Common Errors in English - Part 5

E.G./I.E.

When you mean "for example," use e.g. It is an abbreviation for the

 

Latin phrase exempli gratia. When you mean "that is," use "i.e." It is an abbreviation for the Latin phrase "id est." Either can be used to clarify a preceding statement, the first by example, the second by restating the idea more clearly or expanding upon it. Because these uses are so similar, the two abbreviations are easily confused. If you just stick with good old English "for example" and "that is" you won't give anyone a chance to sneer at you. If you insist on using the abbreviation, perhaps "example given" will remind you to use "e.g.," while "in effect" suggests "I.E."

Since e.g. indicates a partial list, it is redundant to add "etc." at the end of a list introduced by this abbreviation.

EACH

"Each" as a subject is always singular: think of it as equivalent to "every one." The verb whose subject it is must also be singular. Some uses, like "to keep them from fighting, each dog has been given its own bowl," cause no problem. No one is tempted to say "have been given." But when a prepositional phrase with a plural object intervenes between subject and verb, we are likely to be misled into saying things like "Each of the children have to memorize their own locker combinations." The subject is "each," not "children." The tendency to avoid specifying gender by using "their" adds to pressure toward plurality; but the correct version of this sentence is "Each of the children has to memorize his or her own locker combination." One can avoid the entire problem by pluralizing throughout: "All the children have to memorize their own locker combinations" (but see the entry on singular "they"). In many uses, however, "each" is not the subject, as in "We each have our own favorite flavor of ice cream" which is correct because "we" and not "each" is the subject of the verb "have".

"Each other" cannot be a subject, so the question of verb number does not arise; but the number of the possessive creates a problem for some writers. "They gazed into each other's eyes" is correct and "each others'" is incorrect because "each other" is singular. Reword to "each gazed into the other's eyes" to see the logic behind this rule. "Each other" is always two distinct words separated by a space although it functions grammatically as a sort of compound word.

EARLY ADAPTER/EARLY ADOPTER

An "early adopter," is a person who quickly adopts something new quickly­­usually a technological innovation. If you just have to rush out and buy the latest and coolest gadget, you're an early adopter. If it meant anything, an "early adapter" would be someone who reworked something first for his or her own purposes; but most of the time this version of the phrase is just a mistake.

EARTH, MOON

Soil is lower­case "earth." And in most uses even the planet itself remains humbly in lower­case letters: "peace on earth." But in astronomical contexts, the Earth comes into its own with a proud initial

 

capital, and in science fiction it drops the introductory article and becomes "Earth," just like Mars and Venus. A similar pattern applies to Earth's satellite: "shine on, harvest moon," but "from the Earth to the Moon." Because other planets also have moons, it never loses its article.

EASEDROP/EAVESDROP

The area under the eaves right next to the front of a building used to be called the "eavesdrop," and somebody listening in secretively from such a position came to be called an "eavesdropper." Unfortunately, so few people distinctly pronounce the V in "eavesdrop" that many are misled into misspelling it "easedrop."

ECOLOGY/ENVIRONMENT

"Ecology" is the study of living things in relationship to their environment. The word can also be used to describe the totality of such relationships; but it should not be substituted for "environment" in statements like "improperly discarded lead batteries harm the ecology." it's not the relationships that are being harmed, but nature itself: the batteries are harming the environment.

ECONOMIC/ECONOMICAL

Something is economical if it saves you money; but if you're talking about the effect of some measure on the world's economy, it's an economic effect.

ECSTATIC

Pronounced "eck­sta­tic," not "ess­ta­tic."

ECT./ETC.

"Etc." is an abbreviation for the Latin phrase et cetera, meaning "and the rest." ("Et" means "and" in French too.) Just say "et cetera" out loud to yourself to remind yourself of the correct order of the "T" and "C." Also to be avoided is the common mispronunciation "excetera." "And etc." is a redundancy.

NEEDS ­ED/­ING

In some dialects it is common to say "my shoes need shined" instead of the standard "my shoes need shining" or "my shoes need to be shined."

­ED/­T

You have learnt your lessons only in UK­influenced countries, you've learned them in the US There are several common verbs which often have "T" endings in Britain which seem a little quaint and poetic in American English, where we prefer "­ED." Other examples: "dreamt/dreamed," "dwelt/dwelled," "leant/leaned," "leapt/leaped," and "spelt/spelled." However, the following alternatives are both common in the US:

 

"burned/burnt" and "kneeled/knelt."

EFFORTING/TRYING

Among the new verbs created out of nouns, "efforting" is one of the most bizarre and unnecessary, and has been met with a chorus of objections. You are not "efforting" to get your report in on time; you are trying to do so. Instead of saying "we are efforting a new vendor," say "we are trying to find a new vendor."

EI/IE

The familiar rule is that English words are spelled with the "I" before the "E" unless they follow a "C," as in "receive." But it is important to add that words in which the vowel sound is an "A" like "neighbor" and "weigh" are also spelled with the "E" first. And there are a few exceptions like "counterfeit," "seize, and "weird."

See also "neice/niece."

EITHER

"Either" often gets misplaced in a sentence: "He either wanted to build a gambling casino or a convent" should be "He wanted to build either a gambling casino or a convent." Put "either" just before the first of the two things being compared.

EITHER ARE/EITHER IS

As a subject, "either" is singular. It's the opposite of "both," and refers to one at a time: "Either ketchup or mustard is good on a hot dog." But if "either" is modifying a subject in an "either . . . or" phrase, then the number of the verb is determined by the number of the second noun: "Either the puppy or the twins seem to need my attention every other minute."

ELAPSE/LAPSE

Both these words come from a Latin root meaning "to slip." "Elapse" almost always refers to the passage of time. "Lapse" usually refers to a change of state, as in lapsing from consciousness into unconsciousness. Here are examples of the correct uses of these words you might get in the mail: "Six months have elapsed since your last dental appointment" and "You have allowed your subscription to Bride Magazine to lapse." Occasionally "lapse" can be used as a synonym of "elapse" in the sense "to slip away." Substituting one for the other is dangerous, however, if you are a lawyer. Insurance policies and collective bargaining agreements do not elapse when they expire, they lapse.

