Common Errors in English - Part 7

JAM/JAMB

The only common use for the word "jamb" is to label the vertical part of the frame of a door or window. It comes from the French word for "leg"; think of the two side pieces of the frame as legs on either side of the opening.

For all other uses, it's "jam": stuck in a jam, traffic jam, logjam, jam session, etc.

JERRY­BUILT/JURY­RIGGED

Although their etymologies are obscure and their meanings overlap, these are two distinct expressions. Something poorly built is "jerry­built." Something rigged up temporarily in a makeshift manner with materials at hand, often in an ingenious manner, is "jury­rigged." "Jerry­built" always has a negative connotation, whereas one can be impressed by the cleverness of a jury­rigged solution. Many people cross­pollinate these two expressions and mistakenly say "jerry­rigged" or "jury­built."

JEW/JEWISH

"Jew" as an adjective ("Jew lawyer") is an ethnic insult; the word is "Jewish." But people who object to "Jew" as a noun are being oversensitive. Most Jews are proud to be called Jews. The expression "to Jew someone down"­­an expression meaning "to bargain for a lower price"­­reflects a grossly insulting stereotype and should be avoided in all contexts.

JEWELRY

Often mispronounced "joolereee." To remember the standard pronunciation, just say "jewel" and add "­ree" on the end. The British spelling is much fancier: "jewellery."

JOB TITLES

The general rule is to capitalize a title like "President" only when it is prefixed to a particular president's name: "It is notable that President Grover Cleveland was the first Democratic president elected after the Civil War." Similar patterns apply for titles like "principal," "senator," "supervisor," etc.

But often the American president's title is used as a sort of substitute for his name, and routinely capitalized despite the objections of some style manuals: "The President pardoned the White House Thanksgiving turkey yesterday." And the British would never write anything other than

"The Queen ate strawberries in the Royal Enclosure." The Pope is also usually referred to with a capital P when the specific individual is meant: "The Pope announced that he will visit Andorra next month."

Following these common patterns is not likely to get you in trouble unless your editor has adopted a contrary rule.

If no specific individual is meant, then definitely use lower case: "We need to elect a homecoming queen"; "The next president will inherit a terrible budget deficit."

JOHN HENRY/JOHN HANCOCK

John Hancock signed the Declaration of Independence so flamboyantly that his name became a synonym for "signature." Don't mix him up with John Henry, who was a steel­drivin' man.

JOHN HOPKINS/JOHNS HOPKINS

The famous university and hospital named Johns Hopkins derives its peculiar name from its founder. "Johns" was his great­grandmother's maiden name. It is an error to call these institutions "John Hopkins."

JOINT POSSESSIVES

When writing about jointly owned objects, people often fret about where to place apostrophes. The standard pattern is to treat the two partners as a single unit­­a couple­­and put an apostrophe only after the last name: "John and Jane's villa," "Ben & Jerry's ice cream." Add more owners and you still use only one apostrophe: "Bob and Carol and Ted and Alice's party."

If each person owns his or her own item, then each owner gets an apostrophe: "John's and Jane's cars" (each of them separately owns a car).

But when you begin to introduce pronouns the situation becomes much murkier. "Jane and his villa" doesn't sound right because it sounds like Jane and the villa make a pair. The most common solution­­"Jane's and his villa"­­violates the rule about using the possessive form only on the last partner in the ownership. However, most people don't care and using this form won't raise too many eyebrows.

How about when you have two pronouns? "She and his villa" definitely won't work. "Her and his villa" might get by; but if you say "his and her villa" you inevitably remind people of the common phrase "his and hers" with a very different meaning: male and female, as in a sale on "his and hers scarves."

If you have time to think ahead, especially when writing, the best solution is to avoid this sort of construction altogether by rewording: "Jane and John have a villa outside Florence. Their villa is beautiful." "The villa owned by Jane and him is beautiful." "The villa is Jane's and his." "The villa that he and she own is beautiful."

JUDGEMENT/JUDGMENT

In Great Britain and many of its former colonies, "judgement" is still the correct spelling; but ever since Noah Webster decreed the first E superfluous, Americans have omitted it. Many of Webster's crotchets have faded away (each year fewer people use the spelling "theater," for instance); but even the producers of Terminator 2: Judgment Day, chose the traditional American spelling. If you write "judgement" you should also write "colour."

JUST ASSUME/JUST AS SOON

People sometimes write, "I'd just assume stay home and watch TV." The expression is "just as soon."

KEY

"Deceptive marketing is key to their success as a company." "Careful folding of the egg whites is key." This very popular sort of use of "key" as an adjective by itself to mean "crucial" sets the teeth of some of us on edge. It derives from an older usage of "key" as a metaphorical noun: "The key to true happiness is an abundant supply of chocolate." "Key" as an adjective modifying a noun is also traditional: "Key evidence in the case was mislaid by the police."

But adjectival "key" without a noun to modify it is not so traditional. If this sort of thing bothers you (as it does me), you'll have to grit your teeth and sigh. It's not going away.

KICK­START/JUMP­START

You revive a dead battery by jolting it to life with a jumper cable: an extraordinary measure used in an emergency. So if you hope to stimulate a foundering economy, you want to jump­start it. Kick­starting is just the normal way of getting a motorcycle going.

KINDERGARDEN/KINDERGARTEN

The original German spelling of the word "kindergarten" is standard in English.

KOALA BEAR/KOALA

A koala is not a bear. People who know their marsupials refer to them simply as "koalas." Recent research, however, indicates that pandas are related to other bears.

l/1

People who learned to type in the pre­computer era sometimes type a lower­case letter "l" when they need a number "1." Depending on the font being used, these may look interchangeable, but there are usually subtle differences between the two. For instance, the top of a letter l is

usually flat, whereas the top of a number 1 often slopes down to the left. If your writing is to be reproduced electronically or in print, it's important to hit that number key at the top left of your keyboard to produce a true number 1.

