I came across the following in a newspaper column. the Bergthold blarney was in fine fettle I tend to think of people, horses, and things such as businesses as being “in fine fettle,” so seeing the expression applied to “blarney” stopped me in my tracks. blarney – flattering, persuasive speech, often with the intent to … Read more
A reader writes: I have problems with lying and laying. Â Is there an easy way to make sure I am using the right one? The distinction is easy enough, but this particular usage is on the endangered list and may not survive into the next generation of English speakers. Knowing the difference between lying and … Read more
Commenting on That First Page, a reader remarks: Then there is the story of Orwell’s novel being rejected by American publishers because “American readers don’t like animal stories!” Publishers and agents alike have turned down books that finally made it into print and immortality. Two books devoted to the subject give details of now embarrassing … Read more
The day after Christmas, December 26 (according to the Western tradition), has its own holiday associations. St. Stephen’s Day, or the Feast of St. Stephen – Saint Stephen is the protomartyr (first martyr) of the Christian church. Tradition says that Saul, later to be known as Saint Paul, held the coats of the men who … Read more
A reader asks: Is it just me, or does the “Dear” seem a little awkward when starting a business letter to someone whom you have never met or communicated [with]? If I have to call someone “Mr.” or something similar, is this person really dear to me? I had to laugh because I had a … Read more
Many of the traditional Christmas songs in English contain words or references that have changed in meaning or fallen out of common use. The familiar “Deck the Halls with Boughs of Holly” (words from 1881), has several words that may stump native and non-native speakers alike. Deck in the title is a verb meaning “adorn.” … Read more
One of the sessions at a writer’s conference I attended was set up like an episode of American Idol. Three New York agents played the part of the judges. Instead of performers, typed sheets of paper were the objects of their attention and wounding remarks. Conference participants submitted the first three pages of the novels … Read more
A reader suggests addressing “the difference between data and information.” Both information and data are types of knowledge, a concept for which English has numerous words. The various words are used in different ways, according to context, but here’s an effort to differentiate some of them. information – “knowledge obtained from investigation or communication.” Detectives … Read more
A reader asks: How much description or dialog that may be “unnecessary” to the plot is acceptable if it contributes to “atmosphere” or characterization? Short answer: Nothing “unnecessary” belongs in your novel. But this reader’s question is not about padding his novel with “unnecessary” dialog. The question is really one of proportion. What proportion of … Read more
The three English words demon, daemon, and daimon all derive from Greek δαίμων (daimôn), the word for a spirit that served as a link between the human and divine spheres. Daimons could be benevolent or malevolent. They were much lower in the divine hierarchy than gods like Jupiter and Diana. In first century Rome, a … Read more
The other day I received a letter that directed me to refer to an enclosed “buck slip.” I’d never heard the expression, but I figured out that what was meant was a printed insert. Apparently this term, along with “lift note,” is common in the world of direct mailing: …there’s really very little difference between … Read more
In the old days, publishing companies that catered to writers who were willing to pay to have their books printed were called Vanity Presses. Family historians aside, writers who paid to publish were assumed to have failed in selling their work to a “real” publisher because it wasn’t good enough, but they were determined to … Read more