ELECTROCUTE/SHOCK

To electrocute is to kill using electricity. If you live to tell the tale, you've been shocked, but not electrocuted. For the same reason, the phrase "electrocuted to death" is a redundancy.

 

ELICIT/ILLICIT

The lawyer tries to elicit a description of the attacker from the witness. "Elicit" is always a verb. "Illicit," in contrast, is always an adjective describing something illegal or naughty.

ELLIPSES

Those dots that come in the middle of a quotation to indicate something omitted are called an "ellipsis" (plural "ellipses"): "Tex told Sam to get the . . . cow out of the bunk house." Here Tex's language has been censored, but you are more likely to have a use for ellipses when quoting some source in a paper: "Ishmael remarks at the beginning of "Moby Dick," 'some years ago . . . I thought I would sail about a little' ­­a very understated way to begin a novel of high adventure." The three dots stand for a considerable stretch of prose that has been omitted. If the ellipsis ends your sentence, some editorial styles require four dots, the first of which is a period: From the same paragraph in Moby Dick: "almost all men . . . cherish very nearly the same feelings. . . ." Note that the period in the second ellipsis has to be snug up against the last word quoted, with spaces between the other dots.

Some modern styles do not call for ellipses at the beginning and ending of quoted matter unless not doing so would be genuinely misleading, so check with your teacher or editor if you're uncertain whether to use one in those positions. It is never correct to surround a quoted single word or short phrase with ellipses: "Romeo tells Juliet that by kissing her again his 'sin is purged'" (note, by the way, that I began the quotation after the first word in the phrase "my sin is purged" in order to make it work grammatically in the context of the sentence).

When text is typeset, the spaces are often but not always omitted between the dots in an ellipsis. Since modern computer printer output looks much more like typeset writing than old­fashioned typewriting, you may be tempted to omit the spaces; but it is better to include them and let the publisher decide whether they should be eliminated.

An ellipsis that works perfectly well on your computer may "break" when your text is transferred to another if it comes at the end of a line, with one or more of the dots wrapping around to the next line. To avoid this, learn how to type "non­breaking spaces" between the dots of ellipses: in Word for Windows it's Control­Shift­Spacebar; on a Mac, it's Option­Spacebar. When writing HTML code to create a Web page, make a nonbreaking space with this code:  

EMAIL/E­MAIL

Although the spelling "email" is extremely popular, many people prefer "e­mail," which follows the same pattern as "e­commerce." The "E" stands for "electronic."

EMBARESS/EMBARRASS

 

You can pronounce the last two syllables as two distinct words as a jog to memory, except that then the word may be misspelled "embareass," which isn't right either. You also have to remember the double R: "embarrass."

EMERGENT/EMERGENCY

The error of considering "emergent" to be the adjectival form of "emergency" is common only in medical writing, but it is becoming widespread. "Emergent" properly means "emerging" and normally refers to events that are just beginning­­barely noticeable rather than catastrophic. "Emergency" is an adjective as well as a noun, so rather than writing "emergent care," use the homely "emergency care."

EMIGRATE/IMMIGRATE

To "emigrate" is to leave a country. The E at the beginning of the word is related to the E in other words having to do with going out, such as "exit." "Immigrate," in contrast, looks as if it might have something to do with going in, and indeed it does: it means to move into a new country. The same distinction applies to "emigration" and "immigration." Note the double M in the second form. A migrant is someone who continually moves about.

EMINENT/IMMINENT/IMMANENT

By far the most common of these words is "eminent," meaning "prominent, famous." "Imminent," in phrases like "facing imminent disaster," means "threatening." It comes from Latin minere, meaning "to project or overhang." Think of a mine threatening to cave in. Positive events can also be imminent: they just need to be coming soon. The rarest of the three is "immanent," used by philosophers to mean "inherent" and by theologians to mean "present throughout the universe" when referring to God. It comes from Latin "manere," "remain." Think of God creating "man" in his own image.

When a government exercises its power over private property it is drawing on its eminent status in society, so the proper legal phrase is "eminent domain."

EMPATHY/SYMPATHY

If you think you feel just like another person, you are feeling empathy.

If you just feel sorry for another person, you're feeling sympathy.

Sometimes people say they "emphasize" with someone when they mean they "empathize" with him or her.

EMPHASIZE ON/EMPHASIZE

You can place emphasis on something, or you can emphasize it, but you can't emphasize on it or stress on it, though you can place stress on

 

it.

EMULATE/IMITATE

People generally know what "imitate" means, but they sometimes don't understand that "emulate" is a more specialized word with a purely positive function, meaning to try to equal or match. Thus if you try to climb the same mountain your big brother did, you're emulating him; but if you copy his habit of sticking peas up his nose, you're just imitating him.

ENAMORED BY/ENAMORED OF

If you're crazy about ferrets, you're enamored of them. It is less common but still acceptable to say "enamored with"; but if you say you are enamored by ferrets, you're saying that ferrets are crazy about you.

ENDEMIC/EPIDEMIC

"Endemic" is in danger of losing its core meaning through confusion with "epidemic." An endemic condition is one characteristic of a particular region, population, or environment: "sore thumbs are endemic among teen text­messagers." A condition need not affect a majority or even a very large number of people in a population to be endemic. In biology, an endemic disease is one that is maintained locally without the need for outside influence: "Cholera is endemic in Kolkata." It keeps recurring there, but still only a small minority of the population gets cholera.

An epidemic condition is widespread, rampant: " Overindulgence in fatty foods in epidemic throughout the world." The dominance of the noun "epidemic" ("the threat of a flu epidemic") may make people reluctant to use it as an adjective ("flu may become epidemic") but both uses are legitimate. It's best to stick with "epidemic" unless you have a specific need for the technical term "endemic."