LCD DISPLAY/LCD

"LCD" stands for "liquid crystal display," so it is redundant to write "LCD display." Use just "LCD" or "LCD screen" instead.

Many people confuse this abbreviation with "LED," which stands for "light­emitting diode"­­a much earlier technology. You will often see explanations even in technical contexts in which "LCD" is incorrectly defined as "liquid crystal diode."

LOL

The common Internet abbreviation "lol" (for "laughing out loud") began as an expression of amusement or satirical contempt: "My brother­in­law thought the hollandaise sauce was gravy and poured it all over his mashed potatoes (lol)." It has become much overused, often to indicate mere surprise or emphasis with no suggestion of humor: "The boss just told us we have to redo the budget this afternoon (lol)." And some people drop it into their prose almost at random, like a verbal hiccup. It is no longer considered hip or sophisticated, and you won't impress or entertain anyone by using it.

Note that this initialism has had two earlier meanings: "Little Old Lady" and "Lots Of Love."

LAISSEZ­FAIRE

The mispronunciation "lazy­fare" is almost irresistible in English, but this is a French expression meaning "let it be" or, more precisely, "the economic doctrine of avoiding state regulation of the economy," and it has retained its French pronunciation (though with an English R): "lessay fare." It is most properly used as an adjective, as in "laissez­faire capitalism," but is also commonly used as if it were a noun phrase: "the Republican party advocates laissez­faire."

LAND LOVER/LANDLUBBER

"Lubber" is an old term for a clumsy person, and beginning in the 18th century sailors used it to describe a person who was not a good seaman. So the pirate expression of scorn for those who don't go to sea is not "land lover" but "landlubber."

LANGUISH/LUXURIATE

To languish is to wilt, pine away, become feeble. It always indicates an undesirable state. If you're looking for a nice long soak in the tub, what you want is not to languish in the bath but to luxuriate in it.

The word "languid" (drooping, listless) often occurs in contexts that

might lead people to think of relaxation. Even more confusing, the related word "languorous" does describe dreamy self­indulgent relaxation. No wonder people mistakenly think they want to "languish" in the bath.

LARGE/IMPORTANT

In colloquial speech it's perfectly normal to refer to something as a "big problem," but when people create analogous expressions in writing, the result is awkward. Don't write "this is a large issue for our firm" when what you mean is "this is an important issue for our firm." Size and intensity are not synonymous.

LAST NAME/FAMILY NAME

Now that few people know what a "surname" is, we usually use the term "last name" to designate a family name; but in a host of languages the family name comes first. For instance, "Kawabata" was the family name of author Kawabata Yasunari. For Asians, this situation is complicated because publishers and immigrants often switch names to conform to Western practice, so you'll find most of Kawabata's books in an American bookstore by looking under "Yasunari Kawabata." It's safer with international names to write "given name" and "family name" rather than "first name" and "last name."

Note that in a multicultural society the old­fashioned term "Christian name" (for "given name") is both inaccurate and offensive.

LATE/FORMER

If you want to refer to your former husband, don't call him your "late husband" unless he's dead.

LATER/LATTER

Except in the expression "latter­day" (modern), the word "latter" usually refers back to the last­mentioned of a set of alternatives. "We gave the kids a choice of a vacation in Paris, Rome, or Disney World. Of course the latter was their choice." In other contexts not referring back to such a list, the word you want is "later."

Conservatives prefer to reserve "latter" for the last­named of no more than two items.

LAUNDRY MAT/LAUNDROMAT

"Laundromat" was coined in the 1950s by analogy with "automat"­­an automated self­service restaurant­­ to label an automated self­service laundry. People unaware of this history often mistakenly deconstruct the word into "laundry mat" or "laundrymat."

LAY/LIE

You lay down the book you've been reading, but you lie down when you go to bed. In the present tense, if the subject is acting on some other object, it's "lay." If the subject is lying down, then it's "lie." This distinction is often not made in informal speech, partly because in the past tense the words sound much more alike: "He lay down for a nap," but "He laid down the law." If the subject is already at rest, you might "let it lie." If a helping verb is involved, you need the past participle forms. "Lie" becomes "lain" and "lay" becomes "laid.": "He had just lain down for a nap," and "His daughter had laid the gerbil on his nose."

LEACH/LEECH

Water leaches chemicals out of soil or color out of cloth, your brother­in­law leeches off the family by constantly borrowing money to pay his gambling debts (he behaves like a bloodsucking leech).

LEAD/LED

When you're hit over the head, the instrument could be a "lead" pipe. But when it's a verb, "lead" is the present and "led" is the past tense. The problem is that the past tense is pronounced exactly like the above­mentioned plumbing material ("plumb" comes from a word meaning "lead"), so people confuse the two. In a sentence like "She led us to the scene of the crime," always use the three­letter spelling.

LEAST/LEST

American English keeps alive the old word "lest" in phrases like "lest we forget," referring to something to be avoided or prevented. Many people mistakenly substitute the more familiar word "least" in these phrases.

LEAVE/LET

The colloquial use of "leave" to mean "let" in phrases like "leave me be" is not standard. "Leave me alone" is fine, though.

LEGEND/MYTH

Myths are generally considered to be traditional stories whose importance lies in their significance, like the myth of the Fall in Eden; whereas legends can be merely famous deeds, like the legend of Davy Crockett. In common usage "myth" usually implies fantasy. Enrico Caruso was a legendary tenor, but Hogwarts is a mythical school. Legends may or may not be true. But be cautious about using "myth" to mean "untrue story" in a mythology, theology, or literature class, where teachers can be quite touchy about insisting that the true significance of a myth lies not in its factuality but in its meaning for the culture which produces or adopts it.

LENSE/LENS

Although the variant spelling "lense" is listed in some dictionaries,

the standard spelling for those little disks that focus light is "lens."

LESSEN/LESSON

Although not many people try to teach someone a "lessen," many people try to "lesson" their risks by taking precautions.

