refer to them as illusory.

ALMOST

Like "only," "almost" must come immediately before the word or phrase it modifies: "She almost gave a million dollars to the museum" means something quite different from "She gave almost a million dollars to the museum." Right? So you shouldn't write, "There was almost a riotous reaction when the will was read" when what you mean is "There was an almost riotous reaction."

ALONG THE SAME VEIN/IN THE SAME VEIN, ALONG THE SAME LINE

The expressions "in the same vein" and "along the same line" mean the same thing (on the same subject), but those who cross­pollinate them to create the hybrid "along the same vein" sound a little odd to those who are used to the standard expressions.

ALOT/A LOT

Perhaps this common spelling error began because there does exist in English a word spelled "allot" which is a verb meaning to apportion or grant. The correct form, with "a" and "lot" separated by a space is perhaps not often encountered in print because formal writers usually use other expressions such as "a great deal," "often," etc.

You shouldn't write "alittle" either. It's "a little."

ALOUD/ALLOWED

If you think Grandma allowed the kids to eat too much ice cream, you'd

 

better not say so aloud, or her feelings will be hurt. "Aloud" means "out loud" and refers to sounds (most often speech) that can be heard by others. But this word is often misused when people mean "allowed," meaning "permitted."

ALRIGHT/ALL RIGHT

The correct form of this phrase has become so rare in the popular press that many readers have probably never noticed that it is actually two words. But if you want to avoid irritating traditionalists you'd better tell them that you feel "all right" rather than "alright."

ALTAR/ALTER

An altar is that platform at the front of a church or in a temple; to alter something is to change it.

ALTERIOR/ULTERIOR

When you have a concealed reason for doing something, it's an ulterior motive.

ALTERNATE/ALTERNATIVE

Although UK authorities disapprove, in US usage, "alternate" is frequently an adjective, substituted for the older "alternative": "an alternate route." "Alternate" can also be a noun; a substitute delegate is, for instance, called an "alternate." But when you're speaking of "every other" as in "our club meets on alternate Tuesdays," you can't substitute "alternative."

ALTOGETHER/ALL TOGETHER

"Altogether" is an adverb meaning "completely," "entirely." For example: "When he first saw the examination questions, he was altogether baffled." "All together," in contrast, is a phrase meaning "in a group." For example: "The wedding guests were gathered all together in the garden." Undressed people are said in informal speech to be "in the altogether" (perhaps a shortening of the phrase "altogether naked").

ALUMNUS/ALUMNI

We used to have "alumnus" (male singular), "alumni" (male plural), "alumna" (female singular) and "alumnae" (female plural); but the latter two are now popular only among older female graduates, with the first two terms becoming unisex. However, it is still important to distinguish between one alumnus and a stadium full of alumni. Never say, "I am an alumni" if you don't want to cast discredit on your school. Many avoid the whole problem by resorting to the informal abbreviation "alum."

AMATURE/AMATEUR

Most of the words we've borrowed from the French that have retained their "­eur" endings are pretty sophisticated, like "restaurateur"

 

(notice, no "N") and "auteur" (in film criticism), but "amateur"

attracts amateurish spelling.

AMBIGUOUS/AMBIVALENT

Even though the prefix "ambi­" means "both," "ambiguous" has come to mean "unclear," "undefined," while "ambivalent" means "torn between two opposing feelings or views." If your attitude cannot be defined into two polarized alternatives, then you're ambiguous, not ambivalent.

AMBIVALENT/INDIFFERENT

If you feel pulled in two directions about some issue, you're ambivalent about it; but if you have no particular feelings about it, you're indifferent.

AMERICAN

Some Canadians and many Latin Americans are understandably irritated when US citizens refer to themselves simply as "Americans." Canadians (and only Canadians) use the term "North American" to include themselves in a two­member group with their neighbor to the south, though geographers usually include Mexico in North America. When addressing an international audience composed largely of people from the Americas, it is wise to consider their sensitivities.

However, it is pointless to try to ban this usage in all contexts. Outside of the Americas, "American" is universally understood to refer to things relating to the US. There is no good substitute. Brazilians, Argentineans, and Canadians all have unique terms to refer to themselves. None of them refer routinely to themselves as "Americans" outside of contexts like the "Organization of American States." Frank Lloyd Wright promoted "Usonian," but it never caught on. For better or worse, "American" is standard English for "citizen or resident of the United States of America."