ENGINE/MOTOR

People who work on them distinguish between the electrically powered unit called the "motor" and the engine which it starts; but even

in auto­parts stores the stuff which by that logic should be called "engine oil" is marketed as "motor oil." Similarly, the English go motoring on motorways. In everyday American discourse, the terms are often interchangeable (you can buy a powerful engine for your motorboat), but you'll embarrass yourself if you don't make the distinction when talking to your mechanic.

ENJOY TO/ENJOY ­ING

The expression "enjoy to" (or "enjoyed to") is nonstandard, influenced by "like to." You don't enjoy to jog; you either enjoy jogging or like to jog.

ENORMITY/ENORMOUSNESS

 

Originally these two words were synonymous, but "enormity" got whittled down to meaning something monstrous or outrageous. Don't wonder at the "enormity" of the Palace of Versailles unless you wish to express horror at this embodiment of Louis XIV's ego. "Enormity" can also be used as a noun meaning "monstrosity."

END RESULT/END

Usually a redundancy. Most of the time plain "result" will do fine.

ENQUIRE/INQUIRE

These are alternative spellings of the same word. "Enquire" is perhaps slightly more common in the UK, but either is acceptable in the US

IN ROUTE/EN ROUTE

"En route" is a French phrase meaning "on the way," as in "En route to the gallows, Lucky was struck by lightning." Don't anglicize this expression as "in route."

ENSUITE

Americans who have wandered chilly London hallways in the middle of the night in search of a toilet will appreciate learning the peculiar British meaning of the word "ensuite."

In French, a set of two rooms or more forming a single accommodation can be advertised as rooms "en suite" (forming a suite). But the single word French word "ensuite" means something entirely different: "then, later." Around the middle of the 20th century English landlords and hoteliers began to anglicize the phrase, placing it before the noun, so that traditional "rooms en suite" became "en suite rooms," Ads read "bath ensuite" or "toilet ensuite" as if the phrase meant "in the suite." The phrase "en suite" came to be used solely to designate bathrooms attached to a bedroom.

Following standard English patterns, they hyphenated the phrase as "en­suite bath" and often made the phrase into a single word: "ensuite bath." These have become standard British usage; but hoteliers often go a step further by writing "all rooms ensuite" (Americans would write "all rooms with bath").

It is clearly nonstandard to use "ensuite" as if it were a noun synonymous with "toilet" or "bathroom": "I went to the ensuite to take a shower." You may puke on your suit, but not into "the ensuite."

ENTHUSE

"Enthuse" is a handy word and "state enthusiastically" is not nearly so striking; but unfortunately "enthuse" is not acceptable in the most formal contexts.

ENTOMOLOGY/ETYMOLOGY

 

Entomology is the study of insects, like ants ("ant" looks like "ent­") but etymology is the study of the history of words (from Greek, originally meaning "the true meaning of words").

ENVELOP/ENVELOPE

To wrap something up in a covering is to envelop it (pronounced "enVELLup"). The specific wrapping you put around a letter is an envelope (pronounced variously, but with the accent on the first syllable).

ENVIOUS/JEALOUS

Although these are often treated as synonyms, there is a difference. You are envious of what others have that you lack. Jealousy, on the other hand, involves wanting to hold on to what you do have. You can be jealous of your boyfriend's attraction to other women, but you're envious of your boyfriend's CD collection.

ENVIROMENT/ENVIRONMENT

The second N in "environment" is seldom pronounced distinctly, so it's not surprising that is often omitted in writing. If you know the related word "environs" it may help remind you.

EPIC/EPOCH

An "epoch" is a long period of time, like the Pleistocene Epoch. It often gets mixed up with "epic" in the sense of "large­scale." Something really big has "epic proportions," not "epoch proportions."

EPICENTER

The precise location where the earth slips beneath the surface in an earthquake is its hypocenter (or focus) and the spot up on the surface where people feel the quake is its epicenter. Geologists get upset when people use the latter word, designating a point rather removed from the main action, as if it were a synonym of "epitome" and meant something like "most important center." The British spell it "epicentre."

EPIGRAM/EPIGRAPH/EPITAPH/EPITHET

An epigram is a pithy saying, usually humorous. Mark Twain was responsible for many striking, mostly cynical epigrams, such as "Always do right. That will gratify some of the people, and astonish the rest." Unfortunately, he was also responsible for an even more famous one that has been confusing people ever since: "Everyone is a moon, and has a dark side which he never shows to anybody." it's true that the moon keeps one side away from the earth, but­­if you don't count the faint glow reflected from the earth­­it is not any darker than the side that faces us. In fact, over time, the side facing us is darkened slightly more often because it is occasionally eclipsed by the shadow of the earth.

 

An epigraph is a brief quotation used to introduce a piece of writing or the inscription on a statue or building.

An epitaph is the inscription on a tombstone or some other tribute to a dead person.

In literature, an epithet is a term that replaces or is added to the name of a person, like "clear­eyed Athena," in which "clear­eyed" is the epithet. You are more likely to encounter the term in its negative sense, as a term of insult or abuse: "the shoplifter hurled epithets at the guard who had arrested her."

EPITOMY/EPITOME

Nothing makes you look quite so foolish as spelling a sophisticated word incorrectly. Taken directly from Greek, where it means "abridgement," "epitome" is now most often used to designate an extremely representative example of the general class: "Snow White is the epitome of a Disney cartoon feature." Those who don't misspell this word often mispronounce it, misled by its spelling, as "EP­i­tohm," but the proper pronunciation is "ee­PIT­o­mee." The word means "essence," not "climax," so instead of writing "the market had reached the epitome of frenzied selling at noon," use "peak" or a similar word.