"Lessen" is something you do­­a verb­­and means to make smaller. "Lesson" is a noun, something you learn or teach. Remember this lesson and it will lessen your chances of making a mistake.

LET ALONE

"I can't remember the title of the book we were supposed to read, let alone the details of the story." In sentences like these you give a lesser example of something first, followed by "let alone" and then the greater example. But people often get this backwards, and put the greater example first.

The same pattern is followed when the expression is "much less": "I can't change the oil in my car, much less tune the engine." The speaker can much less well tune the engine than he or she can change the oil.

Another common expression which follows the same pattern uses "never mind," as in "I can't afford to build a tool shed, never mind a new house."

See also "little own."

LET'S/LETS

The only time you should spell "let's" with an apostrophe is when it means "let us": "Let's go to the mall."

If the word you want means "allows" or "permits," no apostrophe should be used: "My mom lets me use her car if I fill the tank."

LIABLE/LIBEL

If you are likely to do something you are liable to do it; and if a debt can legitimately be charged to you, you are liable for it. A person who defames you with a false accusation libels you. There is no such word as "lible."

LIAISE

The verb "liaise," meaning to act as a liaison (intermediary between one group and another), has been around in military contexts since early in the 20th century; but recently it has broken out into more general use, especially in business, where it bothers a lot of people. Although dictionaries generally consider it standard English, you may want to avoid it around people sensitive to business jargon.

LIBARY/LIBRARY

The first R in "library" is often slurred or omitted in speech, and it sometimes drops out in writing as well; and "librarian" is often turned into "libarian."

LIGHT­YEAR

"Light­year" is always a measure of distance rather than of time; in fact it is the distance that light travels in a year. "Parsec" is also a measure of distance, equaling 3.26 light­years, though the term was used incorrectly as a measure of time by Han Solo in "Star Wars."

Please, "Star Wars" fans, don't bother sending me elaborate explanations of why Solo's speech makes sense; I personally heard George Lucas admit in a TV interview that it was just a mistake.

LIGHTED/LIT

Don't fret over the difference between these two words; they're interchangeable.

LIKE

Since the 1950s, when it was especially associated with hipsters, "like" as a sort of meaningless verbal hiccup has been common in speech. The earliest uses had a sort of sense to them in which "like" introduced feelings or perceptions which were then specified: "When I learned my poem had been rejected I was, like, devastated." However, "like" quickly migrated elsewhere in sentences: "I was like, just going down the road, when, like, I saw this cop, like, hiding behind the billboard." This habit has spread throughout American society, affecting people of all ages. Those who have the irritating "like" habit are usually unaware of it, even if they use it once or twice in every sentence: but if your job involves much speaking with others, it's a habit worth breaking.

Recently young people have extended its uses by using "like" to introduce thoughts and speeches: "When he tells me his car broke down on the way to my party I'm like, 'I know you were with Cheryl because she told me so.' " To be reacted to as a grown­up, avoid this pattern.

(See also "goes.")

Some stodgy conservatives still object to the use of "like" to mean "as," "as though" or "as if." Examples: "Treat other people like you want them to treat you" (they prefer: "as you would want them to treat you"). "She treats her dog like a baby" (they prefer "she treats her dog as if it were a baby"). In expressions where the verb is implied rather than expressed, "like" is standard rather than "as": "she took to gymnastics like a duck to water."

In informal contexts, "like" often sounds more natural than "as if,"

especially with verbs involving perception, like "look," "feel,"

"sound," "seem," or "taste": "It looks like it's getting ready to rain"

or "It feels like spring." In expressions where the verb is implied rather than expressed, "like" is standard rather than "as": "she took to gymnastics like a duck to water."

So nervous do some people get about "like" that they try to avoid it even in its core meaning of "such as": "ice cream flavors like vanilla and strawberry always sell well" (they prefer "such as vanilla . . ."). The most fanatical even avoid "like" where it is definitely standard, in such phrases as "behaved like a slob" ("behaved as a slob" is their odd preference).

Like you care.

"as": "she took to gymnastics like a duck to water."

LIP­SING/LIP­SYNCH

When you pretend you are singing by synchronizing your lip movements to a recording, you lip­synch­­the vocal equivalent of playing "air guitar." Some people mistakenly think the expression is "lip­sing," and they often omit the required hyphen as well. Note that you can lip­synch to speech as well singing.

LIQUOR

Although it may be pronounced "likker," you shouldn't spell it that way, and it's important to remember to include the "U" when writing the word.

LISTSERV

"LISTSERV" is the brand name of one kind of electronic mail­handling software for distributing messages to a list of subscribers. Other common brand names are "Majordomo" and "Listproc". You can subscribe to the poodle­fluffing list, but not the LISTSERV. People at my university, where only Listproc is used, often (and erroneously) refer to themselves as managers of "listservs." English teachers are frequently tripped up when typing "listserv" as part of a computer command; they naturally want to append an E on the end of the word. According to L­Soft, the manufacturer of LISTSERV, the name of their software should always be capitalized. See their Web site for the details: http://www.lsoft.com/manuals/1.8d/user/user.html#1.1

"LITE" SPELLING

Attempts to "reform" English spelling to render it more phonetic have mostly been doomed to failure­­luckily for us. These proposed changes, if widely adopted, would make old books difficult to read and obscure etymological roots which are often a useful guide to meaning. A few, like "lite" for "light," "nite" for "night," and "thru" for "through" have attained a degree of popular acceptance, but none of these should be used in formal writing. "Catalog" has become an accepted substitute for "catalogue," but I don't like it and refuse to use it. "Analog" has triumphed in technical contexts, but humanists are still more likely to write "analogue."

LITERALLY

Like "incredible," "literally" has been so overused as a sort of vague intensifier that it is in danger of losing its literal meaning. It should be used to distinguish between a figurative and a literal meaning of a phrase. It should not be used as a synonym for "actually" or "really." Don't say of someone that he "literally blew up" unless he swallowed a stick of dynamite.