AMONGST/AMONG

Although in America "amongst" has not dated nearly as badly as "whilst," it is still less common in standard speech than "among." The ­st forms are still widely used in the UK.

AMORAL/IMMORAL

"Amoral" is a rather technical word meaning "unrelated to morality."

When you mean to denounce someone's behavior, call it "immoral."

AMOUNT/NUMBER

This is a vast subject. I will try to limit the number of words I expend on it so as not to use up too great an amount of space. The confusion between the two categories of words relating to amount and number is so pervasive that those of us who still distinguish between them constitute an endangered species; but if you want to avoid our ire, learn the

 

difference. Amount words relate to quantities of things that are measured in bulk; number words to things that can be counted.

In the second sentence above, it would have been improper to write "the amount of words" because words are discrete entities which can be counted, or numbered.

Here is a handy chart to distinguish the two categories of words:

amount vs. number quantity vs. number little vs. few less vs. fewer much vs. many

You can eat fewer cookies, but you drink less milk. If you eat too many cookies, people will probably think you've had too much dessert. If the thing being measured is being considered in countable units, then use number words. Even a substance which is considered in bulk can also be measured by number of units. For instance, you shouldn't drink too much wine, but you should also avoid drinking too many glasses of wine. Note that here you are counting glasses. They can be numbered.

The most common mistake of this kind is to refer to an "amount" of people instead of a "number" of people.

Just to confuse things, "more" can be used either way: you can eat more cookies and drink more milk.

Exceptions to the less/fewer pattern are references to units of time and money, which are usually treated as amounts: less than an hour, less than five dollars. Only when you are referring to specific coins or bills would you use fewer: "I have fewer than five state quarters to go to make my collection complete."

AMPITHEATER/AMPHITHEATER

The classy way to pronounce the first syllable of this word is "amf­," but if you choose the more popular "amp­" remember that you still have to include the H after the P when spelling it. UK­standard writers spell it "amphitheatre," of course.

AN HISTORIC/A HISTORIC

You should use "an" before a word beginning with an "H" only if the "H" is not pronounced: "An honest effort"; it's properly "a historic event" though many sophisticated speakers somehow prefer the sound of "an historic," so that version is not likely to get you into any real trouble.

ANCESTOR/DESCENDANT

When Albus Dumbledore said that Lord Voldemort was "the last remaining ancestor of Salazar Slytherin," more than one person noted that he had made a serious verbal bumble; and in later printings of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets author J. K. Rowling corrected that to "last remaining descendant." People surprisingly often confuse these two terms

 

with each other. Your great­grandmother is your ancestor; you are her descendant.

ANECDOTE/ANTIDOTE

A humorist relates "anecdotes." The doctor prescribes "antidotes" for children who have swallowed poison. Laughter may be the best medicine, but that's no reason to confuse these two with each other.

AND ALSO/AND, ALSO

"And also" is redundant; say just "and" or "also."

AND/OR

The legal phrase "and/or," indicating that you can either choose between two alternatives or choose both of them, has proved irresistible in other contexts and is now widely acceptable though it irritates some readers as jargon. However, you can logically use it only when you are discussing choices which may or may not both be done: "Bring chips and/or beer." It's very much overused where simple "or" would do, and it would be wrong to say, "you can get to the campus for this morning's meeting on a bike and/or in a car." Choosing one eliminates the possibility of the other, so this isn't an and/or situation.

ANGEL/ANGLE

People who want to write about winged beings from Heaven often miscall them "angles." A triangle has three angles. The Heavenly Host is made of angels. Just remember the adjectival form: "angelic." If you pronounce it aloud you'll be reminded that the E comes before the L.

ANOTHER WORDS/IN OTHER WORDS

When you reword a statement, you can preface it by saying "in other words." The phrase is not "another words."

ANTIHERO

In literature, theater, and film, an antihero is a central character who is not very admirable: weak, lazy, incompetent, or mean­spirited. However, antiheroes are rarely actually evil, and you should not use this word as a synonym for "villain" if you want to get a good grade on your English lit paper.