EPONYMOUS/SELF­TITLED

It has become popular among certain critics to call recordings named after their performing artists "eponymous." Thus the album by the Beatles titled "The Beatles" would be an eponymous album. (Don't remember it? It's the one most people call "The White Album;" the title was embossed on the cover rather than printed on it.) This pretentious term is not only so obscure as to be almost useless, these writers are not using it in its original sense; it was the person who was eponymous, not the thing named after the person. I prefer the usage of critics who call such recordings "self­titled." It's an awkward phrase, but at least it's easy for the reader to figure out what is meant.

ERROR/ERR

When you commit an error you err. The expression is "to err is human."

­ES

Latin­derived terms whose singular form ends in "­is" and whose plurals are made by changing the "­is" to "­es" such as "thesis" (plural: "theses") have their final syllables pronounced "eez." This pattern causes some people to do the same in other words without a Latin singular "­is" form, like "processes" whose last syllable should sound like "says."

ET AL.

"Et al.' is a scholarly abbreviation of the Latin phrase "et alia,"

 

which means "and others." It is commonly used when you don't want to name all the people or things in a list, and works in roughly the same way as "etc." "The reorganization plan was designed by Alfred E. Newman, General Halftrack, Zippy the Pinhead, et al.; and it was pretty useless." The "al." in this phrase needs a period after it to indicate it is an abbreviation of "alia"; but it is incorrect to put a period after "et."

ETHICS/MORALS/MORALE

Strictly speaking, ethics are beliefs: if you have poor ethics, you have lax standards; but your morals are your behavior: if you have poor morals, you behave badly. You can have high standards but still fail to follow them: strong ethics and weak morals. "Morale" formerly had both these meanings and you will find them attached to the word in some dictionaries, but you would be wise to avoid it in either of these senses in modern writing. By far the most common current use of "morale" is to label your state of mind, particularly how contented you are with life. A person with low morals is bad; but a person with low morale may be merely depressed.

ETHNIC

it's misleading to refer to minority groups as "ethnics" since everyone has ethnicity, even a dominant majority.

EVERY

"Every," "everybody" and "everyone" and related expressions are normally treated as singular in American English: "Every woman I ask out tells me she already has plans for Saturday night." However, constructions like "everyone brought their own lunch" are widely accepted now because of a desire to avoid specifying "his" or "her." See "they/their (singular)."

EVERYONE/EVERY ONE

"Everyone" means "everybody" and is used when you want to refer to all the people in a group: "Everyone in my family likes spaghetti carbonara."

But if you're referring to the individuals who make up a group, then the phrase is "every one." Examples: "God bless us, every one" (may each individual in the group be blessed). "We wish each and every one of you a Merry Christmas" (every single one of you). In the phrase "each and every one" you should never substitute "everyone").

For "everyone" as singular or plural, see "every."

EVER SO OFTEN/EVERY SO OFTEN

In UK English people sometimes speak of something that happens frequently as happening "ever so often."

 

But when something happens only occasionally, it happens "every" so often.

EVERY SINCE/EVER SINCE

The expression is not "every since" but "ever since."

EVERYDAY

"Everyday" is a perfectly good adjective, as in "I'm most comfortable in my everyday clothes." The problem comes when people turn the adverbial phrase "every day" into a single word. It is incorrect to write "I take a shower everyday." It should be "I take a shower every day."

EVERYTIME/EVERY TIME

"Every time" is always two separate words.

EVIDENCE TO/EVIDENCE OF

You can provide evidence to a court, even enough evidence to convict someone; but the standard expression "is evidence of" requires "of" rather than "to" in sentences like this: "Driving through the front entrance of the Burger King is evidence of Todd's inexperience in driving." You can also omit the pronoun altogether by using "evidences" or "evidenced": "his driving evidences (or evidenced) his inexperience."

EVOKE/INVOKE

"Evoke" and "invoke" are close together in meaning, and are often confused with each other.

The action of "invoking" is usually more direct and active. It originally involved calling upon or summoning up a god or spirit. An invocation calls upon whatever is invoked to do something or serve a function. "Invoke" now can also be used to mean "to appeal to, to cite": "in his closing argument, the lawyer invoked the principle of self­defense."

"Evoke" is usually less purposefully active, more indirect, often used to mean "suggest." If you invoke the spirit of Picasso, you're trying to summon his soul up from the grave; but if your paintings evoke the spirit of Picasso, it means their style reminds viewers of that artist's work.

EXACT SAME/EXACTLY THE SAME

In casual speech we often say things like, "The fruitcake he gave me was the exact same one I'd given him last Christmas," but in formal English the phrase is "exactly the same."

EXALT/EXULT

 

When you celebrate joyfully, you exult. When you raise something high (even if only in your opinion), you exalt it. Neither word has an "H" in it.

EXCAPE/ESCAPE

The proper spelling is "escape." Say it that way too.

EXASPERATE/EXACERBATE

People get exasperated (irritated); situations get exacerbated (made worse).

PAR EXCELLANCE/PAR EXCELLENCE

Photoshop is the picture­editing software par excellence. We often italicize this phrase­­meaning roughly "finest or most characteristic of its type," "exemplary"­­to indicate it is French. The French pronounce the final syllable "­ahnss" (with a nasalized N which is hard for English­speakers to master), but that is no justification for misspelling the word as "excellance." Although they pronounce it differently, they spell "excellence" the same way we do.

EXCRABLE/EXECRABLE

When you execrate (detest) something, you find it execrable. The second syllable is not often clearly pronounced, but that's no excuse for leaving it out when you spell the word.

EXCEPTIONAL/EXCEPTIONABLE

If you take exception (object) to something, you find it "exceptionable." The more common word is "exceptional," applied to things that are out of the ordinary, usually in a positive way: "these are exceptional Buffalo wings."

EXORCISE/EXERCISE

You can try to exorcise evil spirits using an exorcist; but when you give your body a workout, it's exercise.

EXHILERATION/EXHILARATION

"Exhilaration" is closely related to "hilarious," whose strongly accented A should help remind you of the correct spelling.