LITTLE OWN/LET ALONE

When Tom writes "I don't even understand what you're saying, little own agree with it" he is misunderstanding the standard phrase "let alone." In the same context many people would say "never mind."

LITTLE TO NONE/LITTLE OR NONE

The expression "little or none" is meant to describe a very narrow distinction, between hardly any and none at all: "The store's tomatoes had little or none of the flavor I get from eating what I grow in my garden." The mistaken variation "little to none" blunts this expression's force by implying a range of amounts between two extremes.

LIVED

In expressions like "long­lived" pronouncing the last part to rhyme with "dived" is more traditional, but rhyming it with "sieved" is so common that it's now widely acceptable.

LOATH/LOATHE

"Loath" is a rather formal adjective meaning reluctant and rhymes with "both," whereas "loathe" is a common verb meaning to dislike intensely, and rhymes with "clothe." Kenji is loath to go to the conference at Kilauea because he loathes volcanos.

LOGIN, LOG­IN, LOG IN

There is a strong tendency in American English to smoosh the halves of hyphenated word and phrases together and drop the hyphen, so we commonly see phrases such as "enter your login and password." This is a misuse of "login" since logging in involves entering both your ID and password, and "login" is not a proper synonym for "ID" alone, or "user name" ­­commonly abbreviated to the ugly "username". Such mash­ups are influenced by the world of computer programming, where hyphens and spaces are avoided.

If you would prefer to use more standard English, it would be appropriate to use "log­in" as the adjectival phrase: "Follow the correct log­in procedure." But the verb­plus­adverb combination should not be hyphenated: "Before viewing the picture of Britney you'll need to log in."

"Log on" and "log­on" mean the same thing as "log in" and "log­in" but

are less common now.

LOGON/VISIT

You log on to a Web site by entering your ID and password. If you are merely encouraging people to visit a site which has no such requirement, it is misleading to ask them to "log on" to it. News reporters often get this wrong by reporting how many people "logged on" to a particular site when they mean "visited." "Visit" or just "go to" will do just fine.

LONG STORY SHORT/TO MAKE A LONG STORY SHORT

The traditional expression "to make (or cut) a long story short" is now commonly abbreviated by omitting the first phrase: "Long story short, I missed my plane." Although there's a certain appeal to the notion of abbreviating an expression about abbreviation, the shorter form sounds odd to people not used to it.

LOSE/LOOSE

This confusion can easily be avoided if you pronounce the word intended aloud. If it has a voiced Z sound, then it's "lose." If it has a hissy S sound, then it's "loose." Here are examples of correct usage: "He tends to lose his keys." "She lets her dog run loose." Note that when "lose" turns into "losing" it loses its "E."

LOSER/LOOSER

A person who's a failure is a loser, often a "real loser." If something is loosened, it becomes looser. If you've written "a" before "looser" you've made a mistake­­you need "loser."

LOZENGER/LOZENGE

"Lozenger" is an archaic spelling still in use in a few American dialects. It is occasionally mistaken for a singular form of "lozenges." The standard spelling is "lozenge."

LUSTFUL/LUSTY

"Lusty" means "brimming with vigor and good health" or "enthusiastic." Don't confuse it with "lustful," which means "filled with sexual desire."

MAC/Mac

Apple's Macintosh computers are usually referred to as "Macs" for short. Windows users unfamiliar with the usual way of rendering the name often write it as if it were an acronym, in all caps: "MAC."

But a MAC is something quite different. Every computer on a network has a Media Access Control number; so when your IT support person asks you for your "MAC address," don't say you don't have one just because you

use Windows. Don't ask me how to find the MAC address for your Windows computer though; I'm a Mac user.

MACABRE

"Macabre" is a French­derived word which in its original language has the final "ruh" sound lightly pronounced. Those who know this are likely to scorn those who pronounce the word "muh­COB." But this latter pronunciation is very popular and blessed by some American dictionaries, and those who prefer it sometimes view the French­derived pronunciation as pretentious. It's up to you whether you want to risk being considered ignorant or snooty.

MAJORITY ARE/MAJORITY IS

"Majority" is one of those words that can be either singular or plural. Common sense works pretty well in deciding which. If you mean the word to describe a collection of individuals, then the word should be treated as plural: "The majority of e­mail users are upset about the increase in spam." If the word is used to describe a collective group, then consider it singular: "A 90% majority is opposed to scheduling the next meeting at 6:00 A.M." If you are uncertain which you mean, then choose whatever form sounds best to you; it's not likely to bother many people.

MAJORLY/EXTREMELY

"Majorly," meaning "extremely" is slang and should not be used in formal writing, or even speech if you want to impress someone. "Brad was extremely [not 'majorly'] worried about the course final until he got around to reading the syllabus and found out there wasn't one."

MAKE PRETEND/MAKE BELIEVE

When you pretend to do something in a game of fantasy, you make believe.

MANTLE/MANTEL

Though they stem from the same word, a "mantle" today is usually a cloak, while the shelf over a fireplace is most often spelled "mantel."

MANUFACTURE/MANUFACTURER

When your company makes stuff, it manufactures it; but the company itself is a manufacturer. Both in speech and writing the final R is often omitted from the latter word.

MARITAL/MARTIAL

"Marital" refers to marriage, "martial" to war, whose ancient god was Mars. These two are often swapped, with comical results.

MARSHALL/MARSHAL

You may write "the Field Marshal marshalled his troops," but you cannot

spell his title with a double "L." A marshal is always a marshal, never

a marshall.

MARSHMELLOW/MARSHMALLOW

Your s'mores may taste mellow, but that gooey confection you use in them is not "marshmellow," but "marshmallow." It was originally made from the root of a mallow plant which grew in marshes.

MASH POTATOES/MASHED POTATOES

You mash the potatoes until they become mashed potatoes.