ANXIOUS/EAGER

Most people use "anxious" interchangeably with "eager," but its original meaning had to do with worrying, being full of anxiety. Perfectly correct phrases like, "anxious to please" obscure the nervous tension implicit in this word and lead people to say less correct things like "I'm anxious for Christmas morning to come so I can open my presents." Traditionalists frown on anxiety­free anxiousness. Say instead you are eager for or looking forward to a happy event.

 

ANY

Instead of saying "he was the worst of any of the dancers," say "he was the worst of the dancers."

ANY WHERE/ANYWHERE

"Anywhere," like "somewhere" and "nowhere," is always one word.

ANYMORE/ANY MORE

In the first place, the traditional (though now uncommon) spelling is as two words: "any more" as in "We do not sell bananas any more." In the second place, it should not be used at the beginning of a sentence as a synonym for "nowadays." In certain dialects of English it is common to utter phrases like "anymore you have to grow your own if you want really ripe tomatoes," but this is guaranteed to jolt listeners who aren't used to it. Even if they can't quite figure out what's wrong, they'll feel that your speech is vaguely clunky and awkward. "Any more" always needs to be used as part of an expression of negation except in questions like "Do you have any more bananas?" Now you won't make that mistake any more, will you?

ANYTIME/ANY TIME

Though it is often compressed into a single word by analogy with "anywhere" and similar words, "any time" is traditionally a two­word phrase.

ANYWAYS/ANYWAY

"Anyways" at the beginning of a sentence usually indicates that the speaker has resumed a narrative thread: "Anyways, I told Matilda that guy was a lazy bum before she ever married him." It also occurs at the end of phrases and sentences, meaning "in any case": "He wasn't all that good­looking anyways." A slightly less rustic quality can be imparted to these sentences by substituting the more formal "anyway." Neither expression is a good idea in formal written English. The two­word phrase "any way" has many legitimate uses, however: "Is there any way to prevent the impending disaster?"

APART/A PART

Paradoxically, the one­word form implies separation while the two­word form implies union. Feuding roommates decide to live apart. Their time together may be a part of their life they will remember with some bitterness.

APIECE/A PIECE

When you mean "each" the expression is "apiece": these pizzas are really cheap­­only ten dollars apiece." But when "piece" actually refers to a piece of something, the required two­word expression is "a piece ":

 

"This pizza is really expensive­­they sell it by the slice for ten dollars a piece."

Despite misspellings in popular music, the expression is not "down the road apiece"; it's "down the road a piece."

APPAULED/APPALLED

Those of us named Paul are appalled at the misspelling of this word. No U, two L's please. And it's certainly not "uphauled"!

APOSTROPHES

First let's all join in a hearty curse of the grammarians who inserted the wretched apostrophe into possessives in the first place. It was all a mistake. Our ancestors used to write "Johns hat" meaning "the hat of John" without the slightest ambiguity. However, some time in the Renaissance certain scholars decided that the simple "s" of possession must have been formed out of a contraction of the more "proper" "John his hat." Since in English we mark contractions with an apostrophe, they did so, and we were stuck with the stupid "John's hat." Their error can be a handy reminder though: if you're not sure whether a noun ending in "s" should be followed by an apostrophe, ask yourself whether you could plausibly substitute "his" or "her" for the S.

The exception to this pattern involves personal pronouns indicating possession like "his," "hers," and "its." For more on this point, see "its/it's."

Get this straight once and for all: when the S is added to a word simply to make it a plural, no apostrophe is used (except in expressions where letters or numerals are treated like words, like "mind your P's and Q's" and "learn your ABC's").

Apostrophes are also used to indicate omitted letters in real contractions: "do not" becomes "don't."

Why can't we all agree to do away with the wretched apostrophe? Because its two uses­­contraction and possession­­have people so thoroughly confused that they are always putting in apostrophes where they don't belong, in simple plurals ("cucumber's for sale") and family names when they are referred to collectively ("the Smith's" ).