EXPATRIOT/EXPATRIATE

An expatriot would be somebody who used to be a patriot; but that's not how people use the term. Instead, it is a common misspelling of "expatriate," meaning someone who chooses to live abroad.

EXPONENTIAL

 

Something grows exponentially when it repeatedly grows by multiples of some factor in a rapidly accelerating fashion. Don't use the word loosely to refer to ordinary rapid, but steady, growth.

See also "orders of magnitude."

EXPRESSED/EXPRESS

One of the meanings of "express" is "explicit": "Izaak claimed that his old boss had given him express permission to shop on eBay for fishing rods during work hours." Some people feel the word should be "expressed," and that form is not likely to get anyone into trouble; but if you use it you should not presume to correct others who stick with the traditional form: "express permission" (or orders, or mandate, or whatever).

EXPRESSES THAT/SAYS THAT

"In her letter Jane expresses that she is getting irritated with me for not writing" should be corrected to "In her letter Jane says that. . . " You can express an idea or a thought, but you can't ever express that.

In technical terms, "express" is a transitive verb and requires an object.

EXPRESSO/ESPRESSO

I've read several explanations of the origin of this word: the coffee is made expressly for you upon your order, or the steam is expressed through the grounds, or (as most people suppose­­and certainly wrongly) the coffee is made at express speed. One thing is certain: the word is "espresso," not "expresso."

While you're at an American espresso stand, you might muse on the fact that both "biscotti" and "panini" are plural forms, but you're likely to baffle the barista if you ask in correct Italian for a biscotto or a panino.

EXTEND/EXTENT

People often write "to a great extend" or "to a lesser extend." "Extend" is a verb only, and should not be used as a noun. It's "to a great extent," and "to a lesser extent."

EXTRACT REVENGE/EXACT REVENGE

The use of a rare sense of "exact" confuses people, but the traditional phrase is "exact revenge", not the seemingly more logical "extract revenge" or "enact revenge."

IN THE FACT THAT/BY THE FACT THAT

The correct phrase is "by the fact that," not "in the fact that." While we're at it, "infact" is not a word; "in fact" is always a two­word phrase.

 

FACTOID

The "­oid" ending in English is normally added to a word to indicate that an item is not the real thing. A humanoid is not quite human. Originally "factoid" was an ironic term indicating that the "fact" being offered was not actually factual. However, CNN and other sources have taken to treating the "­oid" as if it were a mere diminutive, and using the term to mean "trivial but true fact." As a result, the definition of "factoid" is hopelessly confused and it's probably better to avoid using the term altogether.

FAIR/FARE

When you send your daughter off to camp, you hope she'll fare well. That's why you bid her a fond farewell. "Fair" as a verb is a rare word meaning "to smooth a surface to prepare it for being joined to another."

FAR BE IT FOR ME/FAR BE IT FROM ME

The mangled expression "far be it for me" is probably influenced by a similar saying: "it's not for me to say." The standard expression is "far be it from me" (may this possibility be far away from me).

FARTHER/FURTHER

Some authorities (like the Associated Press) insist on "farther" to refer to physical distance and on "further" to refer to an extent of time or degree, but others treat the two words as interchangeable except for insisting on "further" for "in addition," and "moreover." You'll always be safe in making the distinction; some people get really testy about this.

FASTLY/FAST

"Fastly" is an old form that has died out in English. Interest in soccer is growing fast, not "fastly."

FATAL/FATEFUL

A "fatal" event is a deadly one; a "fateful" one is determined by fate. If there are no casualties left lying at the scene­­whether mangled corpses or failed negotiations­­the word you are seeking is "fateful." The latter word also has many positive uses, such as "George fondly remembered that fateful night in which he first met the woman he was to love to his dying day."

FAZE/PHASE

"Faze" means to embarrass or disturb, but is almost always used in the negative sense, as in "the fact that the overhead projector bulb was burned out didn't faze her." "Phase" is a noun or verb having to do with an aspect of something. "He's just going through a temperamental phase." "They're going to phase in the new accounting procedures gradually."

 

Unfortunately, Star Trek has confused matters by calling its ray pistols phasers. Too bad they aren't fazers instead.

FEARFUL/FEARSOME

To be "fearful" is to be afraid. To be "fearsome" is to cause fear in others. Remember that someone who is fierce is fearsome rather than fearful.

FEBUARY/FEBRUARY

Few people pronounce the first R in "February" distinctly, so it is not surprising that it is often omitted in spelling. This poor month is short on days; don't further impoverish it by robbing it of one of its letters.

FEELINGS FOR/FEELINGS ABOUT

When someone says "I'm developing feelings for you," the message is "I'm falling in love with you." Feelings for are always positive feelings. In contrast, feelings about something or someone can be either positive or negative: "I've got a bad feeling about this."

FEINT/FAINT

A feint, whether in chess or on the battlefield, is a maneuver designed to divert the opponent's attention from the real center of attack. A feint is a daring move. Do not use this very specialized word in the expression "faint of heart" (or "faint at heart"), which implies timidity.

FEMALE/WOMAN

When referring to an adult female of the human species it sounds weird and may even be considered insulting to use the noun "female" instead of "woman." "The female pointed the gun at the cop" should be "the woman pointed the gun at the cop."

In the case of the related adjectives some people argue that since we say­­for instance­­"male doctor" we should always say "female doctor" rather than "woman doctor." It may be inconsistent, but the pattern of referring to females as women performers, professionals, etc. is very traditional, dating back at least to the 14th century. People who do this cannot be accused of committing an error.

Technical adjectival uses defining gender like "female genes" are fine (but don't confuse them with "women's jeans").

FIANCE/FIANCEE

Your fiance is the man you plan to marry; your fiancee is the woman you plan to marry.