MASS/MASSIVE

When the dumb Coneheads on Saturday Night Live talked about consuming "mass quantities" of beer they didn't know any better, but native Earth humans should stick with "massive" unless they are trying to allude to SNL. "Mass" is often used by young people in expressions where "many" or even the informal "a lot of" would be more appropriate.

MASSEUSE/MASSEUR

"Masseuse" is a strictly female term; Monsieur Philippe, who gives back rubs down at the men's gym, is a masseur. Because of the unsavory associations that have gathered around the term "masseuse," serious practitioners generally prefer to be called "massage therapists."

MAUVE

"Mauve" (a kind of purple) is pronounced to rhyme with "grove," not "mawv."

MAY/MIGHT

Most of the time "might" and "may" are almost interchangeable, with "might" suggesting a somewhat lower probability. You're more likely to get wet if the forecaster says it may rain than if she says it might rain; but substituting one for the other is unlikely to get you into trouble­­so long as you stay in the present tense.

But "might" is also the past tense of the auxiliary verb "may," and is required in sentences like "Chuck might have avoided arrest for the robbery if he hadn't given the teller his business card before asking for the money." When speculating that events might have been other than they were, don't substitute "may" for "might."

As an aside: if you are an old­fashioned child, you will ask, "May I go out to play?" rather than "Can I go out to play?" Despite the prevalence of the latter pattern, some adults still feel strongly that "may" has to do with permission whereas "can" implies only physical ability. But then if you have a parent like this you've had this pattern drilled into your head long before you encountered this page.

ME EITHER/ME NEITHER

Inside a longer sentence, "me either" can be perfectly legitimate: "whole­wheat pie crust doesn't appeal to me either." But by itself, meaning "neither do I," in reply to previous negative statement, it has to be "me neither": "I don't like whole­wheat pie crust." "Me neither."

MEAN/MEDIAN

To find the mean (or average) of a series of numbers, for example 1,2,3,4,5 & 6, add them all together for a total of 21; then divide by the number of numbers (6) to give the mean (or average) of 3.5.

In contrast, when half the data of a set are above a point and half below, that point is the median. The difference between mean and median can be quite significant, but one often sees the terms used wrongly even in technical contexts.

MEANTIME/MEANWHILE

Although most authorities now consider these words interchangeable, some people still prefer to use "meanwhile" when it stands alone at the beginning of a sentence: "Meanwhile the dog buried the baby's pacifier in the garden." They prefer "meantime" to be used only in the expression "in the meantime": "In the meantime, the dog chewed up my last tennis ball."

MEDAL/METAL/MEDDLE/METTLE

A person who proves his or her mettle displays courage or stamina. The word "mettle" is seldom used outside of this expression, so people constantly confuse it with other similar­sounding words.

MEDIA/MEDIUM

There are several words with Latin or Greek roots whose plural forms ending in A are constantly mistaken for singular ones. See, for instance, "criteria" and "data." Radio is a broadcast medium. Television is another broadcast medium. Newspapers are a print medium. Together they are media. Following the tendency of Americans to abbreviate phrases, with "transistor radio" becoming "transistor," (now fortunately obsolete) and "videotape" becoming "video," "news media" and "communications media" have been abbreviated to "media." Remember that watercolor on paper and oil on black velvet are also media, though they have nothing to do with the news. When you want to get a message from your late Uncle Fred, you may consult a medium. The word means a vehicle between some source of information and the recipient of it. The "media" are the transmitters of the news; they are not the news itself.

MEDIEVAL AGES/MIDDLE AGES

The "eval" of "Medieval" means "age" so by saying "Medieval Ages" you are saying "Middle Ages Ages." Medievalists also greatly resent the common misspelling "Midevil."

MEDIOCRE

Although some dictionaries accept the meaning of this word as "medium" or "average," in fact its connotations are almost always more negative. When something is distinctly not as good as it could be, it is mediocre. If you want to say that you are an average student, don't proclaim yourself mediocre, or you'll convey a worse impression of yourself than you intend.

MEDIUM/MEDIAN

That strip of grass separating the lanes going opposite directions in the middle of a freeway is a median. But if you're trying to achieve a balance between extremes, you're trying to strike a happy medium.

MEMORIUM/MEMORIAM

The correct spelling of the Latin phrase is "in memoriam."

METHODOLOGY/METHOD

A fondness for big words isn't always accompanied by the knowledge of their proper use. Methodology is about the methods of doing something; it is not the methods themselves. It is both pretentious and erroneous to write "The architect is trying to determine a methodology for reinforcing the foundation now that the hotel on top of it has begun to sink."

MFR./MFG.

"Mfr." is the abbreviation for "manufacturer" and "mfg." is the abbreviation for "manufacturing." Acme Mfg. Co. is a mfr. of roadrunner traps.

MIC/MIKE

Until very recently the casual term for a microphone was "mike," not "mic." Young people now mostly imitate the technicians who prefer the shorter "mic" label on their soundboards, but it looks distinctly odd to those used to the traditional term. There are no other words in English in which "­ic" is pronounced to rhyme with "bike"­­that's the reason for the traditional "mike" spelling in the first place. Although the new spelling has largely triumphed in casual usage, editors may ask you to use the older spelling in publication.

MIDRIFT/MIDRIFF

"Midriff" derives from "mid­" and a very old word for the belly. Fashions which bare the belly expose the midriff. People think of the gap being created by scanty tops and bottoms as a rift, and mistakenly call it a "midrift" instead. In earlier centuries, before belly­baring was in, the midriff was also the piece of cloth which covered the area.

MIGHT COULD/MIGHT, COULD

In some American dialects it is common to say things like "I might could pick up some pizza on the way to the party." In standard English, "might" or "could" are used by themselves, not together.

MIGHT OUGHT/MIGHT, OUGHT

In some dialects it's common to say things like "you might ought to [pronounced oughta] turn off the engine before changing the spark plugs." If you want to sound educated, you might want to avoid this combination. If you want to sound sophisticated you definitely ought to.