The practice of putting improper apostrophes in family names on signs in front yards is an endless source of confusion. "The Brown's" is just plain wrong. (If you wanted to suggest "the residence of the Browns" you would have to write "Browns'," with the apostrophe after the S, which is there to indicate a plural number, not as an indication of possession.) If you simply want to indicate that a family named Brown lives here, the sign out front should read simply "The Browns." When a name ends in an S you need to add an ES to make it plural: "the Adamses."

No apostrophes for simple plural names or names ending in S OK? I get irritated when people address me as "Mr. Brian's." What about when

 

plural names are used to indicate possession? "The Browns' cat" is standard (the second S is "understood"), though some prefer "the Browns's cat." The pattern is the same with names ending in S: "the Adamses' cat" or­­theoretically­­"the Adamses's cat," though that would be mighty awkward.

Apostrophes are also misplaced in common plural nouns on signs: "Restrooms are for customer's use only." Who is this privileged customer to deserve a private bathroom? The sign should read "for customers' use."

For ordinary nouns, the pattern for adding an apostrophe to express possession is straightforward. For singular nouns, add an apostrophe plus an S: "the duck's bill." If the singular noun happens to end in one S or even two, you still just add an apostrophe and an S: "the boss's desk."

For plural nouns which end in S, however, add only the apostrophe: "the ducks' bills." But if a plural noun does not end in S, then you follow the same pattern as for singular nouns by adding an apostrophe and an S: "the children's menu."

It is not uncommon to see the "S" wrongly apostrophized even in verbs, as in the mistaken "He complain's a lot."

See also "acronyms and apostrophes."

APPRAISE/APPRISE

When you estimate the value of something, you appraise it. When you inform people of a situation, you apprise them of it.

APROPOS/APPROPRIATE

"Apropos," (anglicized from the French phrase "a propos") means relevant, connected with what has gone before; it should not be used as an all­purpose substitute for "appropriate." It would be inappropriate, for example, to say "Your tuxedo was perfectly apropos for the opera gala." Even though it's not pronounced, be careful not to omit the final "S" in spelling "apropos."

AROUND/ABOUT

Lots of people think it's just nifty to say things like "We're having ongoing discussions around the proposed merger." This strikes some of us as irritating and pointless jargon. We feel it should be "discussions about" rather than "around."

ARTHURITIS/ARTHRITIS

If there were such a word as "arthuritis" it might mean the overwhelming desire to pull swords out of stones; but that ache in your joints is caused by "arthritis."

 

ARTIC/ARCTIC

Although some brand names have incorporated this popular error, remember that the Arctic Circle is an arc. By the way, Ralph Vaughan Williams called his suite drawn from the score of the film "Scott of the Antarctic," the "Sinfonia Antartica," but that's Italian, not English.

ARTISANAL/ARTESIAN

For the past half­century foodies have referred to foods and drinks made in small batches by hand using traditional methods as artisanal­­made by artisans: workers in handicrafts. It has also been extended to a wide variety of other handmade products. Dictionaries agree that the word should be pronounced "ARR­tizz­uh­nul" with the accent on the first syllable and the second syllable rhyming with "fizz." Just say "artisan" and add "­ul."

Diners and restaurant workers alike commonly confuse the pronunciation of its first three syllables with that of "artesian"­­"arr­TEE­zhun"­­which is an adjective to describe water which spurts out of the earth under natural pressure. In this word the accent falls on the second syllable, pronounced like "tea." A spring such as this is called on "artesian spring" or "artesian well."

If you hand­bottle water from a natural spring in your back yard I suppose you could label the result artisanal artesian water.

AS BEST AS/AS BEST

You can try to be as good as you can be, but it's not standard to say that you do something "as best as you can." You need to eliminate the second "as" when "good" changes to "best." You can try to do something as best you can. You can also do the best that you can (or even better, the best you can).

Unlike asbestos removal, "as best as" removal is easy, and you don't have to wear a hazmat suit.

AS FAR AS

Originally people used to say things like "As far as music is concerned, I especially love Baroque opera." Recently they have begun to drop the "is concerned" part of the phrase. Perhaps this shift was influenced by confusion with a similar phrase, "as for." "As for money, I don't have any," is fine; "As far as money, I don't have any," is clumsy.