FINE TOOTHCOMB/FINE­TOOTH COMB

 

Brush your teeth, but don't comb them. Although the spelling "fine toothcomb" is common enough to be listed as a variant in dictionaries, it looks pretty silly to people who prefer the traditional expression used to describe examining a territory or subject minutely: going over it with a "fine­tooth comb"­­a comb with fine teeth. Some people prefer "fine­toothed comb."

FIREY/FIERY

it's "fire," so why isn't it "firey"? If you listen closely, you hear that "fire" has two distinct vowel sounds in it: "fi­er." Spelling the adjective "fiery" helps to preserve that double sound.

50s

There's no requirement for the apostrophe before the "S" in decade names like 50s and 60s, since there are no omitted letters, though it's also acceptable to include one. The term may be written '50s since "19" is being omitted, but 50s is fine too. Writers who wish to have their references to decades clearly understood in the twenty­first century would be well advised not to omit the first two digits.

Note that you may have to turn off "smart quotes" in your word processor to get a leading apostrophe like the one in "'50s" to curl correctly unless you know how to type the character directly. Or you can just type two and delete the first one.

FINALIZE/FINISH, PUT INTO FINAL FORM

"Finalize" is very popular among bureaucrats, but many people hate it.

Avoid it unless you know that everyone in your environment uses it too.

FIRST ANNUAL

Some people get upset when the "first annual" occurrence of some event is announced, arguing that it doesn't become annual until it's been repeated. But "first annual" simply means "the first of what is planned to be an annual series of events"­­it's a fine expression.

FIRST PERSON

Some teachers frown on the first­person voice in student writing, striking out "I," "me," and "myself" whenever they encounter them; but although there are times when it is inappropriate to call attention to yourself, writing something like "public displays of affection are disgusting" is not more modest than "public displays of affection disgust me." The impersonal form arrogantly implies that you are the final authority and that all right­minded people must agree with you. The phrase "the author" substituted for "I" is no longer generally used even in the most formal writing. When you are arguing for a theory or opinion, it is often best to stand squarely behind it by using the first­person voice.

 

FIRSTABLE/FIRST OF ALL

The odd word "firstable" seems to be based on a mishearing of the expression "first of all."

FISCAL/PHYSICAL

The middle syllable of "physical" is often omitted in pronunciation, making it sound like the unrelated word "fiscal." Sound that unaccented "I" distinctly.

FIT THE BILL/FILL THE BILL

Originally a "bill" was any piece of writing, especially a legal document (we still speak of bills being introduced into Congress in this sense). More narrowly, it also came to mean a list such as a restaurant "bill of fare" (menu) or an advertisement listing attractions in a theatrical variety show such as might be posted on a "billboard." In nineteenth­century America, when producers found short acts to supplement the main attractions, nicely filling out an evening's entertainment, they were said in a rhyming phrase to "fill the bill." People who associate bills principally with shipping invoices frequently transform this expression, meaning "to meet requirements or desires," into "fit the bill." They are thinking of bills as if they were orders, lists of requirements. It is both more logical and more traditional to say "fill the bill."

FITTEST

In evolutionary terms, "the survival of the fittest" refers not to physical fitness in the sense of vigor and strength, but to the ability to reproduce successfully. Rabbits and ants are fitter to survive in most environments than lions: that's why there are so many more of them. If you use the phrase "survival of the fittest" as if it referred to a contest of brute strength, you will annoy biologists and some editors, who will judge your usage as unfit to survive.

FIXING/PREPARING

"Fixing" as a synonym of "getting ready" is a feature of several dialects of US English, especially rural and Southern ones: "I'm fixin' to take this pie over to the parsonage." Using it outside of these dialects risks making you sound unsophisticated.

FLAIR/FLARE

"Flair" is conspicuous talent: "She has a flair for organization." "Flare" is either a noun meaning "flame" or a verb meaning to blaze with light or to burst into anger.

FLAK/FLACK

"Flak" is WW II airman's slang for shells being fired at you in the air, so to catch a lot of flak is to feel in danger of being shot down.

 

However, most civilians these days have never heard of "flak," so they use "flack" instead, which originally meant "salesman" or "huckster." You need to worry about this only if you're among old­time veterans.

You're more likely to embarrass yourself if you mix up the expression "catch a lot of flak" with "give a lot of slack," which has almost the opposite meaning. You can't catch slack.

FLAMMABLE/INFLAMMABLE

The prefix "in­" does not indicate negation here; it comes from the word "inflame." "Flammable" and "inflammable" both mean "easy to catch on fire"; but so many people misunderstand the latter term that it's better to stick with "flammable" in safety warnings.

FLAUNT/FLOUT

To flaunt is to show off: you flaunt your new necklace by wearing it to work. "Flout" has a more negative connotation; it means to treat with contempt some rule or standard. The cliche is "to flout convention." Flaunting may be in bad taste because it's ostentatious, but it is not a violation of standards.

FLESH OUT/FLUSH OUT

To "flesh out" an idea is to give it substance, as a sculptor adds clay flesh to a skeletal armature. To "flush out" a criminal is to drive him or her out into the open. The latter term is derived from bird­hunting, in which one flushes out a covey of quail. If you are trying to develop something further, use "flesh"; but if you are trying to reveal something hitherto concealed, use "flush."

FLOPPY DISK/HARD DISK

Floppy disks are fast disappearing from the computer world, but it's been many years since they were literally floppy. The fact that a 3 1/2" diskette is enclosed in a hard plastic case should not lead you to call it a "hard disk." That's a high­capacity storage medium like the main disk inside your computer on which your programs, operating system, and data are stored.

FLOUNDER/FOUNDER

As a verb, "founder" means "to fill with water and sink." It is also used metaphorically of various kinds of equally catastrophic failures. In contrast, to flounder is to thrash about in the water (like a flounder), struggling to stay alive. "Flounder" is also often used metaphorically to indicate various sorts of desperate struggle. If you're sunk, you've foundered. If you're still struggling, you're floundering.

FLUKE

A fluke was originally a lucky stroke in billiards, and it still means a

 

fortunate chance event. It is nonstandard to use the word to label an unfortunate chance event. There are lucky flukes, but no unlucky ones.