MIGHT HAS WELL/MIGHT AS WELL

You might as well get this one right: the expression is not "might has well" but "might as well."

MILITATE/MITIGATE

These are not very common words, but people who use them­­especially lawyers­­tend to mix them up. "Militate" is usually followed by "against" in a phrase that means "works against": "His enthusiasm for spectacular collisions militates against his becoming a really effective air traffic controller."

"Mitigate" means almost the opposite: to make easier, to moderate. "His pain at leaving was mitigated by her passionate kiss." It should not be followed by "against."

MIND OF INFORMATION/MINE OF INFORMATION

A book, a person, or any other source stuffed with gems of useful knowledge is a mine of information, a metaphorical treasure trove of learning. The information involved may or may not be in someone's mind.

MINER/MINOR

Children are minors, but unless they are violating child­labor laws, those who work in mines are miners.

MINORITY

In the US the term "minority" frequently refers to racial minorities, and is used not only of groups, but of individuals. But many authorities object to calling a single person a minority, as in "We hired a minority for the job." Even phrases like "women and minorities" bother some people. They think it should be "members of minorities."

MINUS/HYPHEN

When baffled computer users phone Support they may say they have a Model

AB "minus" 231. In the model name "AB­231" the linking character is a hyphen, though "dash" will do. "Minus" makes no sense in such contexts, but is so common that support personnel have begun to adopt it too.

MINUS WELL/MIGHT AS WELL

When you see the way some people misspell common phrases you sometimes feel you might as well give up. It's simply amazing how many people think the standard phrase "might as well" is "minus well."

MISCHIEVIOUS/MISCHIEVOUS

The correct pronunciation of this word is "MISS­chuh­vuss," not "miss­CHEE­vee­uss." Don't let that mischievous extra "I" sneak into the word.

MISNOMER

A misnomer is mistake in naming a thing; calling a debit card a "credit card" is a misnomer. Do not use the term more generally to designate other sorts of confusion, misunderstood concepts, or fallacies, and above all do not render this word as "misnamer."

MISPLACED STRESS

"We WILL be descending shortly INTO Denver," says the flight attendant, sounding very weird. People who have to repeat announcements by rote­­including radio station­break announcers and others­­often try to avoid sounding like monotonous robots by raising and lowering the pitch of their voices at random and stressing words not normally stressed: mostly prepositions and auxiliary verbs. One has to sympathize; imagine having to repeatedly lecture a planefull of people on seat­belt use when you know for a fact the only adults on board likely not to know already how to fasten a buckle are too demented to understand what you're saying. But the absurd sing­song into which many of these folks fall is both distracting and irritating, making them sound like malfunctioning robots. Those who speak in natural voices, stressing main nouns, verbs, and adjectives where it makes sense, are much easier to listen to.

MIXED­UP MEDIA

Mixed media can be great; mixed­up media not so much.

Books are published, movies and musical recordings released, and plays and TV shows premiered.

Movies are shown, plays staged, and TV shows broadcast.

Technically recordings get deleted (from catalogs) or withdrawn rather than going out of print like books (which may also be remaindered: sold at discount, or worse­­pulped). However, there is a strong tendency to use "out of print" for all kinds of media: CDs, DVDs, etc. Movies and stage shows close or end their runs, but only stage shows fold.

MONEY IS NO OPTION/MONEY IS NO OBJECT

The expression "money is no object" means that cost is no obstacle:

you're willing to pay whatever is required to get what you want.

People who don't understand this unusual meaning of "object" often substitute "option," saying "money is no option," which makes no sense at all.

MONO E MONO/MANO A MANO

"Mono e mono" is an error caused by mishearing the Spanish expression "mano a mano" which means not "man­to­man" but "hand­to­hand," as in hand­to­hand combat: one on one.

MORAL/MORALE

If you are trying to make people behave properly, you are policing their morals; if you are just trying to keep their spirits up, you are trying to maintain their morale. "Moral" is accented on the first syllable, "morale" on the second.

MORAYS/MORES

The customs of a people are its mores. These may include its morals (ethics), but the word "mores" is not synonymous with "morals." Some eels are morays, but they aren't known particularly for their social customs, though both words are pronounced the same.

MORE IMPORTANTLY/MORE IMPORTANT

When speakers are trying to impress audiences with their rhetoric, they often seem to feel that the extra syllable in "importantly" lends weight to their remarks: "and more importantly, I have an abiding love for the American people." However, these pompous speakers are wrong. It is rarely correct to use this form of the phrase because it is seldom adverbial in intention. Say "more important" instead. The same applies to "most importantly"; it should be "most important."

MORESO/MORE SO

"More so" should always be spelled as two distinct words. It is also overused and misused. Wherever possible, stick with plain "more."

MOST ALWAYS/ALMOST ALWAYS

"Most always" is a casual, slangy way of saying "almost always." The latter expression is better in writing. The same is true of "most every," "most all" and related expressions where the standard first word is "almost."

MOTHERLOAD/MOTHER LODE

Although you may dig a load of ore out of a mother lode, the spelling

"motherload" is a mistake which is probably influenced by people thinking it means something like "the mother of all loads." A "lode" was originally a stream of water, but by analogy it became a vein of metal ore. Miners of precious metals dream of finding a really rich vein, which they refer to as a "mother lode," most often spelled as two words, though you also commonly see it spelled as one.

MOTION/MOVE

When you make a motion in a meeting, say simply "I move," as in "I move to adjourn"; and if you're taking the minutes, write "Barbara moved," not "Barbara motioned" (unless Barbara was making wild arm­waving gestures to summon the servers to bring in the lunch). Instead of "I want to make a motion . . ." it's simpler and more direct to say "I want to move. . . ."

MUCH DIFFERENTLY/VERY DIFFERENTLY

Say "We consistently vote very differently," not "much differently." But you can say "My opinion doesn't much differ from yours."