AS FOLLOW/AS FOLLOWS

"My birthday requests are as follows." This standard phrase doesn't change number when the items to follow grow from one to many. It's never correct to say "as follow."

AS OF YET/YET

 

"As of yet" is a windy and pretentious substitute for plain old English "yet" or "as yet," an unjustified extension of the pattern in sentences like "as of Friday the 27th of May."

AS PER/IN ACCORDANCE WITH

"Enclosed is the shipment of #2 toggle bolts as per your order of June 14" writes the businessman, unaware that not only is the "as" redundant, he is sounding very old­fashioned and pretentious. The meaning is "in accordance with," or "in response to the request made;" but it is better to avoid these cumbersome substitutes altogether: "Enclosed is the shipment of bolts you ordered June 14."

AS SUCH

The expression "as such" has to refer to some status mentioned earlier. "The CEO was a former drill sergeant, and as such expected everyone to obey his orders instantly." In this case "such" refers back to "former drill sergeant." But often people only imply that which is referred to, as in "The CEO had a high opinion of himself and as such expected everyone to obey his orders instantly." Here the "such" cannot logically refer back to "opinion." Replace "as such" with "therefore."

ASCARED/SCARED

The misspelling "ascared" is probably influenced by the spelling of the synonym "afraid, " but the standard English word is "scared."

ASCRIBE/SUBSCRIBE

If you agree with a theory or belief, you subscribe to it, just as you subscribe to a magazine.

Ascribe is a very different word. If you ascribe a belief to someone, you are attributing the belief to that person, perhaps wrongly.

ASOCIAL/ANTISOCIAL

Someone who doesn't enjoy socializing at parties might be described as either "asocial" or "antisocial"; but "asocial" is too mild a term to describe someone who commits an antisocial act like planting a bomb.

"Asocial" suggests indifference to or separation from society, whereas "anti­social" more often suggests active hostility toward society.

ASPECT/RESPECT

When used to refer to different elements of or perspectives on a thing or idea, these words are closely related, but not interchangeable. It's "in all respects," not "in all aspects." Similarly, one can say "in some respects" but not "in some aspects." One says "in this respect," not "in this aspect. " One looks at all "aspects" of an issue, not at all "respects."

ASSURE/ENSURE/INSURE

 

To "assure" a person of something is to make him or her confident of it. According to Associated Press style, to "ensure" that something happens is to make certain that it does, and to "insure" is to issue an insurance policy. Other authorities, however, consider "ensure" and "insure" interchangeable. To please conservatives, make the distinction. However, it is worth noting that in older usage these spellings were not clearly distinguished.

European "life assurance" companies take the position that all policy­holders are mortal and someone will definitely collect, thus assuring heirs of some income. American companies tend to go with "insurance" for coverage of life as well as of fire, theft, etc.

ASTERICK/ASTERISK

Some people not only spell this word without the second S, they say it that way too. It comes from Greek asteriskos: "little star." Tisk, tisk, remember the "­isk"; "asterick" is icky.

In countries where the Asterix comics are popular, that spelling gets wrongly used for "asterisk" as well.

ASTROLOGY/ASTRONOMY

Modern astronomers consider astrology an outdated superstition. You'll embarrass yourself if you use the term "astrology" to label the scientific study of the cosmos. In writing about history, however, you may have occasion to note that ancient astrologers, whose main goal was to peer into the future, incidentally did some sound astronomy as they studied the positions and movements of celestial objects.

ASWELL/AS WELL

No matter how you use it, the expression "as well" is always two words, despite the fact that many people seem to think it should be spelled "aswell." Examples: "I don't like plastic trees as well as real ones for Christmas." "Now that we've opened our stockings, let's open our other presents as well."

AT ALL

Some of us are irritated when a grocery checker asks "Do you want any help out with that at all?" "At all" is traditionally used in negative contexts: "Can't you give me any help at all?" The current pattern of using the phrase in positive offers of help unintentionally suggests aid reluctantly given or minimal in extent. As a way of making yourself sound less polite than you intend, it ranks right up there with "no problem" instead of "you're welcome."

ATM machine/ATM

"ATM" means "Automated Teller Machine," so if you say "ATM machine" you are really saying "Automated Teller Machine machine."