FLYS/FLIES

"Flys" is a misspelling of "flies" except when the word is being deliberately changed from its traditional spelling as in the name of the popular music group, "The Flys."

FOCUS AROUND/FOCUS ON

The popular expression "focus around" makes little sense. An example: "Next quarter's advertising will focus around our line of computer games." It is presumably meant to convey something like "concentrate on a number of different items in a single category." But "focus on" better conveys the idea of a sharp focus. "Focus around" suggests a jittery, shifting view rather than determined concentration.

FOLLOWUP/FOLLOW UP, FOLLOW­UP

A doctor can follow up with a patient during a follow­up visit (note that the adjectival form requires a hyphen). Neither phrase should be turned into a single hyphenless word.

FONT/TYPEFACE

Although "font" has largely replaced "typeface" in common usage, professionals who deal with type prefer to distinguish between the two. "Typeface" refers to letter design; Times, Helvetica, and Garamond are all typefaces. Typefaces are usually made up of a number of fonts: complete sets of characters in that style, like Times Roman, Times Italic, and Times Bold. The distinction is important only when dealing with such professionals.

FOOT/FEET

You can use eight­foot boards to side a house, but "foot" is correct only in this sort of adjectival phrase combined with a number (and usually hyphenated). The boards are eight feet (not foot) long. It's always X feet per second and X feet away.

FOOTNOTES/ENDNOTES

About the time that computers began to make the creation and printing of footnotes extremely simple and cheap, style manuals began to urge a shift away from them to endnotes printed at the ends of chapters or at the end of a book or paper rather than at the foot of the page. I happen to think this was a big mistake; but in any case, if you are using endnotes, don't call them "footnotes."

FOR/FORE/FOUR

The most common member of this trio is the preposition "for," which is not a problem for most people. "Fore" always has to do with the front of

 

something (it's what you shout to warn someone when you've sent a golf ball their way). "Four" is just the number "4."

FOR ALL INTENSIVE PURPOSES/FOR ALL INTENTS AND PURPOSES

Another example of the oral transformation of language by people who don't read much. "For all intents and purposes" is an old cliche which won't thrill anyone, but using the mistaken alternative is likely to elicit guffaws.

FOR FREE/FREE

Some people object to "for free" because any sentence containing the phrase will read just as well without the "for," but it is standard English.

FOR GOODNESS' SAKES/FOR GOODNESS' SAKE

Picky folks point out that since the mild expletive "for goodness' sake" is a eumphemism for "for God's sake" the second word should not be pluralized to "sakes"; but heavens to Betsy, if little things like that are going to bother you, you'll have your dander up all the time.

FOR ONE/FOR ONE THING

People often say "for one" when they mean "for one thing": "I really want to go to the movie. For one, Kevin Spacey is my favorite actor." (One what?) The only time you should use "for one" by itself to give an example of something is when you have earlier mentioned a class to which the example belongs: "There are a lot of reasons I don't want your old car. For one, there are squirrels living in the upholstery." (One reason.)

FOR SALE/ON SALE

If you're selling something, it's for sale; but if you lower the price, it goes on sale.

FOR SELL/FOR SALE

If you have things to sell, they are for sale. Nothing is ever "for sell."

FOR SURE/SURE

In casual speech, when you agree with somebody's statement, you may say "for sure." Your date says "That was outstanding tiramisu," and you, wanting to show how in tune you are, reply "For sure!" You can also use the phrase to mean "for certain," as in "I couldn't tell for sure that the bench was wet until I sat on it."

But people often substitute this phrase when they should use plain old "sure," as in "I couldn't be for sure." That should be "I couldn't be sure."

 

FORBIDDING/FOREBODING/FORMIDABLE

"Foreboding" means "ominous," as in "The sky was a foreboding shade of gray" (i.e. predictive of a storm). The prefix "fore­" with an E, often indicates futurity, e. g. "forecast," "foreshadowing" and "foreword" (a prefatory bit of writing at the beginning of a book, often misspelled "forword"). A forbidding person or task is hostile or dangerous: "The trek across the desert to the nearest latte stand was forbidding." The two are easily confused because some things, like storms, can be both foreboding and forbidding.

"Formidable," which originally meant "fear­inducing" ("Mike Tyson is a formidable opponent") has come to be used primarily as a compliment meaning "awe­inducing" ("Gary Kasparov's formidable skills as a chess player were of no avail against Deep Blue").

See also "fearful/fearsome."

FORCEFUL, FORCIBLE, FORCED

These words sometimes overlap, but generally "forceful" means "powerful" ("he imposed his forceful personality on the lions") while "forcible" must be used instead to describe the use of force ("the burglar made a forcible entry into the apartment"). "Forced" is often used for the latter purpose, but some prefer to reserve this word to describe something that is done or decided upon as a result of outside causes without necessarily being violent: "a forced landing," "a forced smile," "forced labor."

FOREGO/FORGO

The E in "forego" tells you it has to do with going before. It occurs mainly in the expression "foregone conclusion," a conclusion arrived at in advance. "Forgo" means to abstain from or do without. "After finishing his steak, he decided to forgo the blueberry cheesecake."

FOREVER/FOR EVER

UK writers most often use the two­word phrase "for ever," whereas Americans strongly prefer the one­word form "forever." Each nationality is liable to think the other is making a mistake.

FORMALLY/FORMERLY

These two are often mixed up in speech. If you are doing something in a formal manner, you are behaving formally; but if you previously behaved differently, you did so formerly.

FORESEE/FORSEE

"Foresee" means "to see into the future." There are lots of words with the prefix "fore­" which are future­oriented, including "foresight," "foretell," "forethought," and "foreword," all of which are often

 

misspelled by people who omit the E. Just remember: what golfers shout when they are warning people ahead of them about the shot they are about to make is "fore!"

FORTUITOUS/FORTUNATE

"Fortuitous" events happen by chance; they need not be fortunate events, only random ones: "It was purely fortuitous that the meter reader came along five minutes before I returned to my car." Although fortunate events may be fortuitous, when you mean "lucky," use "fortunate."

FORWARD/FORWARDS/FOREWORD

Although some style books prefer "forward" and "toward" to "forwards" and "towards," none of these forms is really incorrect, though the forms without the final S are perhaps a smidgen more formal. The same generally applies to "backward" and "backwards." There are a few expressions in which only one of the two forms works: step forward, forward motion, a backward child. The spelling "foreword" applies exclusively to the introductory matter in a book.

FOUL/FOWL

A chicken is a fowl. A poke in the eye is a foul.

FOURTY/FORTY

"Four" loses its U when it changes to "forty."

FOWL SWOOP/FELL SWOOP

Poor Macduff, learning that Macbeth has had his wife and children murdered, cries "What, all my pretty chickens and their dam/At one fell swoop?" Thus enters the language a popular phrase meaning "terrible blow" (the image is of a ruthless hawk swooping down to slaughter helpless chicks).

The old meaning of "fell" to mean "savage," "cruel," or "ruthless" has otherwise pretty much died out, so that many people mistakenly substitute "foul" or "fowl" for "fell." "Fell" in this sense is related to words like "felon" and "felony."

The mangled form "swell foop" is a popular bit of humor which should at least remind you that the first word in the phrase has to rhyme with "swell."

FRAMEWORK/GROUNDWORK

You lay groundwork; you erect, build, or construct a framework.

FRANKENSTEIN

"Frankenstein" is the name of the scientist who creates the monster in Mary Shelley's novel. The monster itself has no name, but is referred to

 

popularly as "Frankenstein's monster."

FRANKLY

Sentences beginning with this word are properly admissions of something shocking or unflattering to the speaker; but when a public spokesperson for a business or government is speaking, it almost always precedes a self­serving statement. "Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn" is correct; but "Frankly, I think the American people can make their own decisions about health care" is an abuse of language. The same contortion of meaning is common in related phrases. When you hear a public figure say, "to be completely honest with you," expect a lie.

FRENCH DIP WITH AU JUS

This diner classic consists of sliced roast beef on a more or less firm bun, with a side dish of broth in which to dip it. "Au jus" means "with broth"; so adding "with" to "au jus" is redundant. In fancier restaurants, items are listed entirely in French with the English translation underneath:

Tete de cochon avec ses tripes farcies Pig's head stuffed with tripe

Mixing the languages is hazardous if you don't know what the original means. "With au jus broth" is also seen from time to time. People generally know what a French dip sandwich is, and they'll see the broth when it comes. Why not just call it a "French dip?"

FRESHMAN/FRESHMEN

"Freshman" is the singular noun: "Birgitta is a freshman at Yale."

"Freshmen" is the plural: "Patricia and Patrick are freshmen at Stanford." But the adjective is always singular: "Megan had an interesting freshman seminar on Romanesque architecture at Sarah Lawrence."

FROM...TO

"From soup to nuts" makes sense because soup was the traditional first course in a formal meal, nuts the last. Similarly "from A to Z" makes sense because these are the first and last letters of the alphabet. But this construction, which identifies the extremes of a spectrum or range is often improperly used when no such extremes are being identified, as in "She tried everything from "penicillin to sulfa drugs." These are not extremes, just examples of different sorts of drugs. Even worse is "He gave his daughter everything from a bicycle to lawn darts to a teddy bear." A range can't have more than two extremes. "He gave his daughter everything from paper dolls to a Cadillac" conveys the notion of a spectrum from very cheap to very expensive, and is fine. Often when people are tempted to use "from . . . to" they would be better off using a different expression, as, for example, in this sentence: "She tried all sorts of medicines, including penicillin and sulfa drugs."

MOUNT FUJIYAMA/FUJIYAMA

 

"Yama" means "mountain" in Japanese, so when you say "Mount Fujiyama" you are saying "Mount Fuji Mountain." The Japanese usually say "Fujisan"; but "Fujiyama," or "Mount Fuji" is standard in English­­just be aware that both sound "foreign" to Japanese native speakers.

­FUL/­FULS

it's one cupful, but two cupfuls, not "two cupsful." The same goes for "spoonfuls" and "glassfuls."

FULL PROOF/FOOLPROOF

If you want to get credit for solving a complicated mathematical problem, you will have to provide a full proof. But if you're trying to make something as easy as possible, you want to make it foolproof­­so simple even a fool could couldn't screw it up.

FULLY WELL/FULL WELL

Back in the Middle Ages and Renaissance it was common for "full" to modify adverbs. The only instance in which this continues today is the traditional phrase "full well," mostly in "knowing full well." People who "correct" this to "knowing fully well" may have modern grammar on their side, but they sound as if they aren't acquainted with the standard idiom.

FULSOME

In modern usage, "fulsome" has two inconsistent meanings. To some people it means "offensive, overdone," so "fulsome praise" to them would be disgustingly exaggerated praise.

To other people it means "abundant," and for them "fulsome praise" is glowingly warm praise.

The first group tends to look down on the second group, and the second group tends to be baffled by the first. Best to just avoid the word altogether.

FUNCTIONALITY

You'll find "functionality" in dictionaries, but it's almost always used as a pretentious and inaccurate substitute for "function" or "usefulness."

FURL/FURROW

When you concentrate really hard so that furrows appear in your forehead, you furrow your brow­­an expression that means "worry, puzzle over." When you lower a sail and wrap it tightly around the mast to secure it you furl it. If you can furl your brow you belong in a sideshow.

 

FUSHIA/FUCHSIA

The flowers known as "fuchsias" are named after German Renaissance botanist Leonhard Fuchs. Although the word is pronounced "FYOO­sha" in English, it should not be misspelled "fushia."

(Common Errors in English by Paul Brians)