MUCUS/MUCOUS

Mucous membranes secrete mucus. "Mucus" is the noun and "mucous" is the adjective. It's not only snotty biologists who insist on distinguishing between these two words.

MUSIC/SINGING

After my wife­­an accomplished soprano­­reported indignantly that a friend of hers had stated that her church had "no music, only singing," I began to notice the same tendency among my students to equate music strictly with instrumental music. I was told by one that "the singing interfered with the music" (i.e., the accompaniment). In the classical realm most listeners seem to prefer instrumental to vocal performances, which is odd given the distinct unpopularity of strictly instrumental popular music. People rejoice at the sound of choral works at Christmas but seldom seek them out at other times of the year. Serious music lovers rightly object to the linguistic sloppiness that denies the label "music" to works by such composers as Palestrina, Schubert, and Verdi. From the Middle Ages to the late eighteenth century, vocal music reigned supreme, and instrumentalists strove to achieve the prized compliment of "sounding like the human voice." The dominance of orchestral works is a comparatively recent phenomenon.

In contrast, my students often call instrumental works "songs," being unfamiliar with the terms "composition" and "piece." All singing is music, but not all music is singing.

MUST OF/MUST HAVE

"Must of" is an error for "must have."

See "could of/should of/would of."

MUTE POINT/MOOT POINT

"Moot" is a very old word related to "meeting," specifically a meeting where serious matters are discussed. Oddly enough, a moot point can be a point worth discussing at a meeting (or in court)­­an unresolved question­­or it can be the opposite: a point already settled and not worth discussing further. At any rate, "mute point" is simply wrong, as is the less common "mood point."

MYRIAD OF/MYRIAD

Some traditionalists object to the word "of" after "myriad" or an "a" before, though both are fairly common in formal writing. The word is originally Greek, meaning 10,000, but now usually means "a great many." Its main function is as a noun, and the adjective derived from it shows its origins by being reluctant to behave like other nouns expressing amount, like "ton" as in "I've got a ton of work to do." In contrast: "I have myriad tasks to complete at work."

N'/'N'

In your restaurant's ad for "Big 'n' Juicy Burgers," remember that the apostrophes substitute for both omitted letters in "and"­­the A and the D­­so strictly speaking it's not enough to use just one, as in "Big n' Juicy."

By so doing, you'll improve on the usage of McDonald's, which has actually created the registered trademark "Big N' Tasty.'

NAME, PRONOUN

In old English ballads, it is common to follow the name of someone with a pronoun referring to the same person. For instance: "Sweet William, he died the morrow." The extra syllable "he" helps fill out the rhythm of the line.

Though this pattern is rare in written prose it is fairly common in speech. If you say things like "Nancy, she writes for the local paper"; people are less likely to think your speech poetic than they are to think you've made a verbal stumble. Leave out the "she."

The same pattern applies to common nouns followed by pronouns as in "the cops, they've set up a speed trap" (should be "the cops have set up a speed trap").

NAUSEATED/NAUSEOUS

Many people say, when sick to their stomachs, that they feel "nauseous" (pronounced "NOSH­uss" or "NOZH­uss") but traditionalists insist that this word should be used to describe something that makes you want to throw up: something nauseating. They hear you as saying that you make

people want to vomit, and it tempers their sympathy for your plight. Better to say you are "nauseated," or simply that you feel like throwing up.

NAVAL/NAVEL

Your belly button is your navel, and navel oranges look like they have one; all terms having to do with ships and sailing require "naval."

NEAR/NEARLY

Some dialects substitute "near" for standard "nearly" in statements like "There weren't nearly enough screws in the kit to finish assembling the cabinet."

NECK IN NECK/NECK AND NECK

When a race is very tight, it's described not as "neck in neck" but "neck and neck."

NEICE/NIECE

Many people have trouble believing that words with the "ee" sound in them should be spelled with an "IE." The problem is that in English (and only in English), the letter I sounds like "aye" rather than "ee," as it does in the several European languages from which we have borrowed a host of words. If you had studied French in high school you would have learned that this word is pronounced "knee­YES" in that language, and it would be easier to remember. Americans in particular misspell a host of German­Jewish names because they have trouble remembering that in that language IE is pronounced "ee" and EI is pronounced "aye." The possessors of such names are inconsistent about this matter in English. "Wein" changes from "vine" to "ween," but "Klein" remains "kline."

NEVADA

"Nuh­VAH­duh" is a little closer to the original Spanish pronunciation than the way Nevadans pronounce the name of their home state, but the correct middle syllable is the same "A" sound as in "sad." When East Coast broadcasters use the first pronunciation, they mark themselves as outsiders.

NEVER THE LESS, NOT WITHSTANDING\NEVERTHELESS, NOTWITHSTANDING

For six centuries we have been spelling "nevertheless" and "notwithstanding" as single words, and today it is definitely not standard to break them up into hyphenated or non­hyphenated multiword phrases.

NEVERMIND/NEVER MIND

The standard spelling of this phrase is as two words: "never mind." The popularity of the alternative one­word form "nevermind" was certainly enhanced by its use in 1991 as the title of a bestselling Nirvana album. "Nevermind" can look immature or

slangy to some readers. You can still be cool by imitating the vocabulary choice in the title of another famous album: "Never Mind the Bollocks: Here's the Sex Pistols."

In expressions like "pay him no nevermind" where the word means "attention" it's always one word, but those expressions are both slangy and old­fashioned.

NEW LEASE OF LIFE/NEW LEASE ON LIFE

Reinvigorated people are traditionally said to have been granted not a "new lease of life" but a "new lease on life." After all, you take out a lease on a house, right? Same thing.

NEXT/THIS

If I tell you that the company picnic is next Saturday it would be wise to ask whether I mean this coming Saturday or the Saturday after that. People differ in how they use "next" in this sort of context, and there's no standard pattern; so it's worth making an extra effort to be clear.

In the UK the distinction is made clear by saying "Saturday next" or "Saturday week."

NEXT STORE/NEXT DOOR

You can adore the boy next door, but not "next store."

NIEVE/NAIVE

People who spell this French­derived word "nieve" make themselves look naive. In French there is also a masculine form: "naif"; and both words can be nouns meaning "naive person" as well as adjectives. "Nieve" is actually the Spanish word for "snow." "Naivete" is the French spelling of the related noun in English.

If you prefer more nativized spelling, "naivety" is also acceptable.

NIGGARD

"Niggard" is a very old word in English meaning "miser" or "stingy person." Americans often mistakenly assume it is a variant on the most common insulting term for dark­skinned people. You may embarrass yourself by attacking a writer for racism when you see it in print; but since so many people are confused about this it might be better to use "miser" and "stingy" instead of "niggard" and "niggardly."

NINTY/NINETY

"Nine" keeps its E when it changes to "ninety."

NIP IT IN THE BUTT/NIP IT IN THE BUD

To nip a process in the bud is to stop it from flowering completely. The

hilariously mistaken "nip it in the butt" suggests stimulation to action rather than stopping it.

NOBLE PRIZE/NOBEL PRIZE

Nobel laureates may indeed be intellectual nobility, but the award they get is not the "Noble Prize" but the "Nobel Prize," named after founder Alfred Nobel.

NONE

There's a lot of disagreement about this one. "None" can be either singular or plural, depending on the meaning you intend and its context in the sentence. "None of the pie is left" is clearly singular. But "None of the chocolates is left" is widely accepted, as is "None of the chocolates are left." If it's not obvious to you which it should be, don't worry; few of your readers will be certain either.

NONPLUSSED

"Nonplussed" means to be stuck, often in a puzzling or embarrassing way, unable to go further ("non"="no" + "plus"="further"). It does not mean, as many people seem to think, "calm, in control."

NOONE/NO ONE

Shall we meet at Ye Olde Sandwyche Shoppe at Noone? "No one" is always two separate words, unlike "anyone" and "someone."

NO SOONER WHEN/NO SOONER THAN

The phrase, "No sooner had Paula stopped petting the cat when it began to yowl" should be instead, "No sooner had Paula stopped petting the cat than it began to yowl."

NOT

You need to put "not" in the right spot in a sentence to make it say what you intend. "Not all fraternity members are drunks" means some are, but "All fraternity members are not drunks" means none of them is.

NOT ALL

The combination of "not" and "all" can be confusing if you're not careful about placement. "All politicians are not corrupt" could theoretically mean that no politician is corrupt; but what you probably mean to say is "Not all politicians are corrupt" When "not all is a minority, it's sometimes better to replace "not all" with "some." "The widescreen version is not available in all video stores" can be made clearer by saying "The widescreen version is not available in some stores."

NOT ALL THAT/NOT VERY

The slangy phrase "not all that" as in "the dessert was not all that tasty" doesn't belong in formal writing. "Not very" would work, but something more specific would be even better: "the pudding tasted like library paste."

NOT HARDLY/NOT AT ALL

"Not hardly" is slang, fine when you want to be casual­­but in a formal document? Not hardly!

NOTATE/NOTE

To notate a text is to write annotations about it. This technical term should not be used as a synonym for the simple verb "note." It is both pretentious and incorrect to write "notate the time you arrived in your log."

NOTORIOUS

"Notorious" means famous in a bad way, as in "Nero was notorious for giving long recitals of his tedious poetry." Occasionally writers deliberately use it in a positive sense to suggest irony or wit, but this is a very feeble and tired device. Nothing admirable should be called "notorious."

The same goes for "notoriety," which also indicates a bad reputation.

NOW AND DAYS/NOWADAYS

Although it used to be hyphenated on occasion as "now­a­days," this expression is nowadays usually rendered as a single unhyphenated word. Some folks mistakenly think the expression is "now and days," which makes no sense.

NUCLEAR

This isn't a writing problem, but a pronunciation error. President Eisenhower used to consistently insert a "U" sound between the first and second syllables, leading many journalists to imitate him and say "nuk­yuh­lar" instead of the correct "nuk­lee­ar." The confusion extends also to "nucleus." Many people can't even hear the mistake when they make it, and only scientists and a few others will catch the mispronunciation; but you lose credibility if you are an anti­nuclear protester who doesn't know how to pronounce "nuclear." Here's one way to remember: we need a new, clear understanding of the issues; let's stop saying "Nuke you!"

NUMBER OF VERB

In long, complicated sentences, people often lose track of whether the subject is singular or plural and use the wrong sort of verb. "The ultimate effect of all of these phone calls to the detectives were to make them suspicious of the callers" is an error because "effect," which

is singular, is the subject. If you are uncertain about whether to go with singular or plural condense the sentence down to its skeleton: "The effect . . . was to make them suspicious."

Another situation that creates confusion is the use of interjections like "along with," "as well as," and "together with," where they are often treated improperly as if they meant simply "and." "Aunt Hilda, as well as her pet dachshund, is coming to the party" (not "are coming").

A compound subject requires a plural verb even if the words which make it up are themselves singular in form: "widespread mold and mildew damage [not damages] the resale value of your house."

NUMBERS

If your writing contains numbers, the general rule is to spell out in letters all the numbers from zero to nine and use numerals for larger numbers; but there are exceptions. If what you're writing is full of numbers and you're doing math with them, stick with numerals.

Approximations like "about thirty days ago" and catch­phrases like "his first thousand days" are spelled out. Large round numbers are often rendered thus: "50 billion sold." With measurements, use numerals: "4 inches long." Never start a sentence with a numeral. Either spell out the number involved or rearrange the sentence to move the number to a later position.

See also "50's."

NUPTUAL/NUPTIAL

"Nuptial" is usually a pretentious substitute for "wedding," but if you're going to use it, be sure to spell it properly. For the noun, the plural form "nuptials" is more traditional.

(Common Errors in English by Paul Brians)