 

ATHIEST/ATHEIST

An atheist is the opposite of a theist. "Theos" is Greek for "god." Make sure the "TH" is followed immediately by an "E."

ATHLETE

Tired of people stereotyping you as a dummy just because you're a jock? One way to impress them is to pronounce "athlete" properly, with just two syllables, as "ATH­leet" instead of using the common mispronunciation "ATH­uh­leet."

ATTAIN/OBTAIN

"Attain" means "reach" and "obtain" means "get." You attain a mountaintop, but obtain a rare baseball card. "Attain" usually implies a required amount of labor or difficulty; nothing is necessarily implied about the difficulty of obtaining that card. Maybe you just found it in your brother's dresser drawer.

Some things you obtain can also be attained. If you want to emphasize how hard you worked in college, you might say you attained your degree; but if you want emphasize that you have a valid degree that qualifies you for a certain job, you might say you obtained it. If you just bought it from a diploma mill for fifty bucks, you definitely only obtained it.

ATTRIBUTE/CONTRIBUTE

When trying to give credit to someone, say that you attribute your success to their help, not contribute. (Of course, a politician may attribute his success to those who contribute to his campaign fund, but probably only in private.)

AUGUR/AUGER

An augur was an ancient Roman prophet, and as a verb the word means "foretell"­­"their love augurs well for a successful marriage." Don't mix this word up with "auger," a tool for boring holes. Some people mishear the phrase "augurs well" as "all goes well" and mistakenly use that instead.

AURAL/ORAL

"Aural" has to do with things you hear, "oral" with things you say, or relating to your mouth.

AVAIDABLE/AVAILABLE

Many people mispronounce and misspell "available" as "avaidable," whose peculiar spelling seems to be influenced by "avoidable," a word which has opposite connotations.

"Avaidable" is avoidable; avoid it.

 

AVENGE/REVENGE

When you try to get vengeance for people who've been wronged, you want to avenge them. You can also avenge a wrong itself: "He avenged the murder by taking vengeance on the killer." Substituting "revenge" for "avenge" in such contexts is very common, but frowned on by some people. They feel that if you seek revenge in the pursuit of justice you want to avenge wrongs; not revenge them.

AVOCATION/VOCATION

Your avocation is just your hobby; don't mix it up with your job: your vocation.

AWAY/A WAY

"Jessica commented on my haircut in a way that made me think maybe I shouldn't have let my little sister do it for me." In this sort of context, "a way" should always be two distinct words, though many people use the single word "away" instead. If you're uncertain, try substituting another word for "way": "in a manner that," "in a style that." If the result makes sense, you need the two­word phrase. Then you can tell Jessica to just go away.

AWE, SHUCKS/AW, SHUCKS

"Aw, shucks," is a traditional folksy expression of modesty. An "aw­shucks" kind of person declines to accept compliments. "Aw" is an interjection roughly synonymous with "oh." "Awe" is a noun which most often means "amazed admiration." So many people have begun to misspell the familiar phrase "awe, shucks," that some writers think they are being clever when they link it to the current expression "shock and awe." Instead, they reveal their confusion.

AWHILE/A WHILE

When "awhile" is spelled as a single word, it is an adverb meaning "for a time" ("stay awhile"); but when "while" is the object of a prepositional phrase, like "Lend me your monkey wrench for a while" the "while" must be separated from the "a." (But if the preposition "for" were lacking in this sentence, "awhile" could be used in this way: "Lend me your monkey wrench awhile.")

AX/ASK

The dialectical pronunciation of "ask" as "ax" is a sure marker of a substandard education. You should avoid it in formal speaking situations.

AXEL/AXLE

The center of a wheel is its axle. An axel is a tricky jump in figure skating named after Axel Paulsen.

..............

100's/hundreds

It looks cheesy to spell "hundreds" as "100's"; and it isn't really logical because "100" doesn't mean "hundred"­­it means specifically "one hundred."

360 DEGREES/180 DEGREES

When you turn 360 degrees you've completed a circle and are back where you started. So if you want to describe a position that's diametrically opposed to another, the expression you want is not "360 degrees away" but "180 degrees away."

Common Errors in English by Paul